A Tale Of Two Hi-Caps

Posted by: TommyT on 07 March 2003

Hi,
I currently own two Hi-Caps which my ears are telling me perform very differently.

My current set up is CD3.5+Hi, 92+Hi, 250, Shahinian Compass. Both Hi-Caps have been owned from new, one being 3.5 years old and the other about 8 months.

My observation is that when the older Hi-Cap is used on the 92 and the newer on the CD, the amount of detail and dynamics is significantly better than when the kit is powered the other way round. Looking at the Hi-Caps it seems they conform to different regs, with the older model rated at 5A case fuse vs 3.15A (I think) for the new one.

Has anyone experienced this sort of behaviour? Is the new Hi-Cap faulty or is this issue related to the difference in case fuse?

I am working on the assumption here that as the older Hi-Cap on the pre-amp gives the best sound that the problem is related to the newer one.

Any thoughts gratefully received.

Rgds,
Tom
Posted on: 07 March 2003 by Matthew T
Ahhh,

Now where did that case fuse thread go again?

Matthew
Posted on: 07 March 2003 by TommyT
Matthew,
My own thoughts were heading in that direction but why would Naim themselves reduce the case fuse rating if the result is such a reduction in performance?
Rgds,
Tom
Posted on: 08 March 2003 by kan man
Seems to me that a simple swap of the fuses would bring some clarity.

Bear in mind when experimenting that powering the equipment down and the subsequent warm up period can skew results - the effect of cold power supplies may well be more pronounced on different bits of kit. Suggest you give each configuration at least a week.

Regards
Steve
Posted on: 08 March 2003 by connon price
My guess is that the newer is better and gives a better overall performance when hooked to the CD player which we all know is the most important part of the hifi. When swapping them back and forth you lose the ability to determine what each hi cap is doing to each component. look at the threads where people are making huge claims of improvement from swapping from xps to xps2... samish results you are getting.

Connon
Posted on: 09 March 2003 by Martin Payne
My suspicion is that this has very little to do with fuses.

Any noise fed into the CD3.5 would lead to increased jitter, which would certainly reduce detail, although not sure about dynamics.

This would suggest that the newer HiCap has a less noisy output, and the NAC92 is just less fussy about the noise on the older one.

cheers, Martin

E-mail:- MartinPayne at Dial.Pipex.com
Posted on: 09 March 2003 by Manu
Martin,
The Hicap has nothing to do with CD3.5's jitter. It only powers the analog filter and output drivers.

Emmanuel

All opinions are my own, and reflect those of the organisation i work for, even if not stipulated.
Posted on: 09 March 2003 by Manu
TommyT,
Are you sure it is not only a setup difference. Do you really swap the 2 boxes, or do you just exchange the Snaic.
You know the box position on the rack is important, the cable dressing is important. Are you sure both Hicap have the same AC cord.

Emmanuel

All opinions are my own, and reflect those of the organisation i work for, even if not stipulated.
Posted on: 10 March 2003 by TommyT
Manu,
Good point - I think I just swapped the SNAICs over. I plan to do a proper experiment that will involve running the CD 3.5 without Hi-Cap and then giving each one a week or so on the 92 to see what the results are. I will pay attention to the rack position, etc.
Rgds,
Tom