Older CD5x or newer CD5i-2

Audition both and let your ear tell you...People did not think the 112x is a very good pre amp but I like it very much..

I went for a used 5X, after a similar audition vs a 5i, FWIW.

Nick

I did the same as Nick. The 5X will take you through an upgrade level or two as well. Although if you're committed to sticking with your Nait5 you might find a nice synergy with the CD5i-2.  FWIW - I tried a FCXS on my 5X and preferred it bare.

5X anyday

unless you have entrylevel amplication and WANT a later CD

5X is more robust.

and much better performance

a CD5i is mostly air inside cabinet vs 5x, there's a reason 5i is much cheaper, i'd pick a Rega Apollo anyday over 5i if we are talking budget

Neither! My advice to the OP  is don't buy a CD player - referring to your other post on inexpensive streamer, streaming is the future, not CD. cD players are mechanical, will deteriorate, and will require repairs or replacement. Streaming with a decent setup can not only match CD sound quality, but can beat it (depending on the recording quality).

A setup as I described can give high SQ, matching or beating some of the more expensive suggestions at modest price, with longevity. Some other suggestions will also give you good SQ - but note that N.B. some offered lower quality solutions on the understanding it was a minor interest(function, whereas I'm suggesting you make it the primary one to build on from today for the future. Yes, there's a change in approach, but that's progress, and if your old CD player is defunct then you'll have to get ripping fast, but if it still plays tolerably there's no hurry.

If you want a CD player, buy one. My recommendation would be the CD5X or XS. Both are nice players and a step up from the 5si. CD replay is still superb, and like everything else, will not suddenly self destruct beacause something new is out.....

What I found when I was recently selling my CD5X was that CD5i almost seemed to command more - which surprised me. I was thinking of having a 5i as a "last" CDP I would ever own...as a capable backup for the uncertainties of networks and streaming.  There was an age difference in the 2 units (mine and the one I was looking at used) but I was quite surprised at the lack of response to mine at a price point below what the 5i went for.  Made me start thinking "Rega" myself.

If you have a matching nait 5i then I would take the cd5i.  "Upgrading" my cd5i to the cd5x was one of the biggest mistakes on my hifi journey.  The cd5x is only decent with the matching flatcap 2x - without it's a bore.  Also note that sharing a flatcap compromises its performance - two work better than one.  Finally, the cd5i is a far better match for the nait 5i than even the flatcapped cd5x.      

Thanks all - I'm not seeing anything written regarding a reliability difference, so I will assume (yes, always dangerous) that they should be equal in that regard. 

Unfortunately auditioning both is not an option, so I'll go with the CD5x and go from there. 

Hastings - I have an original Nait 5. 

I may be  a few days late. I would go CD5 XS, S/H if needed, instead of CD5x. It includes many changes and improvements over its predecessor.

It also features a digital output that allows major upgrades with nDAC ultimately with an external PSU where nDAC remains a keystone to enter high end demat and HD with our favourite brand.

Chag -

Not directed personally at you Chag, more a general observation;

Why does it seem, on these CDP posts, dedicated DAC-ers always feel the need to enlighten CD users on the glory of transporting/NAS-ing as if we are somehow unaware these exist? It gets a bit like the Mormons, Jehovahs, etc., knocking on my door every couple of months to attempt to give me "The Good News". Some remain content to live as pagans.

I can't answer for others, but having myself found streaming to be better in several ways, the point of contemplation of a new CD player represents a crossroads where the intended funding could easily be redirected and so is an appropriate decision point. Where the OP (or some sub-theme) seems to not have seen that as an option, or appears to have incomplete or misleading information, it would be remiss of me not to show that there is that option, lest the OP plough ahead blindly focussed on replacement and possibly come to spend yet more money if they only later come to learn about the alternative. 

in the case of this thread the OP's profile does not include a streamer, so may not have been aware of it as a viable alternative way forward that might be worth considering if not already aware and considered.

More interesting is might be why some people suggest a CD player in some threads where the OP is inquiring about streaming, and does have a CD player...

There is no such thing as a simple question on here it would seem.  Q. Should I buy an Apple or an Orange.  A.  Have you considered a steak pie they are much meatier!

I agree with Joe Rand. Long live the pagans!

I am fairly new to these forums and HiFi in general.  Can a Dac be fitted to the Pagan CD.

staffy posted:

I am fairly new to these forums and HiFi in general.  Can a Dac be fitted to the Pagan CD.

No. But if you put that CD into a CD player, or rip it and access the files with a streamer, you can pass the data to a DAC...

For us pagans the only reason to stray into computer audio is the draw of the latest and greatest dacs, which generally are not appearing in cd players anymore.  The other "advantages" of computer audio are not much of a draw (playlists, etc.), although the disadvantages - maintaining a cumbersome and time consuming parallel infrastructure among them - are extremely obvious.

Whilst a Mac Mini is indeed a computer, as in effect is the internals of a NAS streamer, running it headless and dedicated with Audirvana, its output through the Gustard makes it far removed from popular conception of 'computer audio' and very akin to standard hifi, albeit 2 box (excluding the DAC) however fitting in the a smaller footprint than a single Naim box. It turns on and off at the touch of a single button! And is ready to run in about the same  time as a dedicated 'streamer' And it has  no more setting up to do than if you set up a NAS and UPnP server for use with a Naim streamer. As for playlists, I didn't know what one was or what it was for, until advised by Naim users on one of these forums!

I trust, Hastings, that you weren't meaning your disparaging comments in the direction of such a dedicated hifi setup.

joerand posted:

Why does it seem, on these CDP posts, dedicated DAC-ers always feel the need to enlighten CD users on the glory of transporting/NAS-ing as if we are somehow unaware these exist?

I understand Joe. Maybe my way to express it is more to be blaimed.

I haven't listened to the 5x. But I have heard what a nDAC, then a PSU, can do and add to a 5XS.

That's all - no preaching intended.

Chag -

If we re Talking of a nait5 based set-up then it s the cd5x you need and flatcap on both items.

Also, pretty sure the nait 5 need s a service if not done ,it s extremely important.

if you want to improve later and ditch the nait  then invest a little money more now and get  cd5xs instead. This would allow you to match a ndac. A massive upgrade.