System Automation and Nat-05 Tuner

Mike-B posted:

Naim chose what they did with each as I described in my previous post.   Belling-Lee is the stnd for Radio & TV in Europe,  F type is the stnd thats been adopted for DAB  - your NDX radio module is DAB/ FM   (F type was originally designed for satellite)  

This pic is the F-Coax  adaptor I used to have with my NAT (prior to a wired B-L)   The 90 degree adaptors are harder to find than the most common straights (if you can't find one locally www shopping is easiest)   They are completely compatible as both F type & B-L are 75 ohm.

I found the right adapter at our specialty electronics shop.  On my second visit in as many days, I brought the NAT with me.  The terminal fixed inside the NAT is male-PAL/Belling-Lee, same as the fitting Mike shows above — so, MIke’s adapter is the wrong gender for the NAT, at the PAL end.  I expected female PAL inside the NAT, same as Mike evidently did.

I bought a female-PAL to male-F adapter, plus an F coupler to reverse the F gender.  (They were out of stock of the perfect adapter in-one.)  Not exactly a corner-store item in the US.

Forcing a Flex-F push-on almost works, but it feels wrong to push that hard.

For the good of the NAT community . . .

Nick

Now that I am fully up and running, I confirm System  Automation seems only to support source switching on the NAC, and volume.  

The hardware alternatives for Scan, Freq, and Preset seem not to have been foreseen.

Ah, well.

Sorry to report KING FM local sounds “gripping” via NAT, and only “winning” and “engaging” via NDX-FM.  

Unfortunately, NAT wins.  Rats!  Was hoping to push it on.  Not everybody will agree it is worth the trouble.

And, all this, without yet applying the FC2X, or better!

Nick 

Sorry about the error with the adaptor gender Chris,  rushing around etc..  I didn't realise I posted the wrong pic until it was too late (15 minute limit)  but it was the F to B-L & 90' angle I was intending to show.   

No worries, Mike.  I am grateful for your engagement.  I agree the right-angle adapters are the neatest solution, and will swap one in if I can find one.  For now, I am getting good results with a straight one.

I wonder how many of the stories we hear about NATs and their fussiness re antennas are fueled by users, especially in the US, who are forcing an F connector to serve where a PAL connector is needed, and not knowing the difference.  I am sure I ran my B&O that way for years!

Nick

Hi Nick,  I believe the fussiness with antenna is probably related to getting the best (the ultimate excellence) from NAT-01 & 02's.     My NAT-05 is much the same as my old Audiolab & Sony tuners (when I had them)  if anything the NAT-05 was less prone to hiss on distant stations,  I get a small local folk program from a little 3kW station from aprx 30 miles out. 

Simon, thanks for the detailed response. That managed to jar some of my old memory cells about stuff I actually knew, but had long ago forgotten. I had spent a lot of time fussing with a Ron Smith Galaxies aerial many years ago, that I still use. I had tried wiring it with the ribbon cable and later on with the coax. I just could not remember why. In the end I do remember that it didn't make a great deal of difference because of the nature of the Nat-01. It really worked well with local stations, but was fairly pathetic at going distances. 

It it sounds like I've still got everything wired correctly now. Unfortunately FM radio is the States is just a shadow of what it was, so there is not that much quality broadcasting to listen to anymore. You don't seem to have it so bad in the UK, but the future seems to offer little promise. 

Arthur