Since running my ND555 it’s only ever had a Powerline-lite.
Today I secured Powerline courtesy of ebay, so I’ll be interested to hear if it makes any discernible improvement.
G
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Probably one of Naim’s most effective upgrades (especially at pre-loved prices). Enjoy 
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Power lines are a great upgrade. Our last one for new system arrived by Royal Mail today!
Enjoy👌
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100% agree. I added a (pre-loved) Powerline to my nDAC and I could hear the difference immediately. @GraemeH I’m pretty sure you’ll like the upgrade(in North America we don’t have Powerline-lites)
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Have to admit, I was very sceptical about cables… But they did make a difference!
Worth the upgrade
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Is it true when they first came out Naim gave them away for free? My mate bought a nap 200 & NAC 202 and they threw them in free of charge?
I bought three Powerlines to replace the stock cables on my Moon amp and CD player and the Plixir linear P/S for my Melco. The difference was far from subtle and immediately apparent, although it took a couple of weeks for burn-in and things to settle.
Far more open sound with increased dynamics, detail, bass weight and ‘slam’. All of this in a natural way without any sense of being hyped-up. Moreover simply a more musically communicative performance. In my opinion it would be difficult to achieve these improvements with a box upgrade.
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Power seems to make a huge difference with high end hifi…
I recently upgraded the feed to my man cave from 16amp to 32 amp & run a dedicated 32amp feed to the sockets… and the difference was deeper bass and a much fuller sound…
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The bass is the most noticeable isn’t it…
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I’m bit surprised people seem
to try Powerline and be done. There’s huge differences between most power cables and I’m sure Powerline is not the top of the game even if it is much better than the original one supplied. Shunyata, oephi, Nordost, Audioquest, Furutech and many more make awesome power cables and do that for a living which Naim never did.
No, that’s not right. The PowerLine is supplied with the 500 series kit as part of the package and you can buy them separately for other equipment.
All Naim equipment other than mu-so is supplied in the U.K. with a PowerLine Lite, a very much watered down version that’s basically a standard lead with a bendy mains plug. It’s nothing like a proper PowerLine. It’s almost certain that’s this is what you friend has with their 200. The 202, of course, doesn’t have a mains lead. You can buy a PowerLine Lite separately if you want to ‘upgrade’ a standard lead.
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Yes the increased bass weight and slam is certainly a big part of what the Powerline brings. I have tried a few other expensive power cords long ago in the past and in my experience these resulted in a rather bloated artificially hyped-up bass. I was worried that the Powerline might be similar but not at all. The increase in bass is achieved in a completely natural way so that although there is obviously added weight and slam it doesn’t sound at all bloated or hyped up. It also has a lovely ‘bouncy’ quality that makes the music flow so much better.
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Well if you own Naim kit it’s the obvious choice since it was designed for it. Power cables, or any cables for that matter, can have unpredictable effects in different systems so it can be extremely difficult to arrive at something that best suits your system. The other great thing about Powerlines compared to many expensive power cords is their great flexibility. Not to be under-estimated this - an awful lot of them are ridiculously stiff which can make cable dressing a total nightmare. Also the standard length of 2m is generous which again can aid dressing. Oh, and they sound fabulous too!
Also I have to say that they actually look very well-made and finished. It’s surprising how many very expensive power cords have a distinctly home-made look to them with run-of-the-mill standard mains plugs (sometimes modded to accept thick cable) and loads of ugly heat-shrink everywhere. By comparison Powerlines have a professional factory-made look about them - they actually look as though they are worth the money.
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Agree on that 
Just saying there is a huge market of great power cables and a great ability to fine tune a system with power cables where Powerline not always will be best suited. If you don’t have the time or will to test the market the Powerline for sure is a safe bet but with retailers today you many times can borrow a bunch of cables and evaluate in your system and pick the one that sounds best to your ears. There is also still progress and development in power management so what was true many years back might have been improved today.
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My view, and perhaps I’m a bit old-fashioned and conservative, has always been that if you own Naim equipment then you stick to Naim cables if you want your system to sound as Naim intended it to. Sure you can experiment with different cables if you want to and if you can be bothered with all the comparisons.
One of the great things about the Naim approach is that Naim have done all the work for you. I always really appreciated that as cable selection can be such a nightmare. It can be very easy to make a wrong decision and to find yourself wandering off-track. For instance you may be drawn to a cable that seems to have a smoother treble. It may not be apparent at first but this cable may also be slightly less rhythmically engaging. After six months or so you find yourself wondering why your system doesn’t seem quite so engaging as it used to - so you start to experiment with, well, whatever… You get the picture!
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I agree with you. Vs the stock power cable which goes with Naim equipment, the powerline for sure is a nice improvement. But is it the best and optimal power cable for Naim ? I don’t think so.
I had 2 powerlines that I replaced by Kharma matrix . They gave a more textured sound and more organic too. A bit less expensive too.
( on 250 dr, previously 300 dr and also 555 dr).
Today I have a Chord Sarum t on the 555 dr. A nice uplift still, but no proportional to the high price.
Other enjoy Chord Music on 500 series and say it’s a big upgrade vs the powerline. Anzus, Audioquest are well represented here too.
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Interesting thread. I’m about to go the whole PowerLine full loom. I’ve been very impressed with my first PowerLine installed onto my XPS DR just over a week ago. I’m expecting more of the same with another two of them. Also I like the way they match my HiLine, the quality, the feel and of course the sound signature.
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Don’t forget your GroundAray 
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Yes I agree. As I said it’s surprising how many extremely expensive power cords have such a distinctly home-made feel to them, with poor fit and finish, ugly heat-shrink and using run-of-the-mill mains plugs which sometimes have bits chopped out of them so that thicker cables can be accommodated. You can end up paying several hundred or even thousands of pounds for something that looks as though it was made in a garden shed by an amateur.
When I got my Powerlines I was immediately impressed by the professional feel and finish to them. They look professionally made in a proper factory - not a garden shed. Maybe it’s not important to some people but if I’m paying hundreds of pounds for a mains cable I very much appreciate it being made to professional manufacturing standards rather than looking like a home-made affair.
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Compared to my Audioquest Thunder the Powerline looks like a toy. I’ve never got wow emotions from the Powerline but maybe that’s just me. All this doesn’t matter to me as long as performance is there. In the end most finished goods are a mix of parts from different suppliers, so is it also for Naim. I wonder how many percent of a naim box that is made by naim if you look at the BOM.
I guess only the IEC is made by Naim and the cable is not. And if it is it’s nothing special that a 3 wire 4mm2 cable without a screen. If I don’t remember wrong Naim themselves said that the cable sound crap with most connectors but great with theirs/Furutech. For EU they use Furutech schuko. So nothing different from most cable manufacturers out there. Finding synergy between cables and connectors and assemble it well is something I happily pay someone else to find out. If they put some lipstick on that pig then just great.
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