Newbie to Naim

hi warwick -- and welcome!

i'll let others comment on your AV needs, as that is not my jam.

for the 2-channel setup, i'd look at adding a chord hugo DAC or a 282.

I'm curious as to why if you have just bought this setup, at not inconsiderable cost, you want to start changing it so soon? What is wrong with it?

Do you have a good stand to sit it all on? Once that is sorted out, you should consider installing a dedicated mains supply, which will help it to work at its best. 

If you do want to change anything, you should look at the streamer, as the NDX is the logical partner for the 202/200. It's certainly worth using the leads that come packaged with the Naim boxes, which are likely to be better than the Chord offerings you mention. I'm not sure that Anthem speaker leads exist though. 

Hungry halibut you are quite correct with the chord anthem leads in fact they are chord epic twin speaker cables. I chose the Chord range because i didnt like the sound of the standard Naim ones. To my ears they were muddied and the bass was overblown but different people hear different things i guess.

With regards to the upgrade its not something i am going to do straight away as currently i love the set up i now have and am enjoying the pleasure all that outlay has bought me however inevitably at some stage upgradeitis will strike and i just wondered where to start when it did. 

With regard to the additional amplifiers thats simply because i currently run a hybrid system and use the unity gain feature for av purposes. I would like all the amplification to be naim with just the source being the marantz. 

Stand wise i currently have a dedicated AV cupboard which isnt perfectly ideal but it fits in the lounge and gets the bosses approval! A dedicated stand at this stage is not an option. Supply power wise i currently have a dedicated circuit to the fuseboard. 

That all makes perfect sense. AV is a mystery to me, and how much you spend depends on how important it is to you. Personally I'd plough the money into the music setup and manage with the Marantz, but that's just me and I'm happy with a Panasonic sound bar. 

Do have a look at the NDX should you wish to improve things. Alternatively you could sell the ND5, the 202, the napsc and the Hicap and get a 272. If you then added an XPS you'd have much better sound and with the 200 only three boxes, which your better half might be happier to entertain on a dedicated stand, as they really do sound better. 

Naim used to make an AV processor which you might find used, and also a three channel amplifier I believe. 

Hi, warwick.

I took the challenge in 2011 of inserting a 112/150/FC2X into my existing 5.1 system, employing Unity Gain, and driven by my rather nice Denon AVR-4800.  My dealer told me I would be surprised, and that my KEF Q50s would be "transformed".  He was right, and all to the good.  Later, I added a NAP-V175 for the center and rear channels.  Later still, I swapped the Denon for a Marantz AV-7005 processor, to gain HDMI and network goodies, and eliminate redundant amplifiers on-board, but returned it because it sounded inferior to the old Denon, which returned to service until I was able to acquire an ex-dem Denon AVP-A1HD processor.

Your results may differ from mine, but IMHO, integrating your AV system with your Naim stereo system is worth a try.  The one caution is that the Naim system is sensitive to ground/earth loops inherent with AV, especially if any component in the system is connected to a commercial Cable TV system.  If you experience ground loop hum, adding an inexpensive ground loop isolator between the AV pre and 112 usually eliminates the hum.  

Good luck.

Nick

Hungryhalibut posted:

That all makes perfect sense. AV is a mystery to me, and how much you spend depends on how important it is to you. Personally I'd plough the money into the music setup and manage with the Marantz, but that's just me and I'm happy with a Panasonic sound bar. 

Do have a look at the NDX should you wish to improve things. Alternatively you could sell the ND5, the 202, the napsc and the Hicap and get a 272. If you then added an XPS you'd have much better sound and with the 200 only three boxes, which your better half might be happier to entertain on a dedicated stand, as they really do sound better. 

Naim used to make an AV processor which you might find used, and also a three channel amplifier I believe. 

This is possibly an option in the future however if i sold the nd5 the 202 the napsc and the hicap and replaced with a 272 and an xps i would have 3 boxes only bit would still be short the network streamer nd possible psu upgrade? 

Sorry, I don't follow. 

NickSeattle posted:

Hi, warwick.

I took the challenge in 2011 of inserting a 112/150/FC2X into my existing 5.1 system, employing Unity Gain, and driven by my rather nice Denon AVR-4800.  My dealer told me I would be surprised, and that my KEF Q50s would be "transformed".  He was right, and all to the good.  Later, I added a NAP-V175 for the center and rear channels.  Later still, I swapped the Denon for a Marantz AV-7005 processor, to gain HDMI and network goodies, and eliminate redundant amplifiers on-board, but returned it because it sounded inferior to the old Denon, which returned to service until I was able to acquire an ex-dem Denon AVP-A1HD processor.

Your results may differ from mine, but IMHO, integrating your AV system with your Naim stereo system is worth a try.  The one caution is that the Naim system is sensitive to ground/earth loops inherent with AV, especially if any component in the system is connected to a commercial Cable TV system.  If you experience ground loop hum, adding an inexpensive ground loop isolator between the AV pre and 112 usually eliminates the hum.  

Good luck.

Nick

Hi nick, 

i am currently delighted with the front 2 channel stage but so much so i now want to bring the centre and rears up to scratch. Av wise i currently run a Marantz 8802a pre/pro and a Marantz 7055 5 channel power which im only using for centre and rears the fronts are from the nap 200 on unity gain my plan is to ipgrade the centre for a v145 mono and have nap 100 just for rears making the 7055 surplus to requirements and freeing up some funds towards the upgrade however im also aware Naim did a 3 channel 175 i beleive which i may also look at, trouble is im so impressed with the Naim gear i just have to have it all matching now lol! This is proving to be very expensive! 

I moved, and now run stereo and AV systems separately.  Using Naim AV2 > NAP-V175 3.0 system, into Totem Model One Sig x2 plus my old KEF center -- surprisingly satisfying!

Your 8802A is, no doubt, miles better than the 7005 I owned, briefly.  Judge for yourself how it sounds to you -- might be a keeper after all.  

Best,

Nick

Hi Warwick,

Setting up Naim with a surround sound system is relatively easy. You got the uniti gain sorted, so that's good.
Do remember you WILL run into ground loop hums (I'd be surprised if you didn't). Isolating transformers will help.

I would recommend the following power amps to manage your 5.1 setup:

Front L and R: NAP 250
CentreL NAP V145 (essentially a mono version of NAP 250)
Rear: NAP 200

One thing to remember is that front L and R must have the same speakers as your centre channel. For movies centre channel carries up to 50% of the sountract so it's crucial to get it right.

Processor: Classe or feed your amps directly from one of the Oppo players (e.g. Oppo 105). Alternatively one of the high-end processors from Yamaha, Marants, Denon or McIntosh.

Adam