The Ndac is sensitive to the inputs
Audirvana is a really nice piece of software with a mac . The optical is inferior to a decent usb cable eg Vertere into a converter. I used a Bryston one but there are others such as Musical Fidelity etc.
The digital cable to connect from there needs ideally to be bnc ended
555ps is fantastic with the Dac
I agree. Audirvana and USB to Optical to Naim DAC is working well for me.
I have not tried the Gustard. I use a Meridian Explorer 1.
Nick
You are joking ā a Ā£500 streamer didnāt sound any better than Ā£10k-ish Naim front-end?! What a disappointmentā¦ 
Front end and middle.
You can get a 272 for Ā£1500.
I made the comparison. I had my HDX going through an nDAC (+XPS) but wanted to stream Tidal/Qobuz so bought the NDX2. Very comparable sound to the nDAC, which has now gone to a new home.
I am using a Roon endpoint based on a Raspberry Pi and an Allo DigiOne HAT which is connected to the DAC. In addition I have all my other sources (e.g. Sky receiver, CD player) connected to the DAC. For me that (and the remote control functionality ) was one of the main reasons I decided to go for a Naim DAC vs. something like a Chord Qutest. I will have to do a bit more listening before a final verdict about sound quality improvements but initial impressions are positive.
Next step is to upgrade the UQ (maybe a NAP140 which might look cool) or replace it with e.g. a NAIT XS.
Hi, got a SH Ndac from a dealer and connected it to my ND5-XS2 with a Chord Clearway digital BNC to RCA cable. I upgraded the firmware. Streaming from Tidal hifi or from ripped CD sounded more or less the same either directly from the ND5XS2ās own Dac or via the Ndac, if the Ndac was better its marginal. I thought I will hear a great difference. I heard a difference when upgraded from Nait-5I to SN3 and then when added Hi-Cap DR. Cost of adding Ndac with 555PSDR (used) will be about the same as upgrade the ND5-XS2 to a new NDX2 (and less if I can find SH NDX2 and sel my nd5) so this is the dilemma, anyone??
Bare Ndac is nothing like one with a PS on- had Ndac xsp2 maci mini converter which was far better than the NDX1 with PS. Bare Ndac again better than NDX on its own
Very surprising. Adding a nDAC to my ND5xs2 made a noticable difference in my system. Iām looking forward to the day when I add a PS. All this being said the ND5xs2 is really really good by itself.
@marcusman ; ā¦ and we have same system, apart of speakers and coax cable
To which SN3 input did you connect the Ndac output.
There is no setting in Ndac or SN3 that may make performance change or is there?
I connected the output of the nDAC DIN to the āstreamā input DIN of the SN3. Nothing special on the connection or settings. Iām using a Hiline DIN cable. One thing you may want to check is to make sure the ND5xs2 and nDAC are ground correctly. I have my ND5xs2 using āfloatā and the nDAC set to āchassisā
I have a naim ch 5i so this is grounded. I will disconnect and change grounding setups.
BTW either way the overall sound is great
Best of luck. You can ask @JimDog what he thinks of the nd5xs2>nDac combo and a few others Iām sure. Again nothing wrong at all with the nd5xs2 I lived with it alone for months until I stumbled upon a SH nDAC. Iām just a little surprised that you didnāt notice an improvement adding a nDAC.
Maybe the Ndac needs some service? Some have reported recently that some Ndac can sound great and others average. One member returned something like 3 Ndac and kept the fourth.
Good call frenchrooster! Maybe the firmware as well. Mine has the latest firmware.
Maybe that too , yes. 
My Ndac is 11 years old. Logo gone dim. I dont think its a piece of kit you need servicing.
Wonder in bnc bnc was used from the ND5 into the Dac
What parts of the NDAC get replaced during a service?
NeilSNaim Staff
Analogmusic
Hi, it would be all the reservoir capacitors in the power supply stage.
Regards
Neil.
As long as one Naim source is grounded the others should be set to float.
I wasnāt aware of any regular servicing requirements on a Naim DAC otherwise Iād have asked Darran to do it.
Mineās powered by an XPS (Olive) - would there be any benefit to having the DAC serviced?