Hi, I have a NAC 70 feeding a NAP 250 into passive Kabers. My original idea was to use the Kabers as acktiv, so I bought a second NAP 250, with the intention of getting a third at so point. However, when my dealer told me that a NAXO/SNAXO would not be compatible with the Kabers, I sought of gave up. That was quite a while ago.
Recently, however, I saw an IXO for sale and couldn’t resist. So I am on the point of getting Wilmslow Audio to whip out the passive crossovers and see how it is.
Before I do that, though, I would like to check if anyone knows whether I am making a big mistake. I know that the Linn Aktiv crossover from mid to treble is set at 2800KHz, whereas the IXO does it at 2700KHz. Will that make a big difference? Also, as the Kabers are three way and the IXO is a 2 way Xover, I was intending to strap the mid and bass drivers together. I’m a little worries that this will make the LF a bit muddy.
I would like to make use of the second 250 and I have heard that the Kabers are especially good in activ mode, but I would rather not have to reverse the whole process.
I don’t think an IXO (designed for two way Naim speakers) will be at all right for your Kabers - it sounds like you’re on the verge of making a mistake here.
I’d be inclined to look out for a pair of Allaes or Credos to go with the IXO. I would imagine that with a pair of serviced 250s and some properly terminated NAC A5 this would make for a rather riveting system (provided the source & pre-amp are up to snuff).
Now I know what an IXO looks like - and roughly what it does. Its clearly a 2 way active crossover, not a 3 way. I assume the pots on the back are to adjust the level - and do not alter the crossover frequencies…?
The Linn Kaber is a 3 way speaker, I believe. I would go with @Stephen_Tate advice above. Look for a Naim speaker to match the IXO.
Or… you need to find a 3 way crossover which will work with the Kabers.
As you have two 250s you can use them for passive biamping, with one feeding the treble and one feeding the mid and bass. There is clear guidance in the Kaber manual.
Thanks for that advice @Stephen_Tate . Unfortunately, (or not) I really like the Kabers, and this is a tricky one to get over, so does my wife. So at present, I would rather change boxes than speakers.
BTW, I have had both 250s serviced in the last year and the room is fully wired with the Naim cable purchased with the original system.
The source could do with an upgrade. The new NSC 222 streaming pre-amp is tempting me. Do you, or anyone else, know how well that works with the earlier versions of 250?
@HungryHalibut , I thought I was bi-amping but when playing with the IXO, I realised that only one output from the HiCap actually has a signal. So everybody talks about bi-amping but I don’t know how to achieve it, given the way the NAC72 and HiCap are wired to the 250. Any advice would be uesful.
That is how I had it, but only one (No. 1) I think is giving a signal. The others give barely a crackle. Do you think in that case that the HICAP has a fault?
