Source First or System Synergy?

You are in a great place with open options and no new direction locked, so you can turn a new page. As mentioned above, I would also say that you might need to decide OC or NC first and not just because there is a current offer from Naim.
The NC is simpler, easier, can be leaner in box numbers and sounds awesome (to me).
I’ve had the ND5XS2, later the NDX2 and now the NSC222 as streaming DACs. When I added the latter, I knew that the only further thing I wanted to replace is my amp section for the NC250 - which you can do in your own time and, actually depending on the need for your room and speakers.

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However getting the speakers as good as possible suiting your taste (and room) as early as possible when system building works better for music listening in my experience, provided you have a reasonably good source (NDXS2 certainly is), and subject to the amp being able to control them adequately. But of course at this stage we don’t know if the OP has attended to that aspect.

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Are you saying that they start to physically break down?

Yes, disc rot and bronzing being the main culprits, the higher the storage humidity and temperature, the fastest the degradation is likely to occur.

Disc rot:

  • Oxidation of the reflective layer.
  • Galvanic reaction between layers and coatings.
  • Breaking down of disc materials, particularly of the adhesives between layers.

Bronzing:

  • A brown discoloration (mold) starting at the edge and working its way towards the middle.
  • The outer coating of the CD erodes, leaving a silver layer exposed, which then tarnishes.

It is basically a question of when. The promise of perfect sound forever was a sham.

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I have CD’s I bought in the eighties and I have stored them in a cupboard. They are all still perfect. I have not had any bronzing.

All plastics, even vinyl, have a finite life span. Servers where your CD’s are stored have an even shorter lifespan.

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Hi All,

Thanks so much for all of your responses. I’m really grateful for the advice and suggestions and you’ve given me lots to think about!

I think this is a really good point; it’s a luxury to be able to choose from various good options! Aesthetically, keeping to the XS range would make sure everything looks great, but listening pleasure if my main goal. :slight_smile:

@Thegreatroberto @anon9602469 – Yes, I think defining my end goal is the issue and I’m really torn between NC and OC… I suspect I’d be all in on the NC if there were a seperate streaer and preamp in the 200 series, but I can see why that might not make so much for Naim these days. Alas, I think the 300 series is out of reach, so perhaps that’s pointing me towards OC…

Thanks! That’s really useful to know.

This really is the struggle… I’m not clear which route I want to go, so will spend some time with my dealer and let my ears be the judge. Reading through the replies has really helped me to clarify that this is the heart of my dilemma and hesitation.

I’m using a Sound Organisation rack at the moment. I’ve had it for many years and although it does the job, I’m sure I could do better, and a Fraim is on my wish list. Perhaps I should go for the ND5 XS2 and put the saving towards a better rack?

I have Naim Intro IIs, and I’ve updated my profile to show this. I know they’re a bit long in the tooth and weren’t all that popular, but there’s much about them I enjoy and I find my foot tapping more often than not.

My room is a bit challenging. My system is set-up in a thin and long, upstairs room of a 1980s extension, so it’s a suspended floor with just air between the floor boards and the ceiling of the room downstairs. I find that whatever speakers I try in this room tend to lack bass – there’s certainly no ‘slam’ – and the same speakers sound much better on the solid floor in the lounge.

I’m not complaining though, and I know I’m fortunate to be able to have a room set-up for music and reading, and it means I can enjoy my system without stopping others from watching TV, so that helps with domestic harmony! :wink:

I guess it should be a new thread, but I wonder if I upgrading the speakers should be a priority. What’s the general view on this?

Yes, listening to music is the absolute priority. I just want to get the most enjoyment from my favourite pastime.

I think I’d like the keep the CD player spinning for as long as possible, but I have been ripping the discs themselves for a few years now. I still like buying new CDs, and I enjoy the tactile sensation of getting a disc from the shelf, putting it in the player and pressing play, but I know the player won’t last forever…

Thanks for this insight; that’s really helpful.

I have emailed my dealer now! :slight_smile:

Thanks again everyone. I really appreciate your help. I think this forum is one of the things that makes owning and using Naim so enjoyable.

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One very important thing to bear in mind if you do decide to run both a Naim CD player and a Naim Streamer side by side with both connected at the same time to the pre-amp; the CD player has a signal to earth connection, so be sure to set the streamer signal earth to “floating” - that will maximise the performance of each.

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I’m all too familiar with this. I have a home office in the eaves of our garage. It’s exactly the same so, like you, a lot of bass simply vanishes. Even big Isobariks with a CB250 sounded like standmounts. My desk is in an alcove so I do get a little bass reinforcement but the centre of the room is very bass light.

I’ve not had a modern Naim active system but that might enable you to tune the bass. You certainly can on Linn analogue active or digital active systems.

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No, sorry for the blunt answer, if you’re changing the source get the NDX2, as good as the 5XS if you think you’ll want a NDX2 in the longer term go for it now.

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My view is as follows…source is important very important providing you have the other fundamentals sorted. I found that the speaker/amplifier relationship is super critical - and then of course the speaker positioning in the room - goes along with this. You don’t need huge expensive speakers - just ones that gel and get the fundamentals right for you - I notice you don’t mention speakers - what have you got and what is your room. Maybe this side of things is just great…in which case source is important, preamp and so on…

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Another thought is that pre-amp is in reality part of the source, so get to 282 level as soon as possible.

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Sorry just seen in the thread what you have…nice speakers…are they designed to fit tight against a wall??? If you have a long narrow room how have you positioned them? If these speakers require a touch of bass reinforcement (aka wall boundary) and if you have pulled the speakers out into the room a bit…you could be changing the balance quite a bit. If you can - try pushing them up toward the end wall…or even experiment firing cross ways across the room. The other thing is the amp is very nice but its current driving ability could possibly be a limiting factor. This is where a good dealer could really help. Back along I marched my VTL amps along to a dealer and tried 10 sets of speakers - the difference in drive between various speakers was amazing…let us know how you get on.

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One last thing…your speakers are getting long in the tooth…so it would be a good idea to replace the crossover parts - retaining the original values of course…some nice big meaty wire wound inductors and quality caps…hard wired would really chear things up…and give you a little extra…all round.

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I have over 1500 CDs and have seen CD rot on two discs. Many are close to 40 years old and play fine. Probably less common that perceived in the wild. Synergy always prevails imo.

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I am inclinded to agree… the expecially synergy between amp/speakers and room… The source makes a big difference…but I think only when fundamentals snap into focus.

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Both. I would argue that the source is part of the fundamentals of a sound system. As I’ve gone from Atom HE to NSS333/NAC332 I’ve noticed a significant change in frequency extension, especially in the bass response when related to the points in this thread. Now given that bass extension has arguably a more potentially deleterious effect in your room, then both source and system synergy are equally important, in my experience. In fact, system synergy implies the whole system and must include the room as part of that. We’ve had several customers visit us recently who have moved house and they say that the sound of their system has gone to pot, so that would suggest the room as much a part of a sound system as the components in it.

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Yep ok…my experience is when I improved the source to ND555 with twin power supplies…the bass tightened and the control was better…this helped my room issues. My point is this does work and is very important…but the amp/speaker/room synergy is key…if your amp can get hold of the speakers and the room compliment the sound field… then this is a great foundation and the source will only make it better guaranteed… One of the best value upgrades without a doubt was my room treatment…strange as it may seem this actually increased the percived level of detail…right across the spectrum.

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ND555 with 2 x CD555PS is certainly going to help and if you start with this, the path to glory is much more clearly lit!

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I’m not surprised at all…

Same here, over 2,000 cd’s purchased since 1985. Just two disc that show bronzing and both play perfectly. Perhaps storage conditions plays a part in the degradation of some discs ?. But i think it is pure hyperbole to state all cd’s will be a affected over time.

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