HDX with XPS

Yes; you use the XPS on the DAC. Note that you cannot use an olive XSP, only an XPS2.

Thanks for the reply. Maybe my question wasn't clear enough. I don't have a Naim DAC, so I can't use the XPS on the Dac. But sooner or later I plan to upgrade to the NDS, so the XPS on the HDX would be a step in between, if it improves the sound on the HDX.

Yes, you can add the XPS2 to the HDX, and improve it. If you are headed for the NDS, it would makes sense to get the 555PS, which will (later) provide the optimum power to the NDS. But it is more expensive, which may well be an issue, though it avoids potentially reselling the XPS later.

If you have an HDX then XPS2 you should consider adding the nDAC to the XPS and keeping the HDX IMHO. G

Agree ! HDX seems to be for the moment much more stable than the streamers. As my current system is HDX/Ndac/XPS, i can confirm that the Ndac is an upgrade more sensible than the XPS on the HDX. Now the Ndac itself shows its true face only with a PS, that's for sure and either an XPS or a 555 will be very profitable upgrade and bring the level to a true "high end" source.

Now, of course, the NDS, that i also could try home, is an other step up with more imaging, details and refinements.
An other way (i follow) is to go for an XPS or 555 and wait a Highend DAC which i bet will be soon or late out of the factory. Then, a NDS would be useless. You have to consider that once you have a HDX, the only thing you need is a DAC. The HDX is a server and a streamer

I disagree. A Naim streamer networked to the HDX in UPnP server mode will be entirely stable. This would be a server and client pair made to work together. The HDX is a fully capable streamer in this regard.  But it's also a high quality player into the Naim DAC -- an embarrassment of great choices

The home networking aspects are simple, but of course not stable if not done right.  But the "right" way to do it is simple; don't use a home router that's listed in the sticky posts as unsuitable, and use a $50 switch.  That's it!

gmischol,

I read a review a couple of years ago comparing a PSU onto the HDX -vs- the nDAC, the nDAC was the winner by a considerable margin, and I believe this has been echoed on the forum.

My advice would be to get to a dealer ASAP. Do the demos, borrow the equipment and decide what you want to be listening to in a few years time, and do this in the most money efficient way. If that means living with your current kit for a couple of years, until you have the funds for an NDS, then that is what I would do.

From what I have read the sound signature of the nDAC is different from the NDS, and it may be that on an extended demo you might prefer the former over the latter with your setup in your room.

M

Yes n-DAC first ! HDX is pretty average without it - IMHO of course. 

The OP doesn't say what they are using the digital out of the HDX into but I would suggest that if the OP is using the analogue outs of the HDX then adding the XPS (or 555PS) to the HDX would be a very worthwhile upgrade however if the digital out is being used into "something else" and the results of playing the HDX through the "something else" are found wanting then rather than add a PSU to the HDX look at improving the "something else".

If the "something else" is an AV Receiver / Processor then this could be as simple as running the HDX analogue outputs into it rather than going digital and having the processor be the DAC ...

We had this with a customer who was running a rather expensive AV Pre-Processor and had the NS01 that he used for his NaimNet system hooked up to it via S/PDIF. He was complaining that the system was great for movies but ultimately left him rather flat when listening to music. The AV Processor in question had analogue audio bypass so when used with analogue sources in stereo they were kept analogue as they went through the unit and simply "volume controlled" so we suggested just trying the analogue outputs of the NS01 into it instead and the difference was night and day ... he did in the end buy a Naim DAC to go between the NS01 and his AV Pre-Processor too.

Phil 

Of course I meant "server," not "streamer," above. 

Nothing to hide here, Phil, I'm using the HDX into a Weiss DAC 202, from there into a NAP 250.2.

My Uniti I was using before seemed for me the bottleneck for SQ so I was looking for a preamp. The solution with the Weiss DAC seemed to be a very fine one without even more boxes (compared to Naim preamps) and at this time Naim wasn't offering such a solution as they do now with the DAC V1 and the NAC 172XS, although I believe they aren't the best partners for a NAP 250.2. So I sold my nDAC and the Uniti and bought the Weiss DAC 202. If Naim will come up with something higher in SQ than NAC172 XS I will probably go back to Naim. 

As I wrote in my first post the NDS is very tempting now, so the XPS2 would be a step in this direction to be paired with the NDS later on, but if it's not really an improvement on the HDX it doesn't really make sense.

You could add an XPS to your HDX but if you are using it - as you are - digital out into the Weiss DAC then I wouldn't have thought that it would be the best value for money upgrade - especially as if you're possibly looking at going to an NDS as the NDS really should be used with the 555PS.

Unfortunately I can't tell you what we may or may not be working on in the way of new products that may fit your requirements so I can't guide you in as far as what to do is concerned...

Phil

Agree if paired with a Naim server, seems to work well, otherwise, when i see the plenty of posts with streamers problem configuration,...etc I almost never see any complain or problem around servers. A friend has the NDX and even if it is a great machine, the servers are, to my mind, more enjoyable in use. The managment of the database is easier,...etc And as i said, the HDX is a server, is a streamer. To upgrade it, DAC is the way to go, better even with a PS to enhance the performance.