Just had a long flight and now 8 hours ahead in Hong Kong. What a pleasure to wake Sunday morning and find your report, which I’ve read over several times and studied with a cup of tea.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and delighted for you. Can’t wait to read your thoughts again when you’ve lived with your nDAC and new system, for maybe a few months.
As you suggest, the nDAC is such a great machine. And versatile too. We use ours for so many things. It started out as a simple upgrade for our CD5 XS cd player. Along the way, have used it to test and try so many streamers. It gets moved around our house, between rooms, to use with other disc players, occasionally movies, also with TV’s.
For example, each year when the BBC do their coverage of Glastonbury festival, we set things up to watch this and listen with the nDAC doing honours with the PCM stereo audio feed.
Also, use it with iPhone and iPads, for streaming various bits of content. Via the front USB port.
Most significantly, it lifts the capable ND5 XS2 to something a little more special. For the money, one of the best upgrades out there…
Sure. And others too.
I’m not the only advocate for the humble nDAC, so many others on the forum highlight its worth, such as @IainO and @marcusman@JimDog and one or two others.
Now that you have one, might notice how many (check user profiles) quietly use and enjoy this lovely box of tricks. If you look back, several have posted above. In fact, thinking about how nDAC’s are used, it’s fascinating to see the breadth of Naim systems in which an nDAC is employed.
Your very articulate summary mirrors my own experience with the same ND5 XS2 into the nDac. @JimDog’s words on the subject initially spurred me on to acquire a nDac and I somehow managed to pay top dollar for a pre loved 2018 nDac; no regrets at all. I don’t have the same reference point in the NDX2 as you do but the whole idea of squeezing more out of less is a real draw for me…(he says as his box count rises). I will be looking at power supplies for the nDac, probably after a speaker upgrade, no rush on either front tho’ as I’m really enjoying what I have. My cable is a Mark Grant but now have a DC-1 on the way. Curiosity and all that… Thanks again to you and this supportive group.
Hi Ratrat, Ha ha! Got into a bidding war with another likeminded individual…but yes a good move. I bought my Neat Ministras (more out of less…) for a smaller room. I must confess they came alive when I moved from XS3 to SN3. They’re an easy listen and so my first thought was move up a notch to the bigger Majistra. If I could justify it I would be aiming for the Kudos 505 but honestly I’m not sure it would be money well spent - at least for me. Foorstanders would require a major persuasive assault on my other half so I’d be sticking with stand mounts.
My set up is in the sitting room and its stone floor and walls softened by the usual furnishings 7x7m. My music is very eclectic but ultimately biased towards rock, guitar and vocals and some electronic…
What are you thinking on the speaker front?
Be very interested to get your thoughts on the DC-1 when it arrives, enjoying a similar setup, bought the same cable just to get up and running, enjoy your new addition.
Don’t forget to include a demo of the new Rega Aya speakers as an outside contender.
Coming from the Neats they could possibly surprise you, some similarities, some differences. Small floorstanders in a very different design that may either really appeal (positive votes here) or not appeal at all (some just want to have wood). In any case they’re crackers soundwise, but way below the envisaged budget and perhaps less resolving, but real fun.
On the other end of the scale Dynaudio Contour 20i are very fine standmount speakers.
Way below the envisaged budget is good! It’s good to hear opinions/recommendations as I start to scheme…
In the meantime I’ve just realised that the used DC-1 I’ve ordered is RCA terminated. As I’m away from my kit can anyone tell me whether the Naim BNC/RCA adaptor in the box is a female RCA to male BNC? Any downside to using adaptors? Thanks in advance…
Yes there are downsides, also our forum host has recommended not going the adapter way.
There are people who have a need for the RCA-BNC version whereas you would be compromising on a not exactly cheap cable. So personally I would try to return it or sell it off again to fix that. Or you could keep it if you would possibly connect another digital source to the nDAC at some point. Depends on what you paid for it of course. In any case I would look for the BNC-BNC version. They do pop-up from time to time, especially in the UK.
extra physical connections are added which are never ideal, and could slightly degrade the digital signal, though likely very marginal, and possibly could add microphony… again minimal…
phono sockets and connectors can’t have 75ohm CI because of their physical dimensions, in addition the adapter very unlikely to provide true 75ohm CI, so losses and reflections will increase/occur, as they will with a phono plug and socket, but in practice this is likely to have minimal if any noticeable effect for regular hifi lengths of SPDIF coax cables.
So if you can avoid adapters, then do, but if you can’t don’t fret.
Consumer SPDIF coax has a very tolerant physical interface… which is why phono plugs and sockets happily work on SPDIF coax links.
Thanks again to you and this supportive group.
