I never thought I would do it, but . . .

Hi Ken,

I never thought, too, but I did. I just bought a s/h DVD5 (read my post here below) and it seems that luck has turned away from me. I may not be in the proper frame of mind now, but I want to give you one single useful hint: I could compare for half the evening video and audio qualities (with DVDs, CD replay is presently defective in my machine) of the Naim and of my Oppo 980H DVD player. The video is a trifle better on the Oppo, it seems, and the audio is different but not necessarily better on the Naim.
I forgot the prices - in euro zone: Oppo €198,
Naim circa 4000.
Now you can go out and cruise for Arcam, or any other costly player... But please, reflect for a few minutes.
Best regards,
Massimo

Please note Ken, that maxbertola's "new" machine was purchased second hand, not as new.

Ken: I recently had the opportunity to compare my good old Arcam CD36 FMJ against a Toshiba dvd-hd player. Not quite the machine you'd find in the audiophile wonderland, right? well, regarding cd playback, the Toshiba was simply great. Maybe not as subtle as the arcam but still had much detail, everything was where it was supposed to be. I mean, no real weak point and it really enjoyed playing Goldfrapp! so I enjoyed listening to it as well.

Arcam have a good reputation regarding cd playback with their dvd player but of course, it comes at a price. I've also been using a Pioneer DV-939 as an audio source for several years and the results were simply brilliant. (It was quite a costly machine though!). Maybe you could check the new Pioneer Blu-Ray players. They will play everything in the market and offer stunning video performance, even when using DVDs.

Ken:I bought the Arcam139, plays all except bluray. Although very pricy, but sound and vision are sublime. I have seen one for £600 s/h.

I also bought a 139.

Absolutely fantastic machine for both DVD and CD.

I just picked up a s/h DV135 for $450. I know this is their entry-level player, but I would be interested to see how it does. If I am not happy, I'm sure I can sell it for my cost. I'll report on my results. I'm not much of a video wonk so I'll reflect on the CD sound and SACD when I borrow some from a friend.

i have been using a pioneer elite blu-ray (hd94) for audio cd playback with terrific results. just one problem, every now and then the unit will lock up for no apparent reason. when this happens, it has to be unplugged and replugged. i've had the unit for about 15 months, play it every day, and this has happened 10-12 times.

quote:

Originally posted by AV@naim:
Please note Ken, that maxbertola's "new" machine was purchased second hand, not as new.

I never said it was >new<. And I made it clear I was in an improper state of mind. I may apologize for my somewhat hurried first impression, but I was rather upset at having a DVD5 that didn't seem to work properly while I was far away from anyone who could be at hand for help. Yet, I still don't think it's wrong in any way to buy secondhand overseas: in general UK prices are lower (or should I say, Italian prices are higher - just compare) and UK owners have great care of their Naim gear.
Tonight I managed to have my >new< DVD5 read one disc, and it sounded wonderful, especially when feeding the AV2 via HiLine; and I'm sure that in proper working conditions it will show superior qualities. I still think that an Oppo 980H is a real bargain for the price, though.
In the end, for those who don't know me and may think I love to criticize Naim, up to now my system has been the following:
CDX2 - XPS2 - HiLine - Nac202 - HiCap2 - Napsc -AV2 - DVD5 - Nap 200 - Naca - n.center - Nap 175 - SBLs, which doesn't exactly puts me in the ranks of occasional Naim users.
I do apologize for my hurried first impression, though, and hope to be able to correct it as soon as possible.
M.

Max,

Your first post here made it very clear that your DVD5 was second hand - no suggestion that it was "new" at all. I really don't understand why anybody would want to confuse such an issue.

In your other post, it was a little unclear whether you had bought the DVD5 from a dealer or whether you had bought it from a private seller - I eventually decided you had a bought it from a private seller.

What is not yet clear to me is whether your machine has any residual warranty - again I assume that there is no residual warranty.

Assuming you bought the machine privately and there is no residual manufacturer's warranty, I think you know that sorting out your problem will be at your expense, unless some helpful soul on this forum comes to your rescue with a simple solution!

It seems you have been incredibly unlucky with your purchase, but it also seems that you actually like the picture/sound quality of the DVD5 when you manage to get a disc to play. Lets hope you sort your DVD5 out properly and at a modest cost.

Cheers

Don

Don,
you assumed right.
Thanks for your hopes.

Max

Now I know why I never thought about this option. I do not have the patience for A/V. Nor do I have the patience for resolving ground loop issues. I have never had ground loop issues with any other amp I have owned, and I have owned a few. I'm on the verge of ditching the Nait 2. It's such a hairshirt.

As for the DVD capabilities, the Arcam was forcing a 4:3 aspect ratio when I used component video output. But, when I used an HDMI connection, it showed the proper 16:9 aspect ratio. I went over the on-screen menus about a dozen times. The picture quality was fine, but apparently I am no videophile. I have a 26-inch Sony HDTV which gives a very nice picture. But, I'd be damned if I could tell the difference between the Arcam, my XBOX, and an old Philips machine. I just don't care that much about video "performance," I guess.

The audio of the machine was certainly different from my Rega Planet. It was an easy call for the Planet, though. Arcam had more bass, but it wasn't very controlled.

I'll be keeping my audio and video separate for the foreseeable future. That means using my XBOX as a DVD player, which is fine until it breaks down again.

Ken, I can't help but think you got out of luck on this one. Certainly, I understand your "no patience for A/V" point but, as I said before, I've used a DVD player as audio source for several years and had no problem at all. (it all changed when I moved in a new place, where groud loops problem showed up).

I will obviously enourage you to keep your A/V and pure audio stuff separated, which is the choice I made. Unfortunately, it won't solve you initial problem