An awful mistake?

Did you hear the Atom before buying? Maybe have this same discussion with your dealer, then try the Atom or not, and go from there. A good dealer ought to provide some options and allow you some buyer's remorse.

I did hear the ATOM and it was fine via a Nait XS however I have now realised I just want to listen to my own CD collection not Tidal etc so I have selected the wrong beast for the job. I  wish to avoid CORE as it is too expensive and seems currently not fit for purpose according to forum comments

Just rip your CDs to a NAS - what’s wrong with that simple solution?

Streaming does not imply having to use paid internet-based services. It ctually implies local storage streaming most of the time.

Thanks Adam

So is the Innuous/Sonos combination suitable or perhaps something else?

Before I answwer, could you please list for me, in order of priorities, what it is that you’d like your new system to do?

Certainly

Rip, store and play my CD collection at the same quality as playing a CD on my CD5XS

Play via my Nait XS and ProAc D1

Ideally be able to access internet radio at Hi-Fi quality

No need to stream on-line subscription music such as Tidal

My modem/router is in my hall and my Hi-fi in my lounge with no easy means of physical connection and I have to rely on trailing sockets for power due to a minimum of power sockets. I have fibre wi-Fi of reasonable speed (typically 35)

I hope this gives you sufficient information

That’s good - thanks,.

Point 1:
Ripping: can be done on your laptop / PC. Good ripping software is not free - dbPowerAmp costs around EUR 30 or so. But it will give you bit-perfect rips in a chosen format (WAV, AIFF, FLAC etc). It will also handle meta-data assignment.
Rips thus created can be used for many streaming solutions / streamers. Playback quality will be largely dependent on the equipment from that moment on (not on the rips themselves).
I would then buy a simple NAS (from either Synology or QNAP), install simple server software on it (Asset or Minimserver) and you have a streamining-ready NAS. Total cost - around EUR 400, including NAS-ready hard-drives.

Point 2:
Do you you really need to keep your Nait XS?
Atom is a full one-box solution, with a good power-amp built into it. You may be surprised how well it drives your speakers.

Point 3:
Internet radio is built into the ATOM. As to HiFi quality - few internet-based radio stations offer lossless streams. Best I’ve found is RadioParadise, which offers a Naim-exclusive stream at 320kbs ACC.

Point 4:
Tidal can be disabled on your streamer (it’s seen as one of the inputs - just switch it off)

Point 5:
Your NAS would be best positioned next to your network equipment, plugged into the back of your router / modem.

As you know physical connection is the most stable one - ethernet cables (Cat 5e or Cat 6) are designed to handle cable runs up to 100 meters with no signal degradation. Perhaps there is a way you could run one under skirtboards or similar?
If you cannot possibly run an enthernet cable after all, you can build a simple and inexpensive, so called, wi-fi bridge (more on that later if needed).

I’m happy to guide you on the NAS choice, set up and configuration.
Just email me - details are in my profile.

So to sum up - I think you have chosen very wisely - your ATOM will do all the things you ask of it.

Cheers,

Adam

Thanks

The ATOM is inferior to the XS power amp wise and importantly the XS is thump-free on switching on/off

The ATOM has less detail and is lacking in clout when compared to the Atom as a pre-amp via the XS

The Dbpoweramp / NAS setup does not appeal I want an all in one box with ripping software etc

Well - in that case you have made a mistake with the Atom.

You need a Uniti Star to meet all your requirements.

No he dosn't lol.

I must add that when I first got my old Unitiqute 2 I hadn't even heard of Tidal and didn't really even think of it but because of the free 3 month subscription decided to try it that was three years ago I still have that subscription and it is the best vfm £20 I spend each month.

It has opened up a love of Jazz that has been a real joy a love of movie soundtracks and exposed me to more new music than my previous 45 years. The ability to try before you buy has probably saved my the sub fee alone because now I don't be duff records on review alone and if an LP only has a couple of decent tracks the I just listen via Tidal.

I have compared XS 2 with the Atom and to my ears XS 2 sounds much better than the atom amplifier. 

I’m also not so sure if you can get the same sound quality from your Atom as previously from CD5XS because simply XS series is “slightly” better than all-in-one Atom unit..... Maybe ND5XS it’s worth it a try  ;-)

Kacper 

Can you not just use the Atom as a source with the Nait turning off both pre and power amp sections I did this for a while with my UQ 2 connected to a 122x before getting an ND5XS.  I know your not using some of the atom's functions but you still get ripping and streaming in a one box solution that integrates perfectly with your Nait and retains the Nait xs sound that you are used to.

I agree with BTB 100%.

I appreciate the OP says he has no need to stream services such as Tidal, however I have found it a revelation in discovering new music.

For example, a good mate of mine is very much in to his music. He sends me a text message suggesting I have a listen to album/track X, within seconds I am listening to album/track X.

For sheer convenience it's brilliant.

Atom does NOT rips Cds?

I do not wish to have internet streaming just to listen to my CD collection conveniently

Someone has now suggested CORE with a Rega DAC

Unfortunately it doesn't, you can rip your cd by using PC.

An ND5XS would be a good match with your amp, and there are good deals around at the moment. You will need to find a way to rip and store your CDs. For this, I would consider a NAS, and DBpoweramp ripping software on your computer. If all that sounds like too much hassle, I would consider an Innuos Zen Mini instead of a NAS.

For a lot of the postings on this forum the answer to the questions seems to be go and talk with your dealer. My local Naim dealer is excellent and as long as you can articulate what you want a good Naim dealer shound be able to sort it. 

It still might not meet your criteria, but as you seem willing to move away from Naim, is Melco an option?

The reason I say might not is that you will need an optical drive for ripping, but that is £25 and you can take it away when finished.

I have similar connection problems, concrete floor means hidden wiring doesn't happen, so I ended up with a TP Link travel router, the plug in mains wifi extender type caused problems with TV and more worrying interrupted a medical monitor in my neighbours home!

I have to say that the support from Alan Ainslie is beyond price.

There were some dealers offering the original N1A for about £1300, it may be the distributor can say is there are any left. You presumably will need to budget for a DAC, possibly a Mojo?

Replace the CD5 XS with an HDX. Old technology but does everything the OP requires, ripping, storing, streaming and plays CD’s too.

Auralic Aries Mini with 2 TB SSD - Rip your CDs to SSD via a Mac or PC and can add incrementally later via WLAN. Aries software v. good. Just another option. Essentially this is like adding a headless Mac Mini to your current amplification. Can also be upgraded by adding a LPS and external DAC but not necessary from day 1. Still, always good / better to talk to a professional BUT then do try to buy from them if content with advice

Adam Zielinski posted:

As you know physical connection is the most stable one - ethernet cables (Cat 5e or Cat 6) are designed to handle cable runs up to 100 meters with no signal degradation. Perhaps there is a way you could run one under skirtboards or similar?
If you cannot possibly run an enthernet cable after all, you can build a simple and inexpensive, so called, wi-fi bridge (more on that later if needed).

 

For Naim streamers, I would not recommend wireless bridges, that is two Wifi access points working in Adhoc mode. There are technical reasons for this in how Naim have designed their streamers so I understand. When using Ethernet (wired connection) to the media server, the streamer network parameters are optimised for this connection method, and when you connect via Wifi different network parameters are used to optimise the connection within the streamer... now if you use Wifi Adhoc connection with a local wired connection to the streamer, the streamer will be none the wiser and won’t be optimally configured which could lead to increased chance of dropouts and even subtly reduced sound SQ... certainly not getting the best from either Ethernet or Wifi.(WLANs)

Using Wifi contrary to some myths on this forum can be totally reliable and effective right up to full hidef, and indeed possibly has some advantages in terms of noise radiation as well, but one needs to set a suitable Wifi network to support ( loadbalancing overlapping APs acting within an ESSID for example) ... a  little Wifi access point glued onto the Broadband router in one point in the house just ain’t going to cut it reliably enough.. possibly it has been this low performance that has led some to think Wifi is not suitable for streaming..

Strikes me that you’re not happy at the prospect of owning the Atom so perhaps it’s best to walk away then have a very long think(perhaps guided by your dealer or another one) about what you really want. Ideally this should have happened before you ordered the Atom but I’m sure it’ll find another home.

I can see why the OP has buyer‘s remorse. But in his previous thread, concerns were raised... I think it is a good suggestion to talk to the dealer. Since priorities haven‘t been entirely stable, I would also suggest having another good think — to avoid another buyer‘s remorse in a few weeks‘ time.

Re Tidal, I am totally with Bob The Builder. I also didn’t expect to keep it after the 3-month trial. But it‘s great for exploring music and especially new recordings. I read the Gramophone magazine, and love that I can listen to new recordings reviewed in the magazine. Marvellous! (And the wife loves browsing for music too.)

Adam Zielinski posted:

That’s good - thanks,.

Point 1:
Ripping: can be done on your laptop / PC. Good ripping software is not free - dbPowerAmp costs around EUR 30 or so. But it will give you bit-perfect rips in a chosen format (WAV, AIFF, FLAC etc). It will also handle meta-data assignment.
Cheers,

Adam

 

Adam,

Dzien dobry,

You may have only been referring to Windows OS hardware, but for the Mac, XLD is free, and bit perfect.  I just thought those with Mac hardware should know. 

Jeff