XPS better used with the ND5 XS or the NDAC
Posted by: Peter1480 on 11 December 2017
A question that came to mind while I was checking my digital connections for another post. Which is an XPS better used with the ND5 XS or the NDAC or woud both bebifit from an XPS?
Both would benefit, but if you have only one XPS then put on the NDAC... the NDAC is an interesting design and adding a PSU forces the digital to be powered by the NDAC PSU and the analogue to be used with the external PSU... really works well with the NDAC
Many thanks, thats how I'm set up at the moment, I'll have to borrow an XPS and try it on the ND5XS and see what happens to the sound!
I think there will be very little audible benefit in adding an external power supply to an ND5XS running in a ‘digital out’ mode.
NDAC for sure.
I've faced the same question ... only with an NDX. When I purchased the XPS I initially used it to power the NDAC and then, after a couple of months, switched it to the NDX which is how it has been for over a year, until a week ago. At the initial changeover I thought the sound improved ... a bit more clarity and depth. During the year I constantly heard improvements across a range of my (ripped CD ~ NAS ~ FLAC Lossless/WAV) music but maybe this was a result of the NAP 250 which I had introduced at the same time.
Based on comments (from HH) on another thread I switched the XPS back to the NDAC and am inclined to agree that this is the better option ... though it's not clear-cut. I should be replacing my SuperNait with a NAC 282 shortly so maybe it will be time to compare again ... allowing time for the 282 to run-in, of course.
I don't understand why the NDAC connection requires that box to be independently powered whilst the NDX connection removes the need for that box to be so powered. Does this suggest that with the NDAC connection only part of the XPS is being used?
Mitch