Hi all, considering UG’ing the NDX2 to ND555 so headed off to reassure my left brain to do so by reading tech spec for both. “There we go lefty, I told you we should make that purchase, its a no brainer! It’s got loads more clever bits and the numbers certainly confirm this. Let’s get the credit card out immediately!”
However looking at tech spec side by side there doesn’t appear to be very much different, well, in fact nothing. Now, I know there will be benefits from the additional isolation and shielding but can someone point me to the numbers or at least the clever bits that likely I won’t understand fully but I can make the case to Lefty? TIA.
Tech specs of the wavs and flacs etc won’t show a difference, it’s the build that will. Look inside. The 555 has the internals floating inside a big brass cage.
“… the ND 555 takes this to another level [compared to the NDS]. The new Faraday cage system is now physically isolated from its environs and it is radio-opaque to a much higher frequency, thus considerably reducing any possible noise.”
Also “ ND 555 features an incredibly powerful new 4th Generation 40-bit SHARC DSP processor, the ADSP 21489 capable of 2700 MFLOPS running at 450 Mhz.”
Lots of other differences in how the sound gets out of the box.
The big differences include some that you don’t really see in a list of tech specs:
The external 555PS which the ND555 uses, although this can be added to the NDX2 as an optional upgrade.
Putting the circuit boards on suspended brass plates.
More internal DR regulators.
I m electronic engineer and the most important lesson I learned is that what you listen are not measurements or specs, they are part of the story but the substantial part is a project deployed after thousands of listening hours and refinement. 555is simply another level compared to ndx2 and your ears will suggest you the same. I really think that the naim r&d team is a dream one and I admire @110dB like none else in his work
Thank you and couldn’t agree more. However, given the cost jump between NDX2 and ND555 I wanted to refer to spec which I think is a reasonable starting point but agree the proof of the pudding is certainly in the eating!
I went from:
NDX2+XPSDr to NDX2 + 555DR PS- very nice upgrade
Next I went to ND555 + 1 555DR PS- another nice upgrade
If I had your system and wanted to upgrade I would first get 555DR PS and add that to your NDX2.
David
Upgraded my original NDX to a ND555 several years ago had a couple problems with the ND555 my dealer installed a NDS on th first occasion then a NDX2 on the second.
Wasn’t impressed with NDS the NDX2 was very good but can’t match the ND555 by some margin
I think those specifications are mostly functional specifications, I suspect those of the ND5 XS2 are probably pretty similar as well. By functional specification I mean two amplifiers might both have a volume control and 3 RCA inputs, but be at opposite ends of the performance spectrum.
I think, as others have suggested, they don’t tell anything like the performance story between the two. I wonder if there is a set of measurements that would, and suspect you’d be better off looking at other forums, dedicated to such measurements, if that’s what you’re after. Even then I think there are strong opinions both ways regarding how much technical specifications can tell you about perceived audio quality. Hopefully you can listen for yourself before deciding. And if not, just trust Naim, they would not be where they are today if their product tiers didn’t produce meaningful upgrades in SQ. (ducks for cover )
The specs only tell so much. The real question is, where is the best bang for my buck, or what can i afford.
What i can afford is my ndx2 and 555psu. Can it be better, well yes. Can i afford it, maybe. Am i happy where i am, for now yes.
Open a cottage for tourists at your countryside French place, during 3 months, and you can buy an Nd555.
Joking of course, as the French legislation is not friendly.
Sure, but the NDAC, NDS and ND555 all sound quite different to me. I would surmise that any differences between these and the NDX2 are down to many more factors than just the DAC chip.
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