Naim 272 dac quality for roon
Posted by: cuciu76 on 19 August 2018
hello everybody,
id like to buy a nac 272 and the nap 250dr but as you know the 272is not room ready and im a big fun of roon. Maybe a solution could be use it as dac with sonos or allo digi player connected. What do you think about it? Should i prefer the internal streamer to have the best sound quality? (Maybe im thinking that SN2 plus ND5 xs2 is a better solution for my wish to use roon)
tks for your help!
The new streamers are Roon endpoints, i would either buy a separate streamer, or wait for the 272 to be updated to the new platform.
Using just the 272's dac for roon is a total waste of money. The ND5XS 2/SN2 is a much better solution or get a used pre/power combo 202/200 or 282/200 and add a used Hugo 1 plus a small streamer like a mac mini or even a Raspberry Pi. Another option is to buy a new generation Uniti all in one player.
My solution to getting Roon (which I also really enjoy) on my 272 is a 2010 Mac Mini I had around. Like the older MacBook Pros the headphone jack in the older Mini (not sure about current models) supports optical out which is then my input to the 272. I haven't compared it to other sources critically but it seems very slightly cleaner or crisper somehow. Anyway Roon is very happy on the Mini - I use it as an endpoint but I'm sure it would perform Core duty equally well.
Bob the Builder posted:Using just the 272's dac for roon is a total waste of money. The ND5XS 2/SN2 is a much better solution or get a used pre/power combo 202/200 or 282/200 and add a used Hugo 1 plus a small streamer like a mac mini or even a Raspberry Pi. Another option is to buy a new generation Uniti all in one player.
Well it’s not a total waste of money, as it will still work, and as the price of the legacy streamers drops, it might still make an attractive proposition for anyone who doesn’t mind a workaround solution for Roon. A new streamer with native Roon support would of course be neater, and an ND5XS2/Supernait might be better, but until it’s available for demo, that is pure speculation.
In term of sound quality, if u have made test, 272 plus 250 sounds better then SN2 plus one of the ”old” naim streimer?
cuciu76 posted:In term of sound quality, if u have made test, 272 plus 250 sounds better then SN2 plus one of the ”old” naim streimer?
I thought NDX/Supernait2 sounded better than 272/250DR. This was with speakers that were easy to drive: with more difficult speakers, maybe the benefits of the 250 would outweigh the disadvantages of an inferior source.
When Naim launced the 272 they said that disabling the streamer made a small difference in sq for the better, but of course most people use the streamer. I suppose that switching it on and off is done in the Naim app, so it should be simple to test.
Claus-Thoegersen posted:When Naim launced the 272 they said that disabling the streamer made a small difference in sq for the better, but of course most people use the streamer. I suppose that switching it on and off is done in the Naim app, so it should be simple to test.
You can disable any unused input on the 272, as you can with any of the streamers.
ChrisSU posted:cuciu76 posted:In term of sound quality, if u have made test, 272 plus 250 sounds better then SN2 plus one of the ”old” naim streimer?
I thought NDX/Supernait2 sounded better than 272/250DR. This was with speakers that were easy to drive: with more difficult speakers, maybe the benefits of the 250 would outweigh the disadvantages of an inferior source.
My speakers are ProAc studio 140
One of the things about the 272 is how it improves so dramatically when powered by an external PSU - when powered by a 555DR it's in 300DR class!
The Chromecast audio is now a roon endpoint. Not the best streamer ever, but could add functionality.
I also have a 272 and use a Allo DigiOne as a Roon endpoint, connected via coaxial to a digital input of the 272 while running the Roon Core on my MacBook Pro. It is a cost effective way to use Roon and the playback is almost on par with streaming directly from the 272. Another alternative, is a Bluesound Node 2, which also acts a Roon endpoint and streamer. When connecte via coaxial, the internal DAC of the Node is bypassed. I compared both and preferred the Digione.
I would only choose a 272 if you plan on using the features of a 272 for streaming via UPnP, Tidal, Spotify, etc.
If you only intend on using Roon exclusively for streaming your local music library and online streaming services, there are a few options available for stand alone units that can be connected to a DAC.