Upgrades, upgrades upgrades. Oh what to do........Power or Source?

I would look at source, CDX2 bare or add HC to 202, I had 202 with HC for a while good upgrade prob more than adding NAPSC 

lots of options you can look at and if possible demo

i would look at speakers last to be honest 

Rich, CDX2 and Napsc.

Cheers, Chris

Your sources are okay if not high end but your speakers are excellent but quite demanding.  I'd try and get a 2nd hand 282 and then seek a 2nd hand CDX2/XPS if CD is to remain your source of choice. 

Good luck. 

Lindsay

Hi Rich

Option 7)  Trade in ND5XS and NAC202 for 272 (with thoughts of 250DR when some more pennies roll in).  OK sorry, sorry someone was bound to suggest this eventually so thought it might as well be me (retires behind sofa).

Roger

I would say either upgrade the source - but not as identified - or the speakers.

The different source upgrade suggestion is add Hugo DAC to ND5XS, or better still Hugo2: I had an ND5XS, and was persuaded by a dealer to ad XP5XS, and was disappointed - the change was quite subtle, and I felt not worth the cost. After giving it time I then sold the XP5XS and added Hugo. That gave a significant improvement in sound quality, and I was very happy with it. A search on the forum will fimd other people's views of Hugo.

Re speakers, they make the biggest single difference to the character of sound, and getting them right is a significant consideration IMHO. With your budget I would only consider secondhand, and if you can factor in whatever you might get from selling your existing ones adds to your buying power. If you really like the character of the Dyns, then something else higher in their range maybe, otherwise you need to go on a listening spree!

The key for me would be to identify whether to stick with CD or move to streaming. An ND5 is wasted with Spotify. If you want to go to streaming then get an NDX or 272, or get a CDX2 if you want to major with CDs. 

In terms of streaming, and apologies for me publicly displaying some ignorance here, assuming you have a decent broadband connection, wouldn't there be a very significant improvement in sound quality by switching to Qobuz Sublime from Spotify for not very much extra per month.  Albeit you pay annual fee up front with Qobuz.  That may then either show your cd player is holding its own or suggest a first target for upgrading.

Peter

Peakman posted:

Hi Rich

Option 7)  Trade in ND5XS and NAC202 for 272 (with thoughts of 250DR when some more pennies roll in).  OK sorry, sorry someone was bound to suggest this eventually so thought it might as well be me (retires behind sofa).

Roger

Plus 1

Why mess around with a new ( second hand) cd player when you can rip all your CDs and enjoy

northpole posted:

In terms of streaming, and apologies for me publicly displaying some ignorance here, assuming you have a decent broadband connection, wouldn't there be a very significant improvement in sound quality by switching to Qobuz Sublime from Spotify for not very much extra per month.  Albeit you pay annual fee up front with Qobuz.  That may then either show your cd player is holding its own or suggest a first target for upgrading.

Peter

Qobuz hi res streaming may indeed be better than the Spotify offering, however online streaming will always be subject to the vagaries of the effect of the internet connection and traffic, something that doesn't affect playing from a local source. Streaming from a local "electronic" store, whether NAS or Uniti approach, has the potential to sound better than CD, for two reasons: firstly music can be purchased at higher resolutions than CD, and secondly even at the same resolution the "electronic" store is not subject to the same read errors as can  affect CD reading, with its associated error correction algorithms.

I would add a separate Dac to the ND5, a used Hugo 1 or 2Qute (which I did) buy a decent Nas and start ripping that CD collection.  This will eventually free up your CDP which can then be traded along with your 202 for a 282.

I had that very system all be it with Dynaudio X32's and the 200 was more than up to it. This also leaves you the option to upgrade to a 250 later on and you will have a 282/250 a very fine amp indeed.

ps  Depending on your musical tastes I would also add a subscription to Tidal or Qubuz if you listen to more Jazz or classical. 

Thanks for all your comments, they are very much appreciated. I think I need a long hard think about streaming vs. CD and need to make the call! I have a large CD collect and really enjoy shopping for CD's in bespoke music shops. I also enjoy hunting for the CD and putting it on (perhaps I should get in to vinyl?). However, I assume I can still shop for CD's, then pop them on to the hard-drive (unitiserve?) and put the CD in the loft? I also like to make sure that artist I like get their fair share of the money I spend. 

I think I will plan on a NAC n272 vs CDX2 demo in to my kit (local shop also has a second hand NDX which would be a cheap trade). I could even try the DAC in to a ND5xs?

Thanks again.

Rich

RICH1981, since I purchased an NDX a couple of years ago and  ripped all my CDs.

I sold the CD player during an upgrade last year  don't miss it at all in fact I am purchasing more CDs and a much wider genre than I ever did when I owned a CD player just love the convenience of streaming.

I'd say speakers but as HH said if you are using primarily spotify at 320 seems a waste to upgrade.  Buy a nice camera

I would certainly consider nDAC or Hugo, and check for new speakers.  

Chag -

The thing about ripping cd's for me is that, despite having done so with my entire collection, when I subscribed to Qobuz, there is a huge temptation to buy (mostly at attractively discounted rates) albums in high definition audio which you can download direct to your hard drive in several formats - e.g. Cd quality versions I download direct to my iphone whilst those for the Mac mini and portable Sony player are downloaded as ALAC.  At the moment, if I come across a decent album I have put myself (probably unnecessarily!) in the position of buying both cd and hi-res versions, the latter often having a better sound quality.  Not to mention the record player.....

At risk of this becoming my least helpful post ever, I'd recommend buying or borrowing a couple of hi-res digital albums and play them through your system and compare that with your CD player to see if either source requires a bit of fettling ahead of looking at other components.

Peter

northpole posted:

The thing about ripping cd's for me is that, despite having done so with my entire collection, when I subscribed to Qobuz, there is a huge temptation to buy (mostly at attractively discounted rates) albums in high definition audio which you can download direct to your hard drive in several formats - e.g. Cd quality versions I download direct to my iphone whilst those for the Mac mini and portable Sony player are downloaded as ALAC.  At the moment, if I come across a decent album I have put myself (probably unnecessarily!) in the position of buying both cd and hi-res versions, the latter often having a better sound quality.  Not to mention the record player.....

 

 

You could save money by buying just the highest res version, and using dBpoweramp to downsample to other resolutions and/or convert to other formats, which is what I do for music on my phone for travelling.

Not quite with you here - when you purchase an album from Qobuz, it is retained by them in your account and you can download it as many times as you like in whichever format you like.  There is no additional cost to do so.

Peter

northpole posted:

Not quite with you here - when you purchase an album from Qobuz, it is retained by them in your account and you can download it as many times as you like in whichever format you like.  There is no additional cost to do so.

Peter

Interesting - I didn't know you could download multiple formats - I seemed to recall having to  choose the format when paying, and assumed that was fixed. (Maybe it makes a difference if you subscribe? I don't as I don't buy enough from them to recover the cost.)

Cdx2 with xps is amazing atlas mavros rca is the best way to connect cd to amp but they are expensive. 

Innocent Bystander posted:

northpole posted:

Not quite with you here - when you purchase an album from Qobuz, it is retained by them in your account and you can download it as many times as you like in whichever format you like.  There is no additional cost to do so.

Peter

Interesting - I didn't know you could download multiple formats - I seemed to recall having to  choose the format when paying, and assumed that was fixed. (Maybe it makes a difference if you subscribe? I don't as I don't buy enough from them to recover the cost.)

You simply choose the resolution, not the format. You can then download at a lower, but not a higher resolution if you wish, and can choose flac, wav, MP3 or whatever. 

Hungryhalibut posted:

Innocent Bystander posted:

northpole posted:

Not quite with you here - when you purchase an album from Qobuz, it is retained by them in your account and you can download it as many times as you like in whichever format you like.  There is no additional cost to do so.

Peter

Interesting - I didn't know you could download multiple formats - I seemed to recall having to  choose the format when paying, and assumed that was fixed. (Maybe it makes a difference if you subscribe? I don't as I don't buy enough from them to recover the cost.)

You simply choose the resolution, not the format. You can then download at a lower, but not a higher resolution if you wish, and can choose flac, wav, MP3 or whatever. 

Thanks - that's useful to know!

Again, thanks for your comments. To conclude, today I went down to my local Naim dealer and spent a few hours listening to a CDX2, NDX, ND5xs and NACn272. 

As a cautionary note, I am no expert at listening to music in such detail,  nor describing what I am hearing. However, here goes:

We first played the CDX2 and I was blown away. This sounds so much better than my CD5 with flatcap. It is far more detailed and had an intergration of the music elements which blended to a smooth and beautiful sound. 

Next was the NDX. I was amazed by how similar this was to the CDX2 in terms of detail. The overall presentation was different, perhaps more detail and less blending. Importantly, this also blew away my CD5. 

Next up, the NACn272. To my ears, it wasn't quite as detailed and had a slight fizziness or brightness to it (can't think of better word). The baseline was not as refined and the midrange not as clear. However, it was also very good - just not quite as good in comparison.

At this point I'm thinking that if the NDX sounds better than my CDP, why do I have a CDP, and why don't I have a UnitiCore with my current ND5xs?

1st purchase of the day - UnitiCore (and an 8 week wait for it!)

Next problem. The NDX for sale is second-hand (good price) and I could part-ex my ND5xs.

We try NXD vs the ND5xs and the ND5xs sounded similar to the NACn272.

2nd purchase of the day - NDX

In conclusion - goodbye CD player and welcome high end streaming......

Rich1981 posted:

Again, thanks for your comments. To conclude, today I went down to my local Naim dealer and spent a few hours listening to a CDX2, NDX, ND5xs and NACn272. 

As a cautionary note, I am no expert at listening to music in such detail,  nor describing what I am hearing. However, here goes:

We first played the CDX2 and I was blown away. This sounds so much better than my CD5 with flatcap. It is far more detailed and had an intergration of the music elements which blended to a smooth and beautiful sound. 

Next was the NDX. I was amazed by how similar this was to the CDX2 in terms of detail. The overall presentation was different, perhaps more detail and less blending. Importantly, this also blew away my CD5. 

Next up, the NACn272. To my ears, it wasn't quite as detailed and had a slight fizziness or brightness to it (can't think of better word). The baseline was not as refined and the midrange not as clear. However, it was also very good -just not quite as good in comparison.

At this point I'm thinking that if the NDX sounds better than my CDP, why do I have a CDP, and why don't I have a UnitiCore with my current ND5xs?

1st purchase of the day - UnitiCore (and an 8 week wait for it!)

Next problem. The NDX for sale is second-hand (good price) and I could part-ex my ND5xs.

We try NXD vs the ND5xs and the ND5xs sounded similar to the NACn272.

2nd purchase of the day - NDX

In conclusion - goodbye CD player and welcome high end streaming......

 

  

In comparison to?

Enjoy the NDX. Yes, the source is important.

Hi Rich

Do enjoy your new boxes.  I am surprised how few people go in for intensive auditioning before making a major purchase (at least where dealers offer this service.)  Thanks also for your full write up.  I was a little surprised by your finding that the 272 sounded bright and fizzy but I don't think many other people have directly compared NDX/202/200 with 272/200 (given the price difference, the former ought to sound better).  I don't hear brightness or fizziness with my 272, but your experience makes me wonder how much the 250DR (not to mention the XPS) is an essential contributor to the sound I value so highly.

Roger

Rich1981 posted:

Again, thanks for your comments. To conclude, today I went down to my local Naim dealer and spent a few hours listening to a CDX2, NDX, ND5xs and NACn272. 

As a cautionary note, I am no expert at listening to music in such detail,  nor describing what I am hearing. However, here goes:

We first played the CDX2 and I was blown away. This sounds so much better than my CD5 with flatcap. It is far more detailed and had an intergration of the music elements which blended to a smooth and beautiful sound. 

Next was the NDX. I was amazed by how similar this was to the CDX2 in terms of detail. The overall presentation was different, perhaps more detail and less blending. Importantly, this also blew away my CD5. 

Next up, the NACn272. To my ears, it wasn't quite as detailed and had a slight fizziness or brightness to it (can't think of better word). The baseline was not as refined and the midrange not as clear. However, it was also very good - just not quite as good in comparison.

At this point I'm thinking that if the NDX sounds better than my CDP, why do I have a CDP, and why don't I have a UnitiCore with my current ND5xs?

1st purchase of the day - UnitiCore (and an 8 week wait for it!)

Next problem. The NDX for sale is second-hand (good price) and I could part-ex my ND5xs.

We try NXD vs the ND5xs and the ND5xs sounded similar to the NACn272.

2nd purchase of the day - NDX

In conclusion - goodbye CD player and welcome high end streaming......

 

  

Sounds like a very satisfactory day!

You seemed a bit dismayed at the NDX being secondhand - I would say great, you've saved some money, and it really shouldn't make any difference to sound, or longevity.

My suggestion of Hugo still stand, now for future consideration - whilst I found It improved ND5XS, others have found the same with NDX (but presumably better as I understand NDX is better at that than ND5XS). Of course by the time you think of upgrading, if at all, there could be different DACs to consider.