Nap 200 ,Hicap question?.

You absolutely must connect via the Hicap. This is the way the amps are designed, and to do otherwise will void any warranty. 

I doubt Naim would void the warranty, after all sending the pre amp output directly to the power amps does nothing more than moving the ground reference point from the hicap to the pre amp.

Doing so isn't going to damage any equipment.

Try both ways and use whichever you prefere.

I'm fairly sure this would void warranty, but if Pieman wants to ignore advice, that's his lookout. I would always connect as instructed in the manual - why wouldn't you?

Hi Hungryhalibut.

I have to connect from the Nap 200 to the Hicap via a 4 pin snaic then out to the 202 via a five pin snaic .

What output is used from the Hicap to the nap 200 as there are three four pin din sockets, but I believe socket 3 is correct to connect the Nap 200.

Regards,

Pieman.

Obviously you use the hicap's five pin socket to connect to the 202 (the band goes at the 202 end). Then connect the 4 pin lead into the socket nearest to the 5 pin lead. This minimises the signal path. The band on the 4 pin snaic goes at the Hicap end. 

Just out of interest, given that the manuals are very clear, why did you connect it as you were doing, and what made you think it may not be correct?

Page 15 may help https://www.naimaudio.com/site...cation%20Rev%20J.pdf

I have only recently upgraded to a hicap, having used a flatcap 2 before.

I understand that the power supply fed 24v out but was not sure that the audio signal would benefit being routed through a hicap due to transformer hum present.

As you rightly say the manual is the way to connect.

Regard's

Pieman.

Excellent. I hope you like the improvement from the Hicap. The 202 is very nice when both Hicap and napsc are connected. Make sure you put the napsc as far from the Hifi as you can. Stick it on the floor on a piece of wood if needs be. 

Hi Jude 2012.

Thank you for the connection guide. This is very helpful as a way of clearly checking the connectivity of naim products,

Regard's

Pieman.

FC, this is not good advice.  Having a SNAIC connection from Hicap to pre-amp as well as a direct SNAIC connection between Pre-amp and power amp not only impairs sonic performance but can overstress regulators and has been cited by Naim's service department as a possible cause of premature regulator failure. 

In short, it's not recommended.

Thanks Hungryhalibut.

The Napsc has been offered with the 282 as standard. I think that it should be included as a package with the 202 also , even with a price increase, as some people might never get to realise the full potential from this pre amp otherwise.

Regard's

Pieman.

Connecting the pre to the power won't cause any damage to any of components involved, so I don't see how Naim could possible void the warranty.

Ironically, I'm pretty sure use of the speaker cable you like to promote would.

Did you not read Richard's post?

That's very hard to believe. Although you did say possible.

What happens when two hicaps power a NAC82. Presumably the audio signal only passes through one hicap. Are the regulators in the other hicap over stressed.

Yes, I did.

FC, whether you have a NAC202 powered by a Hicap, a NAC82 or 282 powered from a Hicap, or even powered by two Hicaps (where each Hicap effectively powers half the pre-amp), if you have the pre-amp directly connected to an amp such as the NAP200, you will be providing an additional single rail 24V DC supply on top of that already being supplied via the Hicap/s.  The pre-amps are not designed to be configured this way, sound worse this way, and according to Naim it can overly stress regulators.

Many years ago in a 62, HiCap, 140 system I decided that I would try connecting the 3 items such that a more direct connection was made between the 62 and the 140. All I can recall from that (and I don't remember what it sounded like, but it cannot have been horrendous) was that the 140 gave up the ghost and died within a week or so. The arrogance of youth!

Ignore Naim's instructions at your peril.

It's quite simple.  If you have two regulated power supplies trying to power a single 24V rail problems will occur.

This happens because the two regulators will always have very slightly different voltages (due to minor component variation) and each tries to fight the other for control of the power rail (the difference may be less than 1/1000 of a volt, but the problem still occurs).

Good point, the supply from the power amp would be noisier than the supply from the hicap.

The regulator that is being “over stressed” in the 140 is powering the pre amp. I suspect this component didn’t fail in your 140, if it had you wouldn’t have noticed, the hicap would still be powering the pre.

No wait, you would have noticed. Knocking out one of the regs should have brought about an improvement in sound quality. Apparently.

Nope.

No fighting, no fracas, not even a harsh word. Both regulators have no way of sensing the existence of the other.

If both regs where Naim discrete regs, EI. based on the Walt Jung design for super regulators you would have a point, but they aren’t.

Really?

Ever looked at the HF response of an LM317?

And does the LM317 high frequency response have any relevance to their suggested ability to be able to communicate with each other.

Hi fatcat, I'm sorry I was so abrupt, from your previous responses I assumed you know how a three terminal voltage regulator works.  Apologies for the assumption.