ND555 Impressions

The NDS remains a superb streamer at its original MRP price point. Except it's now selling for half or less. Compelling if you aren't shopping for an ND555.

I agree .... my NDS with the recently dr'ed 555 sounds superb..... the detail and drive struck me at the ND555 demo I had.

LarsDK posted:

my initial impression after 1-2 days is that the overall sonic signature is quite similar, like a younger brother and older brother :-) clearly nd555 does several things better, and i am sure i will discover more..

Yes that has also been my impression over severeal listening sessions now... the area that the ND555 seems to shine over the NDS is its ability to render more complex even discordant music more successfully... I guess it’s about lower digital noise meaning the brain is working less hard to resolve..... not entirely sure the ND555 matches the punch of the NDAC/555PS However.

The ND555 is supposed to be much ahead of the NDS in terms of digital noise decoupling... NDS was rather sensitive to Ethernet cables and WAV and FLAC processing...ND555 on paper is supposed to be less sensitive here... not sufficiently played here to confirm.

Simon-in-Suffolk posted:

...not entirely sure the ND555 matches the punch of the NDAC/555PS However..

The nDAC has substantially changed with update 4.11.8. ????

Chag -

LarsDK posted:

my initial impression after 1-2 days is that the overall sonic signature is quite similar, like a younger brother and older brother :-) clearly nd555 does several things better, and i am sure i will discover more, but i still look back at the nds as an impressive and exciting streamer. no regrets though in the upgrade, hope that is more clear. br Lars

Like some says, for now it’s resistance.  But resistance is futile.   Only my cash possibilities are unfortunately not futile....   Thanks Lars for the claryfing.

RussR posted:

 One Album I have that I haven't found on CD and would love to get digitally is Johnny  Adams "Room with a view of the Blues" it may be available now I think it was on Rounder Records but as the LP collection is a couple of thousand miles away I can't check. 

Not to hijack the cool ND555 thread, which I’m enjoying in a very vicarious pleasure sort of way, but gems like this “how I got here, what I like, how much it means to me even in storage...” portion of the conversation are very much appreciated.

I’m sitting here in my living room, enjoying a quiet hour of listening to Tidal through my Nova on a perfect Sunday morning and, coming across this wish for an old favourite, I did the obvious thing: search, find, play. Truly something that would never have occurred to me in the ‘70s and ‘80s when I was still very young and very much like Russ, finding things to like and adding them to my shelf of LP treasures.

Thanks for letting me enjoy something new to me from your past. 

Regards alan 

ps - yes, Rounder; looks like the CD version was released in 1988, but that may be an error since it’s showing Jan 1, 1988

pps - there are 22, count ‘em twenty two, albums by Johnny Adams on Tidal here in Canada (including at least four Christmas specials); I’m liking the Room With A View, Dr John is all over it...

After another day, now in company eg with johnny cash produced by rick rubin, nils lofgren, new order, mark ronson stuff and stevie wonders acquarium, i fully stick to what I wrote earlier, but man its a completely new league of replay that is starting to unravel in my living room. Reading naims mission on the box of bringing live music experince into your home says it all. Mission accomplished so far I would say :-) Lars

Simon-in-Suffolk posted

.... not entirely sure the ND555 matches the punch of the NDAC/555PS However.

When I have heard the ND 555 with a second power supply is has reminded me of the nDAC/555PS but up on another level. Even with one 555PS I find ND 555 has considerable slam. I have just spun Mobile Fidelity pressing of Love and Theft from CDX2 and it was not lacking in punch. By the way, I have never heard my CDs sound so good as they do through ND 555. Is anyone trying a CD555 with the ND 555?

LarsDK posted:

After another day, now in company eg with johnny cash produced by rick rubin, nils lofgren, new order, mark ronson stuff and stevie wonders acquarium, i fully stick to what I wrote earlier, but man its a completely new league of replay that is starting to unravel in my living room. Reading naims mission on the box of bringing live music experince into your home says it all. Mission accomplished so far I would say :-) Lars

This sums it up exactly, as far as I am concerned ................. as I mentioned over on the music thread, I'm having to provide tea and Hobnobs for the band, and Fink asked for "two sugars in my coffee, please". 

    Rag 'n' Bone Man - Human.

    I've previously been of the opinion that this album, wonderful as it is, suffered from over production in the arrangements, resulting 

    in a somewhat "mushy" background to Rory's stunning vocals.

    Tonight, on the ND555, everything is crystal clear, which suggests that it's ability to resolve complex music is a step ahead of the NDS.

cycling66 posted:

Simon-in-Suffolk posted

.... not entirely sure the ND555 matches the punch of the NDAC/555PS However.

When I have heard the ND 555 with a second power supply is has reminded me of the nDAC/555PS but up on another level. Even with one 555PS I find ND 555 has considerable slam. I have just spun Mobile Fidelity pressing of Love and Theft from CDX2 and it was not lacking in punch. By the way, I have never heard my CDs sound so good as they do through ND 555. Is anyone trying a CD555 with the ND 555?

There's some very interesting posts by Darke Bear earlier in this thread where he does exactly that.    

If the music is recorded with slam, then slam is what you'll get. And you'll get exactly as much of it as was recorded. The NDS (to my ears at least) was the beginning of the end of cinematic sound effects as the music took over to the greater extent. Helped in no small part by the transparency and grip of the 552/500. The ND555 takes this to what sounds like a logical conclusion, but who knows how much more information is still hidden n the music I thought I knew so well? Listening to a recording this evening not short of slam, which can sound bewildering without good timing and flabby without grip, I was struck by how much transient power the ND555 could convey when present, without swamping all the micro detail and spacial reference points. A clever trick to pull off without pulling it to bits and leaving it laying about all over the place.

dave marshall posted:

 

    Rag 'n' Bone Man - Human.

    I've previously been of the opinion that this album, wonderful as it is, suffered from over production in the arrangements, resulting 

    in a somewhat "mushy" background to Rory's stunning vocals.

    Tonight, on the ND555, everything is crystal clear, which suggests that it's ability to resolve complex music is a step ahead of the NDS.

Dave, I must agree the way the ND555 plays complex music is something very special indeed.

It seems to me that what naim has done is pay logical attention to clock timing, shielding, power supply and isolation etc.... etc .  The analogue circuits are probably tried and tested..only with now superb localised dr supplies.. The point I am making is that they have pursued a holistic logical approach very carefully and logically in a unique Naim way...so it is not surprising the results are as they are. I suspect in years to come there will be improved super dr regulators giveing even greater performance..... leveraging a cascade of upgrades for naim to cash in on.....

I wish you hadn't said that. Someone from Naim is bound to read it.

alan33 posted:

RussR posted:

 One Album I have that I haven't found on CD and would love to get digitally is Johnny  Adams "Room with a view of the Blues" it may be available now I think it was on Rounder Records but as the LP collection is a couple of thousand miles away I can't check. 

Not to hijack the cool ND555 thread, which I’m enjoying in a very vicarious pleasure sort of way, but gems like this “how I got here, what I like, how much it means to me even in storage...” portion of the conversation are very much appreciated.

I’m sitting here in my living room, enjoying a quiet hour of listening to Tidal through my Nova on a perfect Sunday morning and, coming across this wish for an old favourite, I did the obvious thing: search, find, play. Truly something that would never have occurred to me in the ‘70s and ‘80s when I was still very young and very much like Russ, finding things to like and adding them to my shelf of LP treasures.

Thanks for letting me enjoy something new to me from your past. 

Regards alan 

ps - yes, Rounder; looks like the CD version was released in 1988, but that may be an error since it’s showing Jan 1, 1988

pps - there are 22, count ‘em twenty two, albums by Johnny Adams on Tidal here in Canada (including at least four Christmas specials); I’m liking the Room With A View, Dr John is all over it...

Hi Alan33,

I'm glad you understand my journey and get it when I say an album i would love to get digitally ,as when I think of that album I take a memory trip back to my old house and system and get that buzz you do when you remember the pleasure it gave ,a connection is what I'm trying to say ,goose bumps and all that.

OOH I must look at Tidal and see ,but our internet here on the Gold Coast is terrible at the present time very slow hopefully when the NBN network is activated or 5G implemented I will have a good speedy connection , We are in an area that is one of the last to be updated .

Thanks Alan33

MDS posted:

cycling66 posted:

... By the way, I have never heard my CDs sound so good as they do through ND 555. Is anyone trying a CD555 with the ND 555?

There's some very interesting posts by Darke Bear earlier in this thread where he does exactly that.    

The CD555 and ND555 do compare - meaning I did not find the ND555 'blew it away', but I think it was significantly stronger in certain areas of music rendition over the CD555 - and the CD555 was in certain areas a little better than the ND555. Some people don't want to hear this as it is easier to jump fully into a new thing and rubbish the alternative, but it is not what I heard.

But overall the ND555 is better, I think, than the CD555 so I've placed my order. The ND555 handles frequency extremes differently and better, giving an more open window at the HF with a greater feeling of openness - and in the LF end it is more seamlessly smooth in extension and the note-definition, clarity of articulation and presentation of the note-harmonics on the fundamental notes is quite beautifully rendered. This gives a greater impression of dynamic freedom in the overall presentation that melds well into an Active system capabilities - I said before it seemed to fit like a glove.

The mid-band from both is just slightly different and my well run-in CD555 seems a bit more immediate and 'together' and focused. But the ND555 just handles this portrayal differently in that it was more fluid and seems to carry the same information but putting a different emphasis into the presentation - which is correct? - they both offer something musically excellent.

For example, certain vocalists like for example Susan Vega on her first two Albums uses timing of exactly when she says something or holds a note to convey captivating information that you realise when it is present - and when it is not. Both ND555 and CD555 present this sort of information but differently - with the CD555 it is as if you are drawn into the song - the ND555 puts the song into the room and around you in a fluid real way; they both achieve the right musical result for me.

But I think the ND555 does enough overlap in mid-band strengths and is better elsewhere to be well worth the outlay to make the transition - for me.

Two 555PS was essential for both CS555 and ND555 for me. In an Active system, once you are used to what it allows you to get used to hearing, it is not a small improvement. In a Passive system it may be - in a Passive Statement system (not mine) it was easy-obviously far better with two supplies. I run hybrid S1 Pre - 3x 500 Active and it really likes the two 555DR supplies.

DB.

Darke Bear posted:

MDS posted:

cycling66 posted:

... By the way, I have never heard my CDs sound so good as they do through ND 555. Is anyone trying a CD555 with the ND 555?

There's some very interesting posts by Darke Bear earlier in this thread where he does exactly that.    

The CD555 and ND555 do compare - meaning I did not find the ND555 'blew it away', but I think it was significantly stronger in certain areas of music rendition over the CD555 - and the CD555 was in certain areas a little better than the ND555. Some people don't want to hear this as it is easier to jump fully into a new thing and rubbish the alternative, but it is not what I heard.

But overall the ND555 is better, I think, than the CD555 so I've placed my order. The ND555 handles frequency extremes differently and better, giving an more open window at the HF with a greater feeling of openness - and in the LF end it is more seamlessly smooth in extension and the note-definition, clarity of articulation and presentation of the note-harmonics on the fundamental notes is quite beautifully rendered. This gives a greater impression of dynamic freedom in the overall presentation that melds well into an Active system capabilities - I said before it seemed to fit like a glove.

The mid-band from both is just slightly different and my well run-in CD555 seems a bit more immediate and 'together' and focused. But the ND555 just handles this portrayal differently in that it was more fluid and seems to carry the same information but putting a different emphasis into the presentation - which is correct? - they both offer something musically excellent.

For example, certain vocalists like for example Susan Vega on her first two Albums uses timing of exactly when she says something or holds a note to convey captivating information that you realise when it is present - and when it is not. Both ND555 and CD555 present this sort of information but differently - with the CD555 it is as if you are drawn into the song - the ND555 puts the song into the room and around you in a fluid real way; they both achieve the right musical result for me.

But I think the ND555 does enough overlap in mid-band strengths and is better elsewhere to be well worth the outlay to make the transition - for me.

Two 555PS was essential for both CS555 and ND555 for me. In an Active system, once you are used to what it allows you to get used to hearing, it is not a small improvement. In a Passive system it may be - in a Passive Statement system (not mine) it was easy-obviously far better with two supplies. I run hybrid S1 Pre - 3x 500 Active and it really likes the two 555DR supplies.

DB.

Will be interested to see how your opinion shifts on having the ND555 fully warmed up. I guess some of the comments will be even sharpened. I would appreciate if you could us updated as you have precise ears.

All these comments makes me wonder when willNaim make a statement on source, now probably streaming as CD are being discontinued......

CDPs will slide off the range as they stop selling. Or become insufficiently profitable.

For a gratuitous publicity stunt look no further than Linn. When they couldn't sell their CDPs any more they milked it for all it was worth.

Naim have tended to exercise more restraint and understated calm.

I don't know how current the demise of CDPs from the Naim range is. Linn got to this point several years ago and made a right fireworks display out of it.. They got some radio time and column inches. Not bad for a rather meaningless publicity stunt.

Alba1320 posted:

^ You seem to have misunderstood me, as I was referring to Linn's current 'goings-on'.

Ah right.

Darke Bear posted:

MDS posted:

cycling66 posted:

... By the way, I have never heard my CDs sound so good as they do through ND 555. Is anyone trying a CD555 with the ND 555?

There's some very interesting posts by Darke Bear earlier in this thread where he does exactly that.    

The CD555 and ND555 do compare - meaning I did not find the ND555 'blew it away', but I think it was significantly stronger in certain areas of music rendition over the CD555 - and the CD555 was in certain areas a little better than the ND555. Some people don't want to hear this as it is easier to jump fully into a new thing and rubbish the alternative, but it is not what I heard.

But overall the ND555 is better, I think, than the CD555 so I've placed my order. The ND555 handles frequency extremes differently and better, giving an more open window at the HF with a greater feeling of openness - and in the LF end it is more seamlessly smooth in extension and the note-definition, clarity of articulation and presentation of the note-harmonics on the fundamental notes is quite beautifully rendered. This gives a greater impression of dynamic freedom in the overall presentation that melds well into an Active system capabilities - I said before it seemed to fit like a glove.

The mid-band from both is just slightly different and my well run-in CD555 seems a bit more immediate and 'together' and focused. But the ND555 just handles this portrayal differently in that it was more fluid and seems to carry the same information but putting a different emphasis into the presentation - which is correct? - they both offer something musically excellent.

For example, certain vocalists like for example Susan Vega on her first two Albums uses timing of exactly when she says something or holds a note to convey captivating information that you realise when it is present - and when it is not. Both ND555 and CD555 present this sort of information but differently - with the CD555 it is as if you are drawn into the song - the ND555 puts the song into the room and around you in a fluid real way; they both achieve the right musical result for me.

But I think the ND555 does enough overlap in mid-band strengths and is better elsewhere to be well worth the outlay to make the transition - for me.

Two 555PS was essential for both CS555 and ND555 for me. In an Active system, once you are used to what it allows you to get used to hearing, it is not a small improvement. In a Passive system it may be - in a Passive Statement system (not mine) it was easy-obviously far better with two supplies. I run hybrid S1 Pre - 3x 500 Active and it really likes the two 555DR supplies.

DB.

As a new owner of a pre-loved loved CD555, your assessment is very reassuring, DB. Thank you.

Mike 

Congrats MDS! Enjoy the legend :-)

People used to say vinyl was hard work, having to get up to change sides.

With CD we only had to get up AFTER the whole album (both sides!) had played.

Now, with the ND? we only need to get up to open another bottle of wine.

Good to see that some of us are still listening to CD and staying in shape.