What will adding a Ndac to an ND5XS2 bring

Me?

It’s a can or worms. Don’t go there…
(Only teasing)

It’s maybe a “can of worms”, because the answer has a lot to do with what your ears / brain perceive as the correct or natural sound or best reproduction, compared to what your reference point is. It’s subjective. But I’ll openly declare a bias. I like vinyl.

Having said that, I’ll try to be objective.
The best TT in our house, is our best audio source. I’m thinking about analytic detail of notes, rather than warmer organic sounds typical from vinyl format.

Rega RP6 + Ania Pro + Neo PSU → Rega Aria phono is probably less than GBP 3k and is a very satisfying level. (That’s about same budget as bare ND5 XS2).

Mid level LP12 Selekt is RRP GBP 11k but honestly it’s possible to create a version of this for maybe GBP 5-6k and will out perform most modern streamers. (That’s about same budget as bare NDX2).

Hope that helps your thinking…
Happy to help with any specific questions

BW
R

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Go for an LP12,then you know you have something that’s better than all streamers :wink:

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I totally understand I don’t want to open a can of worms. It’s just me thinking where can I spend money next before I go to the new 300 series.

@lgel. Stop it!! lol

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Do you have a large vinyl collection?

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I don’t at all. It’s just one of those things I’ve wanted to get back into. I have maybe 100+ records in storage somewhere and they are mostly junk or I repurchased the good ones on CD and subsequently ripped them.

Hi ratrat keeping my eye on them, not sure about one of them, condition looks a little off and the price is reasonably high to boot, other one looks more promising.

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Good luck

If it helps further…

Several nDAC’s also available, across EU.

Seen at least two in US. (It’s possible for Naim to reset the PSU, from 115v to 240v, easy, no problem).

Dust or maybe even the odd scuff or mark shouldn’t be an issue. Outer panels can be changed. It’s an easy job, maybe 5-10 min task. Naim dealers can do this for you. (Maybe not fascia though).

Also, Naim can supply replacement cartons packaging. Missing owner manuals can be found. Just ask your local Naim dealer.

With not much effort, pre-loved can be brought back to “nearly new” condition, complete with packaging and accessories, etc, etc,.

A lot of them date from 2009, 2010, 2011, when the nDAC was first released. It looks that most were made and sold around this time. It’s more challenging to find later ones, say 2013 or 2015 or what ever. But they can be found. Saw one s/n = 2013 in Florence, Italy @ EUR 1,300 only last week.

Google is your friend. Keep looking. It’s all part of the fun of this hobby.

KR
R

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An idea occurred to me.
Why not enter into a little experiment?

Some how, at home or at your local dealer, set up a demo of two TT combinations and compare with your existing streaming based system.

For example

  1. Rega P6 + Ania MC → Aria phono →
  2. Rega P10 + Alpheta 3 MC → Aura phono →

(Sorry for suggesting Rega. It’s not about Rega, per se. It’s about what vinyl can do at different reasonable price points. Those two combinations should be easy for any dealer to set up - from typical demo stock - and compare)

Play same tracks on both formats : streaming from your existing system ; compare with both TT levels.

Comparing TT(1) with your ND5 XS2 → nDAC.
Or TT(2) with your ND5 XS2 → nDAC + psu.
Fair comparisons, both comparable budgets.
(There. Got that bit in to stay on topic) :wink:

See what you think?

I’m sure most dealers would do that for a prospective customer. If you’re not convinced, fair enough. You’ve not lost anything or spent money. But you’ve now got a fix on what vinyl can do. Curiosity satisfied.

If, however, you like what you hear, then go sideways and start to audition different brands and TT combinations until you find the sound that you like best.

We have both Rega and Linn at home. They are both quite subtly different sounds. You might like Technics or SME or Clearaudio, or whatever?

Good luck.
R

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Thanks for the information, very useful, the outer case on my 282 has a few marks on it and I did wonder if you could get a replacement from Naim, I know when it’s in the rack you can’t see the damage as it’s all to the top of the metal work but it would be nice to be able to renew it, I don’t suppose you have any idea of the cost of the outer case work.

I have missed a few ndacs, not sure what has put me off, maybe condition, age or lack of the original packaging all minor issues, as you pointed out all can be rectified, I think the additional cost of another shelf plus cabling adding to the overall cost hasn’t helped, hence why some of the current Ndx2’s available s/h started to attract my curiosity, more outlay but don’t require another shelf, no extra cabling and selling my Nd5xs2 would help with the overall cost but I think the ndac is an itch I need to scratch.

I think I’m trying to get the streaming side to sound a little closer to my LP12 if that makes sense, at times I think the Nd5xs2 can sound a little edgy but apart from that it’s an excellent piece of equipment.

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@silverback
A few years ago. Not that long, maybe 2-3 years ago. I had a stupid accident and dropped a CD case on to the top of my much loved CD5 XS (same case as ND5 XS2). Was really annoyed with myself, as this left an obvious mark on the top panel. It fell from high enough to leave a scratch and little indent. Anyway, my local dealer swopped it for a new one, supplied from Naim. Sorry, can’t remember the cost. I’ll see if I can find an invoice. Leave that with me…

Thinking about improving your streaming, completely understand the dilemma, when you factor in cables and Fraim et al. The choice is yours…

The nDAC isn’t the only game in town. Many here use and enjoy the Chord alternatives.
FWIW, I’ve tried the Qutest and think it an amazing DAC, (at that price point). At least as good SQ as the nDAC, albeit, its presentation is a little different. If I didn’t already have the nDAC, I might have bought one. I might still buy one, if I ever need a second external DAC. So, you could look at Qutest or maybe s/h Hugo as a credible alternative.

Just curious, how is your LP12 set up, so to understand that last comment better?
(Might be interesting to chat about that topic some more and explore that one)…

Finally, as an aside, I think of these two things differently.
CD and Streaming seems to me a bit like striving towards perfection, with ideal conditions and equipment, as you do in a studio. Yes, sometimes seems a little sterile, and bright or “edgy” sometimes, compared to vinyl. That’s okay.
Vinyl seems to me a bit like a live performance, sounding a little more organic, natural, maybe warmer, complete with imperfections, dependant on venue acoustics and mic’ & PA set up, compared to CD and streaming.
… Both have merit.

Speak again soon
R

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Thanks again for your reply, I have considered going to possibly a Qutest but thought the ndac would keep the Naim signature sound, my dealer did offer to set one up with the Nd5xs2 so I could hear for myself, so always an option.

How from experience did the Qutest compare to the sound signature of the ndac, I do hear some members call it darker in presentation, l like detail but not a clinical sound, my dealer is the opposite, he is not a fan of vinyl just shows how everyone’s tastes are different.

My LP12 actually belongs to a relative it came to me after years of neglect in a pretty poor state, I did post about it in another thread along with a few images of before and after but it’s basically a Valhalla, Ittok with a Goldring 1042 mm, I shave freshened it up with a rebuild, springs, grommets, belt, fresh oil and a new mat and lots of tlc so pretty basic by forum standards but I do enjoy having it in the system.

Just as a side note, have started to put in a dedicated supply, I’m doing the donkey work,flooring up, cables in, mounting the new cu then my friend will do the sparky bit, will save me a bit of money and it shouldn’t take him long so hopefully shouldn’t be too costly, fingers crossed.

Just trying to do anything reasonable to bring slight improvements to my system, we are pretty close to what we want, so hopefully the next few steps with provide a positive effect and get us closer to an end game.

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Quick fire response…
IMHO, dedicated power supply is a huge benefit. (Particularly for Naim amplifiers and their power supplies). Offers a staggering upgrade to any system. Maybe even a bit of an over looked option. Perhaps because of the work and upheaval involved.

Anyway, hands down, definitely worth doing. You’re in for a pleasant surprise.

I’ll try and find time later to come back and chat about some of the other points in your note.

Speak later…

R

This is awesome! Thanks for sharing a way forward for me.

For @silverback I wouldn’t worry too much about the age of a nDAC. It’ll for sure take the edge off the ND5XS2 that was the first thing I noticed when I added one. Will it sound like a LP12? I don’t know for sure but once you get digital right, I think it gets closer and closer (but I only have 2nd hand experience).

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Yes, but not on day 1.

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You are most welcome.
Apologies in advance, if I’m over thinking it, (for you).
But why not just go have some fun and find out.

Good luck
R

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@silverback
Good evening…

When we bought our Innous ZENmini, maybe 18 months ago, we compared our existing nDAC with a Chord Qutest. At the time, we wondered whether to use the Qutest as an external DAC with the ZM.

We preferred the nDAC. It sounds just a little more natural. Less digital.

If we hadn’t already got the nDAC to compare, we would have been happy to use the Qutest. (There may have been a little unconscious bias, as we had been using the nDAC for at least two years with a CD5 XS as a transport). But I remember thinking how impressive the diminutive Qutest was. And costing less than half of the original cost of an nDAC

We are still using the nDAC with our ZENmini. The nDAC will eventually go into another room. So, we might add a Qutest (or even a Hugo) into the house yet.

We will see.

R

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Not over thinking it at all. This is why I love this forum. Why not take advantage of others experience! Saves money in the long run IMHO

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Came across a nice pre loved nDAC with Signals a Naim dealer.

KR
R

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@silverback My thoughts exactly!
An itch for a nDAC to take the edge off the ND5 XS2 and close the gap to the LP12.

@ratrat I just bought the 2013 nDAC from Florence, will report back in due course.

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Ndac is duly purchased many thanks for the heads up, finally, so looking forward to having it in my system, fingers crossed it will work well.
Managed to add other shelf into the podium rack, have changed the spacing which has allowed me another shelf but little or no extra height, little bit of work to do but nearly there.
Just need to sort out a cable pretty sure I have a chord kicking around somewhere it will do till I can manage to pick up a DC-1.

Again many thanks ratrat for the good spot👍

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