Recently I switched my nac202/hicap dr for a pre-loved nac252/supercap dr. I was aspecting to get more focus in presentation and more depth and clearity as I had. But to be honest… I feel a little disappointed. It seems to me that there is some more control and clearity at the bass but no effect in presentation, depth and clearity. It’s no more involving then it was.
The rest of the set is nap250 dr, ndx2 with a hi-line. I use chord epic to drive the Dynaudio Evoke 30.
Could it be necessary to recap the supercap dr (from 2012)? Can it be the cause of my disappointment? How do I know it is necessary…
I also would like to connect the supercap to the nac202 and see what happens. I have read in this forum and naim site that it can be done. But I am not shure in how, any help would be nice.
The hicap is not in my house anymore, otherwise I could do a perfect comparison.
I’d suggest giving the 252 more time. Personally, I find the 252 a bit on the boring side but it’s a fine amplifier that will dig much deeper into the music than the 202. The 202 with Supercap is likely to sound a bit turbocharged- very exciting, and certainly more exciting than the 252. You need to see through that to the music beneath. The 252 needs careful setup with the Burndy unstressed with no twisting, hanging free and with the Snaic running as close as possible to it. Form the Burndy into the right shape before connecting it.
I agree with @anon4489532 I am not the first owner of a 252 to put it in the system and think OH NO what I have done
my 252 was from new and took about a week to bed in and then a couple of weeks to find it’s feet but when it does! , but like HH says the 252 does have a soft muscial sound stage which I love
So, it is not like connecting a 282 to supercap? I’m not feeling sure about the connections…
As I understand:
snaic 5 from supercap (the left connection in your cirlce) to “Upgrade 2 or link 1” connector from nac202.
I am not sure how to use the din - xlr. Can you point it out for me?
I have setup the supercap and 252 as carefull as I could, but I will give it another look. I also will give the 252 some time and hopefully it sounds more revealing in a week.
No issue with recapping the supercap, you think?
Using the below 282 connection guide to connect a supercap use the supercap socket that utilises upgrade 1 connection path to the 202, cable on the left with the black line going through it
The set is not placed in a high-end rack. I use a wooden furniture my wife has choosen for me…
The 252 stands on the supercap, the ndx2 is standing on the nap250dr. Not perfect, I know… but is it really influences the performance in any way?
Thanks also for your help connecting the 202. As i understand now, I use just one snaic5 for connecting the 202, instead of two snaic5’s when connecting a 282.
As I understand now from HH, the din/xlr goes to the 250dr.
Essentially the bottom row of the supercap is the same as the HiCap but on the supercap the 202/282 pre is connected to the left whereas on the HiCap it’s on the right
If the 252 stands directly on the Supercap it has no chance whatsoever of sounding at its best. The power supplies and head units need to be separate. The NDX should not sit on the 250. If that’s all you can manage I’d sell the 252, Supercap and 250 and get a Supernait 3. Put them side by side and be happy.
That is a little bit painfull but honest answer. But I won’t be suprised if you have the truth on your side.
I find myself between curiosity and possibility. Because of that I bought this pre-loved set to find out. Mayby the hard way. I guess I want more then I can get, given the limits I have in my home situation. What I can do, is a test where every unit has it’s own ground. See/hear what happens…
252 top left, NDX bottom left - 250 top right, super cap bottom right.
This keeps the bigger transformers inside the 250 and super cap further away from the more sensitive boxes (252, NDX). The Naim preamps tend to prefer a little space around them, most notably they don’t really like boxes placed above them, so keep the 252 on the top shelf where possible.
This should give you the best results provided you can route the cables between the boxes nicely, with as little contact between them and other surfaces as possible.
A little time spent here, trying to route them away from each other and keeping them away from surfaces (if you can), will bring worthwhile results. This is particularly worthwhile with the Burndy cables with the exception that the snaic cable that runs from the super cap to the 252 should be run closely alongside the burndy. I don’t have a 252, but I understand that most 252 owners tend to be in agreement with running those two cables close together between the super cap and 252. Be careful not to twist the burndy though; manipulate it gently or this can cause issues.
You should find that to be the optimum setup. Longer term, consider what your boxes sit on and how that can affect their performance. I know, this all sounds daft - but believe me, it does make a difference with your level of equipment and it’s just something you need to consider if you want to get your money’s worth out of your all that hard earned you’ve spent!
Hi Jason, thank you for your helpfull writing.
I hope to re-setup the whole system in the weekend. I will follow your suggested set-up. As I understand now, the transfomers of the nap250 and supercap are located at the right, so it make sense to put them both on the right.
I also brought the burndy and snaic gently together with a tread to get them together as close as possible.
When done I could posed a picture. The wooden furniture I use is by far not a high-end audio-rack. Neitherless, I hope for some improvement.
