Ready for an upgrade

Hi

I have nd5 xs2 and nait xs2 combined with a rega rp1 and regs phone plus klipsch rp-150m.

I’m wondering if the system would benefit from anything upgraded or added. I don’t want to
Upgrade the speakers or record player. Speakers because my daughter pokes them and record player because she insists on touching it when it spinning. But if there is a discreet upgrade I’d be interested. Ultimately are the speakers the bottleneck now?

Thank you

HiCap DR or perhaps even a SN3, that could also drive the TT. Speakers are always room and listener dependent to an extent. I used PMC’s when I had my XS to great effect.

Plus 1 for either of the above suggestions. I’d suggest a demo beforehand of whatever you consider purchasing if possible. Once you’ve decided it could be worthwhile asking you dealer about trade ins or if they have an ex demo unit available. I’m just in the process of trading in my sn3 and picking up some ex demo and heavily discounted stuff in its place.

When i had my ND5 XS 2 with a XS 2 i later added a HiCap DR and thought it to be pretty worthwhile. But then again it teased me into getting a SN3 & NDX 2 as well (:rabbit2: hole).

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Thank you for the thoughts and opinions so far.

The Sn3 is tempting me more as it avoids another box.

If you have a phonostage you are happy with you can get a SN2 (which lacks an internal MM input) for less, they tend to be available used often and typically less than 10 years old meaning a service isn’t in the budget.
I used a HiCap DR on my NAIT XS (v1 + v2) with positive results, that stayed and moved to other setups and in fact you could use it later even on a NAC 282 for example so it’s a very useful supply you can grow with.
If it was me doing it again i’d be inclined to just go straight to a SN3 and avoid the HiCap DR unless your intention longer term is to multiply your box count, before you know it you can easily be at 4 or 5 boxes. I’d say a sweet spot in terms of performance/box count is a SN3 + NDX2 which was my previous system till quite recent. I went from an XS2 to a SN2 then later a SN3 as well as moving from an ND5 XS2 to an NDX2. When I moved to the SN3 and soon after the NDX2 I traded in the HiCap DR and ended up with a 2 box setup.
What also helps and what I had was a Fraim rack, Hi-Line DIN interconnect and Powerline mains to give the final refinements.
Even from that point you can always add external power supplies later if you choose to based on space and budget but if setup properly you’ll still have a very capable 2 box setup with a SN3 + NDX2 as a goal.
If you go in that direction you’ll find your speakers become a bottleneck, so also aim to try out alternatives with a mind to eventually refine that system element, i’d sort out the other parts first.

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The two things to upgrade are the two things you say you can’t. I wouldn’t do anything at this point, and wait until your daughter can understand not to touch things.

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Daughters - and Sons - do ‘upgrade’ themselves, given time and care… :slightly_smiling_face:

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A second-hand SN3 would be an upgrade that doesn’t increase box count, as would replacing ND5XS2 with NDX2, and either might be worth hearing.

However, I suspect that @HungryHalibut is right - if you don’t want to increase box count and don’t want to replace turntable or speakers, then I’d suggest saving your money and doing nothing for now.

Trouble is, it doesn’t seem very long after that they start arriving at the door with little clones in tow!!
:rofl:

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Your speakers are clearly the weakest item, turntable is entrylevel and can easy be upgraded with a P3 or P6.

What is the system sitting on, especially the Rega? This can make a surprisingly big difference, upgrading every component at the same time.

I agree whilst children are inquisitive its a good part of their development , however owners have paid thousands of pounds for hi fi systems and I feel boundaries should be in place regarding not to touch expensive equipment. I know I’m wide open to criticism now but if children wreak your hi fi who’s to blame :thinking::thinking:

Regs sits on a solid timber shelf undearneath the tv which is wall mounted. Speakers also sit on this shelf but they have iso acoustic stands as separation.

To be honest I barely use the rega at the minute with a young child. Mostly streaming.

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