In one last throw of the Naim DAC dice, I reconnected the Powerline to it and replaced the coax cable I’d been using with another spare I had lying around.
Mmmm. . . so, now I can most definitely hear sonic improvements when streaming from Bluesound Vault into the DAC.
Not quite sure why an identical and ordinary QED cable (and Powerline) have made a difference to what I’d previously heard but it’s there.
I’ve been listening for a few hours today and I’m liking what the Naim DAC can do. That is with the Vault more so than the Marantz CD player.
The more complex the music - Druqs by Aphex Twin, some Jeff Beck 70s stuff and Madlib’s mixes & mashings - the more apparent what the Naim DAC presents comes to the fore.
The NDAC, in common with the older Naim streamers, is quite sensitive to setup, so I wonder if you might be able to optimise it further. Do you have it on its own shelf on a proper rack, cables hanging free? These things seem to matter.
Interested in your journey.
I have similar Naim amp, source and ProAc speakers.
What made a nice improvement for me was a secondhand Hi-Line (din to din) cable.
Nothing else is particularly forward in the system so this filled out mids and highs and made bass more tuneful.
On this alone I’d recommend but……
Cable collar has broken after a month just hanging in its sockets.
If Naim can fix with more robust material I’d fully recommend but I’m not there yet.
Best.
Our 2011 nDAC was serviced when we got it. Both dealer and naim said it didn’t need it but due to unit age and lack of provenance we chose to have it done. They replaced the power caps, that was it.
