Demo tomorrow - Cyrus vs Naim

[JamesOK]

vadalma:
JamesOK: Although there was certainly an improvement over the Nait 5i and CD5i it took me little more than 10 minutes to realise its just the Naim sound I don't like!

Hi James,

was it a full Naim XS chain (CD5 XS + NAIT XS + FlatCap XS + Naim cables) or just the amplifier?

Hello - no Flatcap, but the Amp, CD player and Naim cables. Including the super duper naim power cables too.

 

[Anonymous]

JamesOK:vadalma:

JamesOK: Although there was certainly an improvement over the Nait 5i and CD5i it took me little more than 10 minutes to realise its just the Naim sound I don't like!

Hi James,

was it a full Naim XS chain (CD5 XS + NAIT XS + FlatCap XS + Naim cables) or just the amplifier?

Hello - no Flatcap, but the Amp, CD player and Naim cables. Including the super duper naim power cables too.

That's too bad, because the FlatCap gives a serious boost to the whole system, it can feed the CD player and the amplifier at the same time. It is a much more substantial upgrade than a pair of Naim Power-Line cables (for the same money!).

 

[JamesOK]

vadalma:JamesOK:vadalma:

JamesOK: Although there was certainly an improvement over the Nait 5i and CD5i it took me little more than 10 minutes to realise its just the Naim sound I don't like!

Hi James,

was it a full Naim XS chain (CD5 XS + NAIT XS + FlatCap XS + Naim cables) or just the amplifier?

Hello - no Flatcap, but the Amp, CD player and Naim cables. Including the super duper naim power cables too.

That's too bad, because the FlatCap gives a serious boost to the whole system, it can feed the CD player and the amplifier at the same time. It is a much more substantial upgrade than a pair of Naim Power-Line cables (for the same money!).

Hmm, fair point, although I would guess its still a reasonably subtle difference, compared with the different style of presentation from the Cyrus. Also when you start adding Flatcap etc to the Naim setup the price rockets even further!

 

[Anonymous]

igglebert:Who wants a HiFi that has to be switched on for hours before it sounds right. Great writeup James.

Well i don't mind as long it sounds good when it is fully warm up, you don't need hours to warm it up btw. But since the XS is new i felt it had not reach it full potential yet, it took me ages to burn in my Naim when it is new.

I felt the TS should request for the Flatcap to compared against the Cyrus.

 

[Anonymous]

JamesOK:Hmm, fair point, although I would guess its still a reasonably subtle difference, compared with the different style of presentation from the Cyrus.

Yes, that's right. I have both and prefer the Naim setup for its cohesion and musical presentation but I can see why the Cyrus combo is so popular, it's a very impressive kit.

 

[Anonymous]

nexski:igglebert:Who wants a HiFi that has to be switched on for hours before it sounds right. Great writeup James. Well i don't mind as long it sounds good when it is fully warm up, you don't need hours to warm it up btw..

The only time I switch my hifi off is when I leave for days otherwise its permanently on. It's not very "green" I admit but life is too short to wait for my system warming up

 

[Anonymous]

vadalma:
nexski:igglebert:Who wants a HiFi that has to be switched on for hours before it sounds right. Great writeup James. Well i don't mind as long it sounds good when it is fully warm up, you don't need hours to warm it up btw..

The only time I switch my hifi off is when I leave for days otherwise its permanently on. It's not very "green" I admit but life is too short to wait for my system warming up

I only switched it off when i am off for holidays else no way i will switch off my Naim.

 

[JamesOK]

Well I am now a month in to my ownership of the Cyrus 8XPD, and am really enjoying it. I am spending so much time listening to it I've probably already had my moneys worth! This is compared with my previous system which didnt get used too much at all towards the end, as I'd just got fed up of it.

The source is currently my Mac Mini running through USB cable straight in to the amp. Whilst the quality isnt as good as the CD8SE, its perfectly reasonable, and will do nicely until I have the spare cash to fork out for a player!

Alas, I am already bitten somewhat by the upgrade bug, its my birthday tomorrow so I've bought myself a PSX-R to use with the amp. Been listening for the last couple of hours and am very happy with it. It squeezes a little more detail from the amp, and makes the sound seem fuller. The soundstage has expanded a little too.

When I get some spare cash - I'll likely buy the CD8SE and stick the power supply on that, as that was my preferred sound in the demo, but for the moment, I'm enjoying what I have. Happy birthday to me!

 

[BlackSpy]

Thanks for the update.

I audtiioned a Uniti recently and wasn't really persuaded by it. the 8XPD is next on the list to try.

 

[JamesOK]

BlackSpy:
Thanks for the update.

I audtiioned a Uniti recently and wasn't really persuaded by it. the 8XPD is next on the list to try.

Naim is certainly an acquired taste, great thing about the Uniti is all that functionality in one box! What else have you tried?