Thanks, and sorry if I missed stuff you’d written earlier. It’s just so strange that some people with very similar systems to yourself just aren’t finding the same thing. You’d think that if something was ‘wrong’ then everyone would hear it. What might be happening to cause some people to actively dislike it, while others are as happy as Larry. That’s a rhetorical question of course.
Actually that is not correct, the ‘loudness wars’ was first fought on radio… to make radio play tracks stand out from others, the method was first used in the 1940s in the US and spread from there.
As far as ethernet cables etc - I really would use standardised CAT cables and stear clear of audiophile cables that have not been certified to the appropriate international standards - as one can’t determine what these audiophile products are doing to modify noise floors etc. I have suggested many several times over the years on this forum, and we might be seeing an effect of using such products.
I have no idea if the stated cables that are being used by some who are expiericning the affects of digital noise interaction comply with the appropriate ISO/IEC standard such as ISO/IEC 11801 Class D, Class E etc, but if they are compliant and certified then you can rule out those likely being the ‘exciter’ of the issues.
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Fully agreed.
The difference is not small the impact very disturbing .
It has nothing to do with sigma. I have tested catsnake and all the rest. Sigma is the most smooth and laid back cable and with the new fw even sigma can not tame it. The sound is hard and in your face. I like the forward sound a lot, but it comes with so much edge enhancements.
When it was a tv instead I would say, that you have maxed out edge enhancement, which sharpens the picture on the first look (2 seconds) but than you realize that all the reality is gone and it looks artificial.
Maybe I buy an nds and sell the nd555. I really think I can not wait so long without knowing if I ever get back my beloved sounding streamer.
And with nds I can go back with fw - with nd555 naim sadly does not allow this.
But it is exactly the case that people with similar systems found the same. Most similar are geko and mine. But also others here (and friends from geko with 500 systems) hear the same. That not only the 2 of us!
Have you tried it without the Shunyata and any other non-Naim cables that may be in your system?
Again, I’d feel a little less concerned if this was the case but three close friends with 500 systems are all having the same issues. As is my dealer with their shops ND but as I’ve written earlier a lot will depend on the levels you play your system at. Low volume levels can sound fine, even quite impressive as this is where the treble/bass boost sounds good. Start to push the system and it just falls apart. I expect that it’s the big system owners noticing this first as they tend to use the volume levels much more?
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Yes - we (sorry to speak for geko) have tried everything.
The difference is not subtle, you can not correct this via cable!
At very low volume mine sounds good, but it falls apart at mid volume and the higher it gets the worse. There is sibilance and shouty voices I have never recognized before.
Mostly I stop listening after 15 min do something else in order to forget.
Very interesting, thanks.
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After talking of removing audiophile bits I decided to remove the ADOT system now the update is in place…. It was never so obvious as it is now, I now realise how important these items are in an audiophile set up. It sounded slow lumpy and no treble all soft and mushy. Glad I tried it and feel happy I went for it. As for the update I did move my speakers a little and for whatever reason it’s now sounding the best I have ever heard. I was told a complete power down may help. I wonder if it Is also system dependent! I went from what is this to nirvana! This now sounds a little like my old Naim set up of old, love it!
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If not including the software in this. What is a second 555PS adding to ND555. Where does it take the higher frequencies for example?
I doesn’t fundamentally change the sonic signature it just adds a further level of dimensionality, timbre accuracy, naturalness and realism. What you hear is more musical layering and the finer detail contained within it. Very much like you hear when you drop the noise levels within the streaming environment.
Audirvana is very good sounding - but be aware all of this is not available in UPnP-mode so would require a great deal of hardware-shuffling to a Naim system.
Newer Audirvana makes use (on a Windows box) of features like the new KERNEL_STREAMING introduced with Windows 10.
So I dont think switching to Audirvana is a solution, even temp, to Naims problems. My simpleton guess they have done something (with processor activity) causing jitter, HF-distortion which many (even audiophiles) sometimes appreciates as better detailing. They should try an alternative listening panel, at least temporary.
A source component is not the place to adapt to customer listening level preferences. You do this (as you probably have) with amp-selection so all sources benefit.
Fully agreed!
I have done it completely as you mentioned. Therefore it is so bad that the source now falls out of the specification I have developed for so long.
Then how come those with an ND5 XS2 feeding an NDS hear a difference with the FW upgrade?
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No it’s not limited to the inbuilt streamer DACs - I hazard a guess the noise profile through EM and ground plane - possibly affects/modulates the master clock and power lines. This clock drives the DSP and DAC. The DSP controller is used for digital and analogue outs.
I hear differences in firmware with my NDX2 into a DAVE - though it is subtle - and possibly less obvious than using the analogue outputs from the streamers - it’s noticeable.
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Interesting and surprising. I’m glad I don’t stream online so have no need of firmware updates!
I am also struggling with this version on some music more than on other types. The Bass I can handle as here I find a permutation on settings that sort that out. It should not require that or be impacting it in this way - but it is and does so until a later iteration from Naim appears I’m just exploring what I need to set to get rid of the tendencies to glare in HF on recordings where that predominates and matters more.
I’ve posted recently my settings so I won’t keep doing that, but today I had got fed-up with searing HF on a female vocal piece and found putting ‘digital 2: on’ clobbered that back to being able to listen to it with the prospect of enjoying it ahead. As you say it is fatiguing and I’m not a machine so need breaks to recover. I obvioulsy do not think I should be doing this, but it is what it is right now. The Digital 2 input is one I normally turn off as it always seems to add a grainy noise at low-level, but now it seems to notch-out the HF shout effect.
I originally went for the ‘dark naim sound’ which for me has geat natural bass, good textured midband and no nasty glare in the HF. I think this has taken Naim aback somewhat in the firmware release polarising people, but I think they are going to look into what is happening.
DB.
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