Introducing ND5XS SSD

Hi,

I have just piloted a few albums, and on nstream I get the usual info on iPod and SSD (artist, album, tracks) - but no artwork at the minute. This is not too important for me, but some help on getting artwork would be appreciated (e.g., dunno why I don't have artwork on the Classic iPod, whilst I get it on an iPod nano: is perhaps AIFF not delivering the artwork?).

In any case, I'd expect that whatever album info you can show from files on a memory key, you should also get via an SSD, and most likely in the same sound quality. I think this is a super discovery.

Best,

Stefan

Stefan, we've talked a lot about usb stick vs. usb ssd drive with respect to the UnitiServe.  I am not sure why any of these Naim devices should view an external usb ssd drive as anything other than a "big usb stick."  (The only thing I can think of is whether whatever memory the Naim device fills with data as to what's on the usb device is large enough to hold all of the info from such a large storage device.)

My issue has been cost -- multiple 64 gb sticks have been quite cheaper than a single usb ssd drive of the same total capacity.  I have not priced things lately so maybe that is changing??

I would expect artwork to work exactly the same on a usb ssd as on a usb stick.  If it does not, the theory about lack of memory to hold all of the info may be partially correct.

Hi Bart,

sorry, I haven't followed the discussions for the UServe and external SSDs connected to its USB. Well, the UServe manual says: 

Note: Local connection is only intended for relatively small music collections on temporarily connected memory sticks. Any large capacity storage should always be connected via a network.

I guess this would also apply to the ND5XS - any idea why? Is there a considerable slowdown with larger music collections on an SSD attached via USB to UServe or ND5XS etc.?

Best,

Stefan

Stefan I didn't mean to imply that you'd have followed those discussions . . . just that they've been had.  The only solid statements I've seen concern the use of external usb hard drives (not ssd's), where it's been stated that the usb port is not intended to provide the power needed to run such a drive.  Others have (speculated?) that usb hard drives are 'noisy.' 

I have taken to following Naim's advice, and use a usb stick when I've just downloaded something new and want to hear it right away without adding it to my nas and waiting for the uServe to see it.  Otherwise, my music goes on the nas if it's not from a disc I've ripped myself.  I really don't know the true pro's and con's of using larger external solid state storage.

I have a 1 TB harddisk with its own power supply (12V) on my ND5XS via USB and it sounds awesome with it. And since the external harddisk has its own electricity, all works very smoothly and quick enough.

Yes, the navigation is not as nice/comfy as via ethernet/nstream, but good enough. 

i spoke to naim regarding running a usb powered HD 500gb.  with regard to current loading but they just said it was made for sticks . from looking at the current rating of sticks compared with usb HD they seemed well less than500mA  i think usb NDS5 psu rating is 1A .

Uhm...I was talking about the PSU of the external harddisk.

Hi Bart,

Not sure if you are aware that you can get the Unitiserve to see downloads almost immediately by doing a rescan of the Network Share.

Gerry

Thanks Gerry.  I've had mixed results.  I always do a re-scan (I use the web interface as I only have a Macbook at home), but sometimes it seems that it's not effective.  Sometimes I have to re-scan multiple times for all the stuff I added to show up.  Other times . . . first time works!

Thank you

Hi Stefan.

I just checked:

The external HD is a 1 TB Toshiba-thingy. About 460GB used. 12V power supply.

Everything works fine and the sound is awesome.

I just can´t get around to install a NAS-system...it works fine with me this way.

Liebe Grüße

Thorsten

I am lucky then as mine works first everytime.

Danke, Thorsten,

exactly - I can't be bothered with NAS either! Bei den fallenden Preisen fuer SSDs werde ich zu Weihnachten mal mit einer 512er SSD loslegen: die braucht noch nicht mal ein Powersupply am ND5XS.

Gruesse aus Lancaster,

Stefan

Hi Thorsten,

I guess you already have a couple of hundred CDs stored on your external drive? (incl. all that Jazz!) May I ask if navigation through the library is reasonably quick? And in case that you use n-stream on an iPodtouch: do you get the album art? (I don't as yet). Which format were you ripping to (e.g., AIFF or ALAC), please? 

Many thanks in advance,

Stefan

P.S.: Gil Evans 'Out of the cool' is a super quiet (orchestra) Jazz: Where the Flamingo flies...

Try downloading the album image from google at no more than 300px x 300px. rename it 'folder.jpg' and put it in the relevant album folder.

You might need to refresh the cache in nstream.

Hi Stefan!

Yep, the navigation is pretty quick. I have about 400GB of lossless/hi-res/mp3-stuff on the external disk.

Mainly there are FLAC-files.

I really couldn´t care less about the "album-art-business"...If I want this feature, I use the ethernet-cable-my PC-solution.

But for "couch-chilling-reading-relaxing"-music -sessions, the USB-disk suits me wonderfully...

Do a search for posts by Dave Dever (formerly of NAIM) over the last year or two for a explanation of why USB connections are not optimal from a performance/quality standpont.  He (NAIM) recommended the ethernet connection for this reason.

Stefan: This is VERY interesting to me indeed.  Would you care to share the model number of your Samsung and its capacity.  This may be just what I am looking for.  Ultimately, I probably will go with a VTB Appliance or even a Unitiserve, but I am going the route of USB for a while.  Thanks for letting us know about this.

Russ

Hmmm...I have both...and both are fantastic...

Thorsten,

The chances are that the 12v power supply of your NAS drive is a switched mode power supply. A colleague of mine says that there was a significant improvement in performance when he moved from his switched mode power supply to a 12V linear supply (adapted from a 14V supply by a technician). he is using a network and yet he says it still made a big difference. If your NAS is powered from a socket near the streamer, you could benefit by moving to a linear supply. My colleague's supply cost less than £100 delivered and it has a big transformer! I can try to find out where he got it from.

Regards,
Frank.
All opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of any organisations I work for, except where this is stated explicitly.

Dear Frank!

Thanks a lot.

I don´t have a NAS-drive.

It is just an external 1 TB USB-harddisk which is powered by a little 12V power-supply.

No need to "tweak" this source, since my listening pleasure is like this:

90% vinyl

5% ethernet-cable Asset/PC

5% USB

Loving regards

Thorsten

I've tried this many times and it never works for me.

No idea why.

Thorsten,

That 12V power supply is what I'm talking about - NAS/hard disc makes no difference. Here's something easy to try. Play a record.

Power down the hard disc and unplug from the wall.

Play the record again. If it makes no difference then enjoy. If it makes a difference, then you know what to do.

Regards,
Frank.
All opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of any organisations I work for, except where this is stated explicitly.

Dear all,

Thorsten: fantastic is the word indeed (and good to hear that the navigation stays good with larger music libraries, thanks!). And yes, I can be content without or with album art (I do remember your 'On being content'). Except that, well, I had just bought a MacMini, which will give me a more 'decentralised' access (same as NAS) to my music library than a SSD or HDD (I'll possibly play 'mixed' from SSD and, for freshly ripped music, from MacMini). The slight inconvenience in the SSD/HDD solution is that one needs to unplug and physically update it with new music from time to time. But, hey, firstly this is easily done, and secondly there is something very appealing in listening to a ND5XS with just a little SSD attached... for those "couch-chilling-reading-relaxing"-music -sessions! (So

Russ: You get Samsung SSDs easily via Ama… (I do recommend it!)

Frank: this is the beauty of the SSD (compared to a HDD): no PSU (or moving parts) involved!

Best,

Stefan