Best streamer for Naim Dac?

Get a Touch before they are gone.  Then use it for a few years while you save up for the NDS.

-Patrick

For unitiquote,

Not only the dac but also the amp i will not use. It doesn't seem to be a nice option...

I have the nDac already. I might save money for the 555ps.... Do you have touch? did you compare it to the usb stick?

Simaudio Moon MiND 180

I have a ultra quiet HTPC so I do not require streaming in the way you do.  I would have bought a Touch before they were discontinued but missed the boat.

I run a server in the office that runs J River's Server and has all of my media drives connected.  That machine serves up my media to anything I want. 

My HTPC "streams" from the server and sends out to the Naim DAC via Mobo's optical.  Because optical is limited to 24/96 on the Naim DAC, I just ordered, and received today, a MF V-link 192 so I will output from the HTPC via USB and then Coax to the Naim DAC.

I want to use my own servers and control points and have everything work perfectly, so I am not in the market for a streamer unless Naim came out one.  I would only use it for the "best" possible digital source for the Naim DAC.  I am guessing that anything would be better than the toslink output of the motherboard.  But who knows, Mac users seem to think its optical output is fine.

We shall see.

-Patrick

That looks nice.  I wonder it is "plays well" with [my] servers vis-a-vis getting pushed content and all of the AV-Next-transport what not or whatever it is called, to ensure gapless playback.

Never seen them mentioned much here ... probably cause most Naimies are in UK and they are predominantly US ... but sonore.us do some interesting devices which may be of interest.

Just because Logitech have discontinued the Touch is no reason not to buy it - the software was well developed and mature and works fine, and most developers are still supporting it. Gives you HiRes, Spotify, Wireless - you can even run it from a UPnP server or JRiver if you don't like LMS. At the price it gives you an awful lot, and as pcstockton says, won't break the bank, will let you save for a fancy naim solution, and when you get that will still do great in a second kitchen/bedroom system. 

I woulg alsp go for a SBT, but you should also buy PSU...

I'm finding all this confusing but why don't you plug a Mac mini into your ndac. You can get a used one and have unlimited storage with an external hard drive. You can control it from your phone, iPad , other mac computer etc

Davy,

the main advantages of the SB Touch over the Classic are a better clock and a better DAC. Since you have an excellent Dac, why not consider a plain SB3?

Logitech squeeze server has recently been upgraded to a new version, it's free, it configures itself nicely on any Mac, works well, and if you connect an SB3  (whose display, BTW, I like more and is rather more visible than the Touch's, meaningful only at a few inches from the unit) with a good coaxial like Naim's DC1 or a Stereovox, you should have a good streamer, for a few tenths of £.

Otherwise, Patrick's advice is very sensible.

Max

And, it was reported, a better digital out as well, derived from the work done on the Transporter. Not mentioning the various tweaks available to get the most out of it.

And not to mention 24/96 support out of the box and 24/192 via the EDO plugin.

A Mac Mini optical out will be as good as an ND5XS or even NDX feeding your nDAC.

You got money to burn, go for an NDX. You got better things to spend it on, go for the Mac Mini.

A Dr. Gert Volk modified Sonos Connect / Naim DC1 RCA/RCA will be as good as the Mac Mini but it won't play hires. Is it important though? Not to me, hires isn't. I love my Sonos! Integrates well with your iTunes library too!

Spend the money saved on a HCDR for your 202 would be my advice!

Hi, in my experience, option 3 gives the best results . Just ensure you disable the internal NDX DAC so it concentrates it's resources on producing the clean external SPDIF signal. You need to tell the NDX to ideally one or the other.. although it can do both at the same time it's a compromise,  and you best feed the NDX PCM files. Really makes a difference. 

if you are using mp3 or AAC then AppleTV can do a good job into the NDAC.

Simon

Simon, could you say precisely how to disable the internal DAC please.

Many thanks,  Ears

Ears,

Until Simon answers, I guess it means disabling analog output and enabling digital output:

• Enabling digital out [Manual §4.6]: Setup -> Digital Output: Enabled = Yes, Output = Native
• Disabling analog out [Manual §4.4]: Setup -> Analog Outputs: Main Out = Disabled

HTH

Spot on - thanks

Thank you both - that was very helpful.  I had not disabled analogue out, which caused some muddling in the sound.  Much better now.

Doesn't requirement 5), not too expensive, rule out option 3) Naim NDX?

Logitech Squeezebox Touch/Duet or Sonos is a great way of getting into streaming for minimum outlay and there is scope for upgrading the SQ later. IMHO.

Davy,

I am using a UnitiQute as "streamer" with coax (BNC) digital out to my nDac, and it provides the best sound quality compared to some alternatives I have tried.  While it seems a waste of the DAC and amp sections of the UQ - get over it.  IMHO it still offers sound quality value compared to other options.  Also, I suggest you not limit yourself to optical.

The options are many, and I suspect you can be very pleased with whatever you choose - I just think you should not be concerned about "wasted capability" - rather think what you will pay for the streaming component.  For me the sound was worth what I paid for used UQ 24/96, and it will eventually end up in a different room or be gifted to my daughter.

Cheers,

Charlie

Another option is to use a basic netbook or pc connected via USB to an Audiophilio device to convert USB to s/pdif. Connect that to your nDAC, use Foobar 2000 to play all your files.  I have a similar setup and it works great. There are apps you can get to control foobar from a smartphone or tablet.

How lucky your daughter is!

Davy