I fully agree with you. I am right in this dilemma. Here in Canada there is for sale on a used audio site a Supernait 3 - 5000.CAD, a Supernait 2 - 3150 CAD and an nDac - 1500.CAD…
The nDac is rarer on the second-hand market, I might opt for it for this reason…I’ll think about it…and .quickly. Lol
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Very interesting, I did not know this brand of cable. Have you heard the comparison in test with the hi-line?
I’m on the website…
Thank you
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We all do things a bit differently and I don’t think there is any wrong choices.
My preference would be to pick up the SN2 and not buy the NDAC and take the money you would have spent on it and trade in the ND5XS2 for a NDX 2.
I had that combination for awhile and it was fabulous.
Good luck with your decisions, have fun along the way and enjoy the music!
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If the screen ain’t important an ND5xs into an NDAc would be at least the equal of or better than the NDX2… also the dac would give that lift to any future streamer you changed to as well…
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Ive never had a hiline.
I would aim to maximise the boxes that you currently have, rather than buying new ones.
I’ve had great results with Witch Hat interconnects, found them much more appealing and better value than the Naim versions. So I would look at interconnects, speaker cabling. Then also ensure you have your speaker positioning nailed (you can’t spend too long tweaking this, and it costs nothing!) Then you can look at equipment racks and isolation, and see if there is anything simple you can do to improve room acoustics, eg adding a rug or a bookshelf can work well.
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An ndac would cost under a grand, not enough to add to his ND5 to afford a used ndx2, the streaming side of his ND5 is similar to ndx2 and the ndac is a better dac than ndx2 has so it would be less expensive and offer better sq to get the ndac, he then also has a top shelf digital hub plus the value of his ndac is stable (whereas an ndx2 will depreciate as new products displace it)
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That is what some people do.
For me the NDX 2 in my system is fantastic and the music sounds sublime. For me I am just not interested in having another box in the mix with additional cables and cords.
No wrong answer just personal preference.
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thank you all for your great advice.
There are two avenues that emerge from your comments: adding the ndac or using a hiline.
On the second-hand market there is an ndac available but sold with an external non-Naim power supply. The price is above what I wanted $2500. CAD.
An audiophile dealer advised me the ndac and the Chord qutest. I asked him and he told me that the naim was probably the best choice for not having listening fatigue (which is a priority for me) while the qutest brings more details and separation. The ndac seems designated as you suggested.
I will do a hiline test from my naim store soon too.
thank you all!
happy new year 2023 filled with good music
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