Buying XPS for my DAC

Hi PPT,

Going back to what I remember from the halcyon days of the nDAC, an XPS will give a lift for sure but pairing it with a 555PS was the way to go. I am sure others will chime in with similar advice.

Ray

It will depend on a couple of factors; first, is it an original XPS, or an XPS2 (or even an XPS DR)?  Secondly, whichever it is, how old and when was it last serviced?  Regarding the last question, if it hasn't been serviced within the last 8-10 years then it will need that done, otherwise performance may well disappoint.

Oh, and there's one more point to make; ensure that the XPS comes with a Burndy.  All bar the XPS and earliest XPS2s should come with an improved S-XPS Burndy - well worth getting over the earlier type.

I run an Olive XPS/S-XPS Burndy on my nDAC. I had it serviced by Darran @ Class A within a week or so of purchase.  It sounded good from the outset though - well worth it.  A more organic sound and similar to what you get by ading a Hicap to a Preamp.

Richard Dane posted:

It will depend on a couple of factors; first, is it an original XPS, or an XPS2 (or even an XPS DR)?  Secondly, whichever it is, how old and when was it last serviced?  Regarding the last question, if it hasn't been serviced within the last 8-10 years then it will need that done, otherwise performance may well disappoint.

Oh, and there's one more point to make; ensure that the XPS comes with a Burndy.  All bar the XPS and earliest XPS2s should come with an improved S-XPS Burndy - well worth getting over the earlier type.

Hi Richard,

it is an original XPS of 2010 updated to XPS DR. This is declared by the reseller (who is a NAIM authorised reseller in Italy). I will investigate about the Burndy.

what do you think. Is it a good update for the HDX-DAC sound?

Yup, I had an XPS2 on the DAC, then an XPS DR - a good upgrade, although the 555PS is greater still.  However, I would perhaps also first be listening to what a Powerline and a Hi-Line can do on the bare Naim DAC.

PPT posted:

Hi all, 

I have a HDX and a ND5XS both connected to a Naim DAC which is then connected to a Supernait 2.

i’ve now the opportunity to buy a second hand XPS to upgrade the DAC.

Will the XPS produce a significant upgrade in sound details and quality of both HDX an ND5XS sources?

Thanks for any comment 

PPT

Sorry PPT

Why do you use HDX and ND5XS? Adding DAC and the power supply ... 4 boxes for a digital source

If I were you, I would investigate on NAS + NDX2 (that is also a visual match for your SN2)

M.

Richard Dane posted:

Yup, I had an XPS2 on the DAC, then an XPS DR - a good upgrade, although the 555PS is greater still.  However, I would perhaps also first be listening to what a Powerline and a Hi-Line can do on the bare Naim DAC.

Hi Richard, 

Could you please elaborate on why you like adding a Hi-Line and/or a Powerline to the DAC before adding power supply? I’m entertaining the notion of putting a Hi-Line between my DAC and 82. The Powerline is not a likely addition due to cost. I’d probably get a PS before the Powerline.

Thanks,

CE

CE, I think the Hi-line in particular works very well with Naim's digital sources.  The Powerline is no dealbreaker, but I think at least a Hi-line is a must-have.