Oppo outputting as a pre-amp?

Some general observations on this. 

It will work fine, keeping in mind the caveats mentioned about Naim preamps > Naim poweramps (or lack thereof).  If the context is AV, then the latter isn't really an option anyway so the set-up would seem "forgivable"  ;-)

The Oppo sounds good as a streaming platform, and decent enough as a DAC, albeit high quality external DACs do sound better than what's onboard, with more life & energy.

One thing to note is that the Oppo sounds better at high volume, or with a low level of digital attenuation.  This is presumably because that gives more bandwidth for the DAC to do its job.  As such, I found it sounds better into an integrated amp with both volume controls in use, even if that seems counter intuitive.  The gain of the power amp is a factor in this equation (the lower the better), and possibly even the choice of output connector (xlr would/should sound better, but those are at higher voltage requiring more attenuation - which complicates the decision).

Overall the Oppo does a great job as a pre/pro without spending fortunes on more esoteric kit.

karlosTT posted:

Some general observations on this. 

It will work fine, keeping in mind the caveats mentioned about Naim preamps > Naim poweramps (or lack thereof).  If the context is AV, then the latter isn't really an option anyway so the set-up would seem "forgivable"  ;-)

The Oppo sounds good as a streaming platform, and decent enough as a DAC, albeit high quality external DACs do sound better than what's onboard, with more life & energy.

One thing to note is that the Oppo sounds better at high volume, or with a low level of digital attenuation.  This is presumably because that gives more bandwidth for the DAC to do its job.  As such, I found it sounds better into an integrated amp with both volume controls in use, even if that seems counter intuitive.  The gain of the power amp is a factor in this equation (the lower the better), and possibly even the choice of output connector (xlr would/should sound better, but those are at higher voltage requiring more attenuation - which complicates the decision).

Overall the Oppo does a great job as a pre/pro without spending fortunes on more esoteric kit.

 

Thanks for the info above - I'm just interested to see how it might sound direct to a NAP 250 vs via the Nova - from what you say connecting to Nova may offer better control if the Oppo is internally degrading SQ when it uses variable volume output.

Hi Alley Cat, if you have both a Nova and a 250 then I think its worth experimenting via both routes (albeit I'm cognisant of possible custom cabling requirement with the 250 - if it were possible to cobble together a cheap hookup first that might be handy) . I say that because every situation is different to the next, and theory doesn't always hold up in practice. 

However it is, I think, generally recognised that digital volume controls usually work best when the attenuation is minimised, ie they are as close to 100% as possible, and my own experience with the Oppo seemed to support that.  Apparently it is less to do with the volume control itself and more to do with the DAC downstream.  However it also depends on other downstream components, and whether or not the traditional "shortest path" benefits may outweigh other factors -  which a bit of experimentation ought to reveal......

PS  I'm reminded on the cabling point that Gotham do a good quality RCA>XLR specifically designed for Naim hook-ups from around 24 quid - no customising required......

karlosTT posted:

PS  I'm reminded on the cabling point that Gotham do a good quality RCA>XLR specifically designed for Naim hook-ups from around 24 quid - no customising required......

Thanks again for that suggestion - if it's these guys I can't see they have a UK distributor, but prices seem similar to Flashback cables in James' post above.

http://gothamcables.com/en/got...internationaldealers

Hi Alley Cat, I have previously bought Gotham from UK-CBE who operate on fleabay  ;-)  Prices are as I mentioned above but Flashback may be cheaper still.  Dunno.  Either way that seems a relatively low risk/affordable way to try the 250 out as a direct connection.....