555 PSU.......

it would be interesting to compare, for sound quality, nds/555dr/powerlite vs nds/xpsdr/ chord music.  Not sure the first combo will win on all aspects....

Claus-Thoegersen posted:

In the best of all worlds power cables should not make a difference, and wildely expensive power cables should not even be considered. Unfortunately I have found and paid for one of the Anzus cables running  from my wall socket to my Anzus Mainz block. This cable was upgraded from a powerline cable. Anzus makes super expensive cables, and I was lucky enough to get aa very good price for this cable, but it was still the double of the price of a powerline. But it was clear from the start that this superexpensive cable made a difference. The problem is how  much money you have to pay for that upgrade. I admit I would not have paid the regular price, I would not even have tried it out!

You do like your Naim plugged into the Mainz block? Kind of goes against the forum standard of no power distribution for Naim. I've been told by others the Mainz block is great and apparently a new is coming or almost here as well. I've been told by a little birdie that Lars used a Naim SN before Aavik was born. If true then it makes sense Ansuz and Naim make a good combo. Do you use Ansuz speaker cable as well?

nigelb posted:

For 3 Chord Music power cables you could get yourself a ND555 and go on a nice holiday!

LOL!

@Lindsay, the PS 555 DR will really get the best out of your CDS3, even with the 'modest' Powerline that is supplied with it.

Polarbear posted:

French Rooster posted:

i had an xps2 before the 555dr on my nds.   With the 7k difference between them, i could have bought 7 k power cords for my pre, xps2, and 300ps.  I think money would be better invested and the upgrade bigger on the whole system.  Xps2/nds/ 3 chord music power cords vs 555dr/ nds....  quite sure the former would be better.

Black boxes first, once you have these right, then go for cables.

Good advice. While I'm a big fan of Super Lumina and Powerlines, I wouldn't put investing in those ahead of getting the black-boxes sorted.

MDS posted:

Polarbear posted:

French Rooster posted:

i had an xps2 before the 555dr on my nds.   With the 7k difference between them, i could have bought 7 k power cords for my pre, xps2, and 300ps.  I think money would be better invested and the upgrade bigger on the whole system.  Xps2/nds/ 3 chord music power cords vs 555dr/ nds....  quite sure the former would be better.

Black boxes first, once you have these right, then go for cables.

Good advice. While I'm a big fan of Super Lumina and Powerlines, I wouldn't put investing in those ahead of getting the black-boxes sorted.

me too until recently, when i tried a high end power cable on my preamp.  

French Rooster posted:

MDS posted:

Polarbear posted:

French Rooster posted:

i had an xps2 before the 555dr on my nds.   With the 7k difference between them, i could have bought 7 k power cords for my pre, xps2, and 300ps.  I think money would be better invested and the upgrade bigger on the whole system.  Xps2/nds/ 3 chord music power cords vs 555dr/ nds....  quite sure the former would be better.

Black boxes first, once you have these right, then go for cables.

Good advice. While I'm a big fan of Super Lumina and Powerlines, I wouldn't put investing in those ahead of getting the black-boxes sorted.

me too until recently, when i tried a high end power cable on my preamp.  

That may be so but I assume you had your 555DR in place before you added the new posh power cable. If so then it can hardly be good advice to suggest to others they add posh power cables before, or even in place of, the addition of a 555DR. Part of the reason your new power cable is effective is that you have already optimised your power supply, I would suggest.

The Strat (Fender) posted:

Purchase

Excellent upgrade Lindsay, you will not be disappointed.

nigelb posted:

French Rooster posted:

MDS posted:

Polarbear posted:

French Rooster posted:

i had an xps2 before the 555dr on my nds.   With the 7k difference between them, i could have bought 7 k power cords for my pre, xps2, and 300ps.  I think money would be better invested and the upgrade bigger on the whole system.  Xps2/nds/ 3 chord music power cords vs 555dr/ nds....  quite sure the former would be better.

Black boxes first, once you have these right, then go for cables.

Good advice. While I'm a big fan of Super Lumina and Powerlines, I wouldn't put investing in those ahead of getting the black-boxes sorted.

me too until recently, when i tried a high end power cable on my preamp.  

That may be so but I assume you had your 555DR in place before you added the new posh power cable. If so then it can hardly be good advice to suggest to others they add posh power cables before, or even in place of, the addition of a 555DR. Part of the reason your new power cable is effective is that you have already optimised your power supply, I would suggest.

was just a try....borrowed it

Consciousmess posted:

Do they charge 5k for a power lead because those that buy it are rich? And to ‘them’, £5k is nothing. So the target market is kind of esoteric and their consumer base remains consistent this being so??

Please elucidate!

Tomorrow I am going to order a full Statement set up,full Naim loom and masses of Naim Frames!!!

Oops !Sorry I thought you said hallucinate!!

petzhou posted:

Consciousmess posted:

Do they charge 5k for a power lead because those that buy it are rich? And to ‘them’, £5k is nothing. So the target market is kind of esoteric and their consumer base remains consistent this being so??

Please elucidate!

Tomorrow I am going to order a full Statement set up,full Naim loom and masses of Naim Frames!!!

Oops !Sorry I thought you said hallucinate!!

masses of frames?  the statement doesn’t need a rack....so just two levels rack for the nds or nd555.

The Strat (Fender) posted:

Purchase

Congratulations, it’s one of those purchases that you just know is going to be superb...enjoy 

French Rooster posted:

nigelb posted:

French Rooster posted:

MDS posted:

Polarbear posted:

French Rooster posted:

i had an xps2 before the 555dr on my nds.   With the 7k difference between them, i could have bought 7 k power cords for my pre, xps2, and 300ps.  I think money would be better invested and the upgrade bigger on the whole system.  Xps2/nds/ 3 chord music power cords vs 555dr/ nds....  quite sure the former would be better.

Black boxes first, once you have these right, then go for cables.

Good advice. While I'm a big fan of Super Lumina and Powerlines, I wouldn't put investing in those ahead of getting the black-boxes sorted.

me too until recently, when i tried a high end power cable on my preamp.  

That may be so but I assume you had your 555DR in place before you added the new posh power cable. If so then it can hardly be good advice to suggest to others they add posh power cables before, or even in place of, the addition of a 555DR. Part of the reason your new power cable is effective is that you have already optimised your power supply, I would suggest.

was just a try....borrowed it

i think my english is not precise enough to be clear in my thinking :  i was not advising expensive power cords vs 555dr on the op point.  I was just sharing my experience with the 555dr vs xps2 on my nds and was asking questions about the effectiveness of these high end power cables vs an upgrade in the ps.  Personally i don’t know which direction is best, it was just a questioning.     Anyway, the 555dr is an upgrade, for sure, and ideal partner for the cds3.

The op is right to be happy and made a good choice.  My point was a bit confusing and not well expressed.

I understand a box was collected this afternoon?

Cough. Huh Hum.  Come on then.  Not that we are impatient, you understand...

Hope it's a slam dunk winner for you Strat.  If so, I may have to DR my 555PS as well!

Best regards, FT 

Okay. Being an ex-dem model it’s fully run-in but because the CDS3 has been switched off for a few hours I needed to allow a couple of hours warm up.    

Clearly there is greater resolution, and the textures of the instruments are more apparent.   But most it is darker and just much more organic.  It’s just a much richer musical experience.  

Glad you are enjoying your new power supply Lindsay.

Likewise... It's a great upgrade, so you will have many hours re-listening to your music collection Lindsay.

Dave

The Strat (Fender) posted:

Okay. Being an ex-dem model it’s fully run-in but because the CDS3 has been switched off for a few hours I needed to allow a couple of hours warm up.    

Clearly there is greater resolution, and the textures of the instruments are more apparent.   But most it is darker and just much more organic.  It’s just a much richer musical experience.  

In my experience demo equipment never gets properly ‘run-in’. The good news is you will enjoy the music getting better and better for many more months! Every feeling I had about the  music sounding a bit digital with the nDAC + XPSDR disappeared with the 555DR. The music became better balanced between the instruments and more realistic. Much more subtlty revealed to make the music grab your attention.

Phil

Filipe posted:

The Strat (Fender) posted:

Okay. Being an ex-dem model it’s fully run-in but because the CDS3 has been switched off for a few hours I needed to allow a couple of hours warm up.    

Clearly there is greater resolution, and the textures of the instruments are more apparent.   But most it is darker and just much more organic.  It’s just a much richer musical experience.  

In my experience demo equipment never gets properly ‘run-in’. The good news is you will enjoy the music getting better and better for many more months! Every feeling I had about the  music sounding a bit digital with the nDAC + XPSDR disappeared with the 555DR. The music became better balanced between the instruments and more realistic. Much more subtlty revealed to make the music grab your attention.

Phil

Strat,sorry for going off topic a bit,I apologize....

Hi Filipe

i checked out your profile after your post,and noticed you are using the RP 10/Aphelion with Sopra2s...I have lately been thinking about getting back into Vinyl after some 30 years away,and in particular,have been researching the exact Rega deck you own.Do you feel it works well with Sopras,in my case it is Sopra 1s?Maybe I just need some reassurance that it is a worthwhile pursuit with my current setup (see profile),any thoughts appreciated,or should I just let the sleeping dog lie.

The Strat (Fender) posted:

Okay. Being an ex-dem model it’s fully run-in but because the CDS3 has been switched off for a few hours I needed to allow a couple of hours warm up.    

Clearly there is greater resolution, and the textures of the instruments are more apparent.   But most it is darker and just much more organic.  It’s just a much richer musical experience.  

‘A richer musical experience’ puts it very well. When I picked mine up there was a Naim rep in the shop and we got talking as you do. His view was that the 555 does amazing things to anything it’s powering, which I’d certainly agree with. I used one when I had a CDS3 and really liked what it did.

No quarter posted:

Filipe posted:

The Strat (Fender) posted:

Okay. Being an ex-dem model it’s fully run-in but because the CDS3 has been switched off for a few hours I needed to allow a couple of hours warm up.    

Clearly there is greater resolution, and the textures of the instruments are more apparent.   But most it is darker and just much more organic.  It’s just a much richer musical experience.  

In my experience demo equipment never gets properly ‘run-in’. The good news is you will enjoy the music getting better and better for many more months! Every feeling I had about the  music sounding a bit digital with the nDAC + XPSDR disappeared with the 555DR. The music became better balanced between the instruments and more realistic. Much more subtlty revealed to make the music grab your attention.

Phil

Strat,sorry for going off topic a bit,I apologize....

Hi Filipe

i checked out your profile after your post,and noticed you are using the RP 10/Aphelion with Sopra2s...I have lately been thinking about getting back into Vinyl after some 30 years away,and in particular,have been researching the exact Rega deck you own.Do you feel it works well with Sopras,in my case it is Sopra 1s?Maybe I just need some reassurance that it is a worthwhile pursuit with my current setup (see profile),any thoughts appreciated,or should I just let the sleeping dog lie.

NQ, I’m a fan of the RP10/Aphelion/Aria. I did indulge in the SL RCA to DIN IC. I think the DIN input to the preamp is a must. Our moderator, Richard Dane, waxes lyrically about his RP10 as does Adam Zielinski, but they have Superline. The Rega Couple 2 RCA leads are a pretty good starting point which I could not better until the SL. As the rest of the system has improved then so has the vinyl source. So it’s unlikely you will ever have to buy another TT, and no fiddling needed. A Naim style isolation shelf is essential, along with good siting of the Aria. Keep the TT off the dedicated HiFi radial. Worth getting a lengthy TT demo if you can. The Aphelion can take a long time to run-in.

The Sopra 2s just stood out from the rest for me. I think Lyndsay has Sopra 2s also. They just deliver what they are given, and I haven’t really bothered to find a better position because it’s not negotiable!

Phil

Filipe posted:

No quarter posted:

Filipe posted:

The Strat (Fender) posted:

Okay. Being an ex-dem model it’s fully run-in but because the CDS3 has been switched off for a few hours I needed to allow a couple of hours warm up.    

Clearly there is greater resolution, and the textures of the instruments are more apparent.   But most it is darker and just much more organic.  It’s just a much richer musical experience.  

In my experience demo equipment never gets properly ‘run-in’. The good news is you will enjoy the music getting better and better for many more months! Every feeling I had about the  music sounding a bit digital with the nDAC + XPSDR disappeared with the 555DR. The music became better balanced between the instruments and more realistic. Much more subtlty revealed to make the music grab your attention.

Phil

Strat,sorry for going off topic a bit,I apologize....

Hi Filipe

i checked out your profile after your post,and noticed you are using the RP 10/Aphelion with Sopra2s...I have lately been thinking about getting back into Vinyl after some 30 years away,and in particular,have been researching the exact Rega deck you own.Do you feel it works well with Sopras,in my case it is Sopra 1s?Maybe I just need some reassurance that it is a worthwhile pursuit with my current setup (see profile),any thoughts appreciated,or should I just let the sleeping dog lie.

NQ, I’m a fan of the RP10/Aphelion/Aria. I did indulge in the SL RCA to DIN IC. I think the DIN input to the preamp is a must. Our moderator, Richard Dane, waxes lyrically about his RP10 as does Adam Zielinski, but they have Superline. The Rega Couple 2 RCA leads are a pretty good starting point which I could not better until the SL. As the rest of the system has improved then so has the vinyl source. So it’s unlikely you will ever have to buy another TT, and no fiddling needed. A Naim style isolation shelf is essential, along with good siting of the Aria. Keep the TT off the dedicated HiFi radial. Worth getting a lengthy TT demo if you can. The Aphelion can take a long time to run-in.

The Sopra 2s just stood out from the rest for me. I think Lyndsay has Sopra 2s also. They just deliver what they are given, and I haven’t really bothered to find a better position because it’s not negotiable!

Phil

Thanks for your feedback Phil,since the upgrade bug has not left me yet,my next step would probably be XPSDR to 555DR,then 250 DR to 300DR...in steps.I just wonder if getting back into Vinyl would give me more satisfaction in the long run,since the two paths would be similar cost wise.I will talk to my dealer,to see if I can borrow a deck,and go from there..thanks.

my experience of power cables into n272 & into 555 before 272.

From previous systems I had a number of power cables which became redundant when the number of black boxes reduced (actually some were silver) .
Into a plain n272 the cables had significant effect some negative over the standard Naim powerlead , the biggest uplift by some margin was a JPS Labs Kaptovator

adding a 555 was a bigger influence, but its takes a while to show the full effect.  marvelous upgrade to musicality as well as the usual hifi terminology

Swapping power cables on the 555 made hardly any difference to my ears, maybe 20% of the difference directly into n272,  but it did perform best with a JPS Black which is a seriously meaty cable designed for big US power amps (it also worked well on the 250DR)

The Kaptovator(s) now power the ATC SCM40A speakers

No worries guys with a vinyl diversion.  Listening to Imelda May - wow this is just sublime.   So rich,  i can go so much louder.   Oh wow

Filipe posted:

No quarter posted:

Filipe posted:

The Strat (Fender) posted:

Okay. Being an ex-dem model it’s fully run-in but because the CDS3 has been switched off for a few hours I needed to allow a couple of hours warm up.    

Clearly there is greater resolution, and the textures of the instruments are more apparent.   But most it is darker and just much more organic.  It’s just a much richer musical experience.  

In my experience demo equipment never gets properly ‘run-in’. The good news is you will enjoy the music getting better and better for many more months! Every feeling I had about the  music sounding a bit digital with the nDAC + XPSDR disappeared with the 555DR. The music became better balanced between the instruments and more realistic. Much more subtlty revealed to make the music grab your attention.

Phil

Strat,sorry for going off topic a bit,I apologize....

Hi Filipe

i checked out your profile after your post,and noticed you are using the RP 10/Aphelion with Sopra2s...I have lately been thinking about getting back into Vinyl after some 30 years away,and in particular,have been researching the exact Rega deck you own.Do you feel it works well with Sopras,in my case it is Sopra 1s?Maybe I just need some reassurance that it is a worthwhile pursuit with my current setup (see profile),any thoughts appreciated,or should I just let the sleeping dog lie.

NQ, I’m a fan of the RP10/Aphelion/Aria. I did indulge in the SL RCA to DIN IC. I think the DIN input to the preamp is a must. Our moderator, Richard Dane, waxes lyrically about his RP10 as does Adam Zielinski, but they have Superline. The Rega Couple 2 RCA leads are a pretty good starting point which I could not better until the SL. As the rest of the system has improved then so has the vinyl source. So it’s unlikely you will ever have to buy another TT, and no fiddling needed. A Naim style isolation shelf is essential, along with good siting of the Aria. Keep the TT off the dedicated HiFi radial. Worth getting a lengthy TT demo if you can. The Aphelion can take a long time to run-in.

The Sopra 2s just stood out from the rest for me. I think Lyndsay has Sopra 2s also. They just deliver what they are given, and I haven’t really bothered to find a better position because it’s not negotiable!

Phil

Hi Phil, I’m interested in your observations on having the Rp10 PS hooked up to the non dedicated mains; if that is what you were saying?

Do you also have your Aria plugged into the house mains rather than your dedicated hifi spur?

i currently have my Aria and Neo ps which connects to my RP8 on the same dedicated mains circuit as my 555 and 300 and I’m wondering if I should plug those into the non dedicated circuit....

Best regards

David