NDS new system build 2013

If JRiver is on your list of things to play with, I've found JRemote to be an absolutely excellent iPad app for remote control. Both products together give a superb browsing and organising experience. 

Thanks, sounds ideal.

Kit has arrived, the KEF LS50 look amazing out the box. 

First report : Plugged in a Lacie 1TB USB drive into the NDS front USB port. It powered up from the NDS and I can playback all the library music on it, with 192/96 FLAC files down to 16/44.1 FLAC, AIFF copies for testing and other test files, so straight away I have nearly 1TB of music to playback.

Now the network build.

Cheers

Dan43

As a test iPhone working wirelessly via Apple TV/Optical cable, iPhone has AIFF(without song metadata) and Apple Lossless on it, all playing back perfectly. A small portable server almost.

USB working, KEF LS50 speakers coming up well. iRadio sounds great.

Last bit now is the server to the NDS.

Hi Dan43 -

Sounds like you are having some good fun!

What's in between the NDS and LS50's?  Which PS are you using?

Good luck with the rest of your home demo!

Hook

Hi Hook,

Going well. The kit is :

NDS, XPS PS, KEF LS50 and at this stage my standard in-house generic amp (Sony STR series)

Looking for NaitXS as the amplifier.

Then later upgrade the XPS PS to DR.

Dan43

Others may have also found this working?

iPhone streaming via Apple TV/AE. Stream from your iPhone your Spotify/iTunes library account to ATV/AE and use the optical output from ATV/AE into the NDS or similar.

N-Stream working fine.

N-Serve is something I would like to see work outside NAIMs own servers, has anyone done this?

Regards

Dan43

An interesting system - are the KEFs up to the task of showing what the NDS can do? I'm all for source first, but might something like an NDX, Supernait and something at the £2k level speakerwise be better overall?

I have toyed with this for a long while, my intention is to grow into the NDS, so the KEF LS50 speakers at this stage are ideal for the size of room I am currently using. The NDS should give me years of use, and as my knowledge of the kit increases so will the supporting equipment.

555PS DR is just out of my combined financial range just now, but the NDS I can go for.

So the NDS/KEF LS50/XPS PU (later to be DR) is what I am testing right now.

I could drop to the NDX, certainly cheaper, but the NDS blew me away with the demo's I had in the dealers so I am going to go this route.

Not for everyone granted but suiting me, for now at least, and this is a home demo to maybe change that original thought process.

Dan43

Hi Dan,

I have a similar setup -- NDS connected to a nas (Synology) which can run a UPnP server, and the NDS serving as a source for a Nait XS.  But my main UPnP server is a UnitiServe.

I still don't have Spotify running, but doing it from the iPhone via Airport Express or Apple TV seems reasonable.  But for your main source of streamed music, *I* would definitely pick the nas over iPhones, Airplay, etc.

Hi Bart,

Right now I am playing with J River and Allegro, using cat5 cables via Netgear direct.

The iPhone is just another handy option just wanted to try and use it.

Not sure on my final UPnP option just yet, trying a couple out to see which suits best. Has NAIM considered opening their N-Serve to non-NAIM servers?

Dan43

Dan, if you're using the NDS and a UPnP server, you'd only be using nStream.  nServe in that environment wouldn't really do anything relevant that I can think of . . .

Bart,

Agreed the UPnP servers are all working fine, just wondered if NAIM could give us theirs for those that don't use NAIM servers themselves.

I like simple GUI interfaces and things like J River do need a level of self learning, all good, but just wondering thats all.

Allegro seems pretty poor so going to Asset now from the PC. 

Dan43

I'm quite sure that the software at the heart of the Naim servers is in-licensed by Naim.  Their license agreements likely do not allow them to distribute the software outside of Naim hardware.  That's my somewhat-educated guess!

Final set up for now :

NDS/XPS PS/LS50 plus my Sony amp for testing (NAIT XS is the idea here later)

dBpoweramp ripping, Asset for server and Asset Control for the UI and playback via the laptop (Win 8) all via Network cables (not wireless) streaming via NAS through Netgear router cable connection to the NDS

wifi (no internet so no iRadio) allows me to use the iPhone for N-Stream while connected to the router, so the 192/24 files do playback solidly via cable while I can still use N-Stream for control.

Apple TV still works via optical also.

So I have the best of both worlds now, cat5 ethernet streaming from the NAS and wireless capabilities for N-Stream and AppleTV/optical.

This means I have no internet to run iRadio but I am very happy to have cable streaming and wireless controls all going at once.

Regards

Dan43

Still JRiver for Mac is due in a few days, with JRemote this could be a better combination? I like Asset Control as it has such a simple interface but it has no iControl options?

Dan43

Enjoy, Dan!  No internet in your home at all?  Otherwise, it would be pretty simple to get it to the NDS so you can take advantage of internet radio.

Internet is running on another network, this is dedicated to the NDS just to see what could be done.

iRadio sounds incredible, just ticking boxes until I nail my ideal solution.

Having the direct cable and wireless options all working minus just the iRadio I can live with, and quickly switch to wifi embedded with net access when needed.

Enjoying some newly downloaded 192/24 tracks to see what they deliver compared to the ripped 44.1/16 versions, the hires files are WAV the 16bit versions are FLAC. 

Best

Dan43