Is a Flatcap 2 better with a CD5 than a high cap?

Yes!

I have a CD 3.5 I try it with a Flatcap - Snaps - Hicap. The last was by far the best.

Bernard Paquet

I Hi-Cap is better than a Flat-Cap2. End of story!

Well... not quite. The CD player doesn't benefit from the extra grunt of the Hi-Cap nearly as much as a pre-amp can. (i.e. The improvement over a Flat-Cap is not as obvious with the CD player as it is with the pre-amp.) There's also "Source First" to consider. Here are a few scenarios:

• If all you have is the CD5, then the Hi-Cap is better than a Flat-Cap2.
  
• If you have a CD5, Nait5, and a single Hi-Cap, then it should be used with the CD5.
  
• If you have a CD5, Nait5, and a Flat-Cap2, the configuration is obvious. (The manaul explains that you connect the primary supply to the pre-amp, and the secondary to the CD player.) I'm not sure which would be "better": this configuration or the previous one. With this one, you have the inferior Flat-Cap2 giving a little bit to both components (both of which like it). With the prior configuration, the superior Hi-Cap is giving lots of juice to the CD5, but the Nait5 is living without. I suspect that some people would prefer this one, while others would prefer the previous one.
  
• If you have a CD5, Nait5, Hi-Cap and Flat-Cap (old or new), then put the Flat-Cap on the CD5, and the Hi-Cap on the Nait5.
  

Is that as clear as mud now? Basically, if you have only one external power supply, put it on the CD player. If you have two, then put the superior supply on the pre-amp.

Finally, did I mention that a Hi-Cap is better than a Flat-Cap2? BTW, Naim has stated this too.

-=> Mike Hanson <=-

In the following system CD5/112/150/Credo which I demo'd about three weeks ago, I observed the following: Hi-cap is better than the Flatcap2 into the CD5 - more authority, gravitas and confidence, better relationship between the attack and decay of notes and other musical phenomena, more textural detail. Flatcap 2 into 112 made a further improvement. But "source first" prevails, so I would leave the Hi-cap connected to the CD5.

If you've seen the instructions on the Flat-Cap2, you'll discover that Naim says to hook up the primary supply to the pre-amp, and the secondary to the CD5. This is because the pre-amp can benefit from the extra juice more than the CD player.

I had discovered this by experimentation long before the Flat-Cap2 arrived on the scene. I used to run 3.5/Hi/102/Flat. When I switched it to 3.5/Flat/102/Hi, there was much more music coming out the end. This is because the Hi-Cap makes the 3.5 only a little better than the Flat-Cap does. In contrast, a Hi-Cap makes a pre-amp MUCH better than the Flat-Cap does.

Therefore, the total benefit to your system is greater putting the superior *-cap on the pre-amp.

Having said that, a 102/Hi deserves a CDX or better, which is why I upgraded my 3.5/Flat. Since then I've jumped to 82/Super, so now the CDX really wants an XPS. As you can see, "Source First" is also a concern with me, although "System Balance" plays a pivotal role.

-=> Mike Hanson <=-