I've been Naim DAC'ed

Posted by: JYOW on 27 January 2010

I scare myself.

After all the complaining about the DAC not having a computer interface I sold my Weiss DAC2 and picked up a Naim DAC.

Since I did not prepare for this I do not even have a Firewire or USB interface for my Macbook so I ended up connecting it with a cheapo TOSLINK cable with a mini-Jack adapter.

Even with that compromised setup the Naim sounded fantastic out of the box. Very very clean sound. Much cleaner than my memory of the CD5X and similar to Weiss DAC2 sound.

After listening to 1/2 hour of music I find it engages me more than the Weiss DAC. The Weiss was very good but I do not recall it keeping me on my chair as long as the Naim.

Vocal was the best I have ever heard in my system. Carol Kidd at 24/96 sounded holographical and has great presence. And I do not recall ever hearing "Ballad of a Runaway Horse" by Jennifer Warnes accompanied by Rob Wasserman sounded so clean and engaging.

And again this is with the Naim DAC cold out of the box.

I am no golden ears, but the Naim DAC, surprisingly, is more holographic than the Weiss DAC.

Also tried a USB stick and surprisingly it started playing very nicely right after bring inserted with some 24/192 HRx and 24/96 of Diana Krall. Very nice, I confess I could not tell if and how much better than the poor TOSLINK setup. Both are very very nice.

One thing about the USB playback is there is no way to organize the songs by folders, it refuses to play if there are more than one folders n the memory stick. Also the only way to play the songs is blind, and there is no remote control, you have to pull your butt over to push the NEXT key to skip songs. If someone knows of another way please let me know.

I am only dreaming how it would sound with a XPS or god forbid a 555PS.

Configuration is 202/200/Hicap/NAPSC/Harbeth M30 sans Powerline (sold it). Interconnect is RCA-DIN HiLine. Also tried the factory DIN-DIN, can't tell much of a difference.

I need a DIN DIN Hi-Line, o need for RCA-HiLine anymore.

So I am a happy camper despite all that complaining.

Next thing to do is to find a USB or Firewire interface that does not break the bank. I know the Weiss INT202 is good but $1600 for a cigarette box is a bit much. Other candidates include the Weiss AF!1, RME Fireface, TC Konnekt, or the M2Tech HiFace that everyone raves about. Any ideas? Is the HiFace the giant killer that I should use?

Or should I just get a long TOSLINK cable for my Macbook Pro?
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by rich46
[QUOTE]Originally posted by JYOW:
I scare myself.

After all the complaining about the DAC not having a computer interface I sold my Weiss DAC2 and picked up a Naim DAC.

Since I did not prepare for this I do not even have a Firewire or USB interface for my Macbook so I ended up connecting it with a cheapo TOSLINK cable with a mini-Jack adapter.

Even with that compromised setup the Naim sounded fantastic out of the box. Very very clean sound. Much cleaner than my memory of the CD5X and similar to Weiss DAC2 sound.

After listening to 1/2 hour of music I find it engages me more than the Weiss DAC. The Weiss was very good but I do not recall it keeping me on my chair as long as the Naim.

Vocal was the best I have ever heard in my system. Carol Kidd at 24/96 sounded holographical and has great presence. And I do not recall ever hearing "Ballad of a Runaway Horse" by Jennifer Warnes accompanied by Rob Wasserman sounded so clean and engaging.

And again this is with the Naim DAC cold out of the box.

I am no golden ears, but the Naim DAC, surprisingly, is more holographic than the Weiss DAC.

Also tried a USB stick and surprisingly it started playing very nicely right after bring inserted with some 24/192 HRx and 24/96 of Diana Krall. Very nice, I confess I could not tell if and how much better than the poor TOSLINK setup. Both are very very nice.

One thing about the USB playback is there is no way to organize the songs by folders, it refuses to play if there are more than one folders n the memory stick. Also the only way to play the songs is blind, and there is no remote control, you have to pull your butt over to push the NEXT key to skip songs. If someone knows of another way please let me know.

I am only dreaming how it would sound with a XPS or god forbid a 555PS.

Configuration is 202/200/Hicap/NAPSC/Harbeth M30 sans Powerline (sold it). Interconnect is RCA-DIN HiLine. Also tried the factory DIN-DIN, can't tell much of a difference.

I need a DIN DIN Hi-Line, o need for RCA-HiLine anymore.

So I am a happy camper despite all that complaining.

Next thing to do is to find a USB or Firewire interface that does not break the bank. I know the Weiss INT202 is good but $1600 for a cigarette box is a bit much. Other candidates include the Weiss AF!1, RME Fireface, TC Konnekt, or the M2Tech HiFace that everyone raves about. Any ideas? Is the HiFace the giant killer that I should use?

Or should I just get a long TOSLINK cable for my Macbook Pro?[/QUOTe

1ve had the dac for 6 weeks and i was surprised by the optical output. so i loaned several and decided on true colours cable at £32. could tell the difference between 3 others, 2 were over £100. the tci cable looks well made .check them out for your application. suggest the isolation with pcs/networks is best served with optical.
i left my dac playind for 2 days and the results have been great.
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by AMA
JYOW, the last time you sold TP and changed for Weiss DAC2 with no A/B.
And now you again ditched Weiss before receiving a Naim DAC.
Each time you evaluate the sonic differences from memory.
You have to start delaying the old gears until the new moves it on the shelf and do A/B demo Smile

Hmmm.... Hong Kong is geographically much further away from Salisbury than me. What's wrong with my dealer?! Frown
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by Asenna04
quote:

Hmmm.... Hong Kong is geographically much further away from Salisbury than me. What's wrong with my dealer?! Frown


I was wondering the same. I had my order in just before New Year. Any news on where Naim is in releasing the next batch. Last I heard they were waiting for boards and then ribbons.

ASenna04
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by gone
dealers selling their demos...or that one on ebay? Grrrrr
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by JYOW
quote:
Originally posted by AMA:
JYOW, the last time you sold TP and changed for Weiss DAC2 with no A/B.
And now you again ditched Weiss before receiving a Naim DAC.
Each time you evaluate the sonic differences from memory.
You have to start delaying the old gears until the new moves it on the shelf and do A/B demo Smile

Hmmm.... Hong Kong is geographically much further away from Salisbury than me. What's wrong with my dealer?! Frown


Guilty as charged LOL. My weird logic is that that price wise it is a lateral move (except for the expense of the PC adapter). And being a Naim Nut, I figure I would not ever be disappointed with buying a Naim source.

And the opportunity to upgrade with the XPS is surely tempting. Naim is like a drug.
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by JYOW
quote:
Originally posted by AMA:
Hmmm.... Hong Kong is geographically much further away from Salisbury than me. What's wrong with my dealer?! Frown

I cheated. I snatched it off someone who ordered long time ago but got cold feet after the fact. It was never opened.
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by JYOW
quote:
Originally posted by AllenB:
Yes, yes, yes! I have been comparing it to the INT202, albeit through the internal DAC of the n-Vi, whilst I await my Naim DAC. It is miles ahead of the stock dig out on the Mac (mine is a Mini), and (surprisingly maybe) I prefer it to the INT202 so far. It grabs you by the scruff of your neck and drags you into the music. Only downside in comparison to the INT202 is the highs / trebles where it is a little bit more edgy.

Ohh, and the other downside at the moment is the clicking issue on some (not all) Macs, but M2Tech are working on some driver updates.

For the money it is sensational. Really.

BTW, congrats on getting your DAC Smile

Thanks I just placed an order upon your recommendation. Come to think of it it is probably cheaper than a good 5M TOSLINK cable.

BTW I need 5M BNC cable length, is the length going to degrade the sound?

I heard about the Steve Nugent argument that longer is better for S/PDIF, I believe it was disputed by a few other gurus out there.
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by JYOW
Question to people with the DAC.

Has anyone figured out if it is possible to control NEXT and PREV of tracks when playing via USB?

Same question re shutting off of Display

Funny that it has an IR receiver but won't take most of the remote commands.

Funny product.
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by pcstockton
quote:
Originally posted by JYOW:
Question to people with the DAC.

Has anyone figured out if it is possible to control NEXT and PREV of tracks when playing via USB?

Same question re shutting off of Display

Funny that it has an IR receiver but won't take most of the remote commands.

Funny product.


The 552 or 555 remote probably does it for you
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by pcstockton
Cheers on the DACquisition. Please keep us informed!!!
Posted on: 27 January 2010 by JYOW
quote:
Originally posted by pcstockton:
The 552 or 555 remote probably does it for you

Actually the Naim remote works, but limited only to selecting sources.
Posted on: 28 January 2010 by paremus
Another vote for HiFace - not listened to the competition - but it is awesome for the price.

Cheers
Posted on: 28 January 2010 by paremus
JYOW -

Also - you've really not heard what the Naim DAC can do until you've feed it with the HiFace (IMO)
Posted on: 28 January 2010 by JYOW
quote:
Originally posted by paremus:
JYOW -

Also - you've really not heard what the Naim DAC can do until you've feed it with the HiFace (IMO)

Tanks, I have one on order.
Posted on: 28 January 2010 by AMA
quote:
Originally posted by JYOW:

Guilty as charged LOL. My weird logic is that that price wise it is a lateral move (except for the expense of the PC adapter). And being a Naim Nut, I figure I would not ever be disappointed with buying a Naim source.

And the opportunity to upgrade with the XPS is surely tempting. Naim is like a drug.


Yesterday I got a message from a local dealer that Naim DAC is arriving next week. DaveBk has got one already.
This means they start the new shipment.

JYOW, it's a right time to check/update your profile Smile

Also, Hiline made a big difference on CD5X/HC. Try it with DAC.
Posted on: 28 January 2010 by Deng Yung
JYOW,

Think you may need to wait a bit longer for your Hiface. I placed my order about 2 weeks ago and just got this from them :'we are a little late in shipping because of waiting for a component that has slowed down the production process'.

BTW, got my Naim DAC just before X'mas here in Hong Kong , replacing my Lavry DA10. Yes, it is much better! Heard they only got 6 units from Naim, suspect almost all sold by now.
Posted on: 28 January 2010 by JYOW
Thank Deng,

Did you buy the RCA version? According to tweek geek, RCA is not in stock but BNC is in stock.

Since the Naim DAC has BNC I ordered the RCA for $30 more.

Just curious, what cable are you using? I need a 5M SPDIF cable from my Macbook to the DAC.
Posted on: 28 January 2010 by Deng Yung
Yes, I've ordered the RCA version. Am using a very cheap Japanese optical connecting my Mac Mini to Naim Dac, still not sure what cable to use with HiFace. May take the local Naim distributor's advice and get a Digital Coaxial Cable from Naim.
Posted on: 29 January 2010 by DaveBk
quote:
Yesterday I got a message from a local dealer that Naim DAC is arriving next week. DaveBk has got one already.


I've certainly had Jame's demo unit plumbed in to my Transporter... very nice! My unit's in the pipeline for the next shipment.
Posted on: 29 January 2010 by JYOW
quote:
I've certainly had Jame's demo unit plumbed in to my Transporter... very nice! My unit's in the pipeline for the next shipment.

Dave congrats, looks like we are going the same path. Except you managed to keep the Transporter which I wish I had.
Posted on: 29 January 2010 by JYOW
Almost forgot this unbelievably cute Lindemann USB-DD little box. It does cost US$599 and support up to 32/96. Still much cheaper than the Weiss INT202 though.
Posted on: 30 January 2010 by AMA
quote:
My unit's in the pipeline for the next shipment.

Ooops....