speaker cable for naim/neat

[surreyfrog]

I know I might be better off asking this on the naim forum but I'm still waiting for them to approve my registration after three days.

I have just acquired a Naim Uniti2 which is playing through Neat SX2 speakers.

The speaker cable/wire is qed silver (anniversary I think)

sounds good but it would be nice to have a bit more fullness in the sound, and am wondering if a change in cable might be a good investment.

I just emailed Bob Surgeoner at Neat Acoustics to see if he could recomment any particular cable, given that they use Naim gear among others to test their speakers.

He has quickly replied and has said that Naim NACA5 cable would work, but also they have good results with Chord Epic, and also Kimber 4tc or 8tc works well with Naim gear.

I know that proof lies in the listening but I thought I'd ask inf anyone elase has used the NACA5 or Epic or Kimber with the same kit as mine (uniti2 - Neat XS2) and what did they find?

 

[hybridauth_Facebook_100004211376004]

Qed silver anniversary was a bit of a shock for me with my nait xs and quickly changed to some linn k20 aka nac a4.a heck of a lot cheaper than nac a5.the naim forum will point you in the a5 direction for sure,but a decent gauge copper cable is really all that's required.

 

[jjbomber]

He has quickly replied and has said that Naim NACA5 cable would work, but also they have good results with Chord Epic, and also Kimber 4tc or 8tc works well with Naim gear.

My local Naim dealers say to avoid the Naim cable. They say Chord all the way. This was about 18 months ago in a general conversation.

 

[rainsoothe]

Try Chord Rumour 2, chord clearway, or dnm reson. Maybe your dealer can loan them, so you can test at home.

 

[nopiano]

There is a long association with Chord, after Naim for many years rejected anything fancier than 79 strand. Now they've sold their own dependable but stiff cable for quite a few years, and are spreading their profits with mains upgrades!

Chord are nearby in Avebury, so share the Wiltshire air with their Salisbury neighbours. They'd be my first choice. Their dealers will let you try at home. And the company are happy to advise directly too.

 

[plastic penguin]

I know I might be better off asking this on the naim forum but I'm still waiting for them to approve my registration after three days.

I have just acquired a Naim Uniti2 which is playing through Neat SX2 speakers.

The speaker cable/wire is qed silver (anniversary I think)

sounds good but it would be nice to have a bit more fullness in the sound, and am wondering if a change in cable might be a good investment.

I just emailed Bob Surgeoner at Neat Acoustics to see if he could recomment any particular cable, given that they use Naim gear among others to test their speakers.

He has quickly replied and has said that Naim NACA5 cable would work, but also they have good results with Chord Epic, and also Kimber 4tc or 8tc works well with Naim gear.

I know that proof lies in the listening but I thought I'd ask inf anyone elase has used the NACA5 or Epic or Kimber with the same kit as mine (uniti2 - Neat XS2) and what did they find?

Recently purchased Atlas Hyper 2 with my Leema/PMC set-up. They should suit the Naim/Neat but I'm not sure they will cure all your sonic ills.

 

[nopiano]

A good point from PP above. I was observing on the wire compatibility angle, but actually the speakers might well sound a bit lightweight unless carefully positioned.

Have you experimented with siting, toe-in, etc?

 

[chebby]

Linn K20. Satisfies any Naim 'rumblings' about compatibility with their amps (the same cable used to be branded as Naim NACA4), but is cheap compared to NACA5. Decent thickness (2 x 4 sq mm) and has been around almost since the "RS 56 strand twisted pair" that Naim used to recommend around the time of Stonehenge's construction.

Any other decent conductor thickness (2.5 sq mm or more) made from a high purity copper in a 'shotgun' configuration.

 

[drummerman]

I have NACA5 but with cyrus.

Got it next to nothing a few years ago. A good cable but can probably be bettered cheaper these days.

'Fullness' will be a result of both treble roll-off and a tad of bass control loss in a cable.

I would therefore suggest you go the opposite way and try slim conductor cables, maybe even solid core such as from DNM or the lower range ones from NVA.

 

[surreyfrog]

A good point from PP above. I was observing on the wire compatibility angle, but actually the speakers might well sound a bit lightweight unless carefully positioned.

Have you experimented with siting, toe-in, etc?

Not as such, I will have a fiddle with them.

 

[surreyfrog]

Experimenting with speaker position didn't make any discernible difference; I took a punt with some Van Damme 6mm cables and I'm fairly pleased with the results as the sound has beefed up a bit. I suspect any residual lightness in the sound may be a characteristic of the Neat speakers - they are very fast and punchy, and I am guessing you can't be fast and punchy and fat and fulsome at the same time.

 

[drummerman]

Experimenting with speaker position didn't make any discernible difference; I took a punt with some Van Damme 6mm cables and I'm fairly pleased with the results as the sound has beefed up a bit. I suspect any residual lightness in the sound may be a characteristic of the Neat speakers - they are very fast and punchy, and I am guessing you can't be fast and punchy and fat and fulsome at the same time.

George Foreman may disagree.

 

[p_m_brown]

The Neats are fabulous speakers and capable of quite staggering bass for their size!

It sounds like a problem with the wiring here (perhaps out of phase). I haven't played with an all in one Naim system but I have heard that is a grounding switch on some units which can make a difference.

Also, if you have suspended floors, this can reduce the perceived bass in the room - placing the speakers on a thick wooden chopping board or even better, the isolation blocks that HiFi Racks produce, will sort this.

 

[surreyfrog]

It's not exactly the bass that's an issue. More specifically vocals sound a bit thin and recessed, sometimes a bit spitty or edgy, while everything else seems ok,

I think the speakers are in phase ok and the Naim grounding switch is in the right position.

 

[domenn]

Hi, did you buy uniti2 brand new? I had the same feeling and I was disappointed tbh. Give the uniti month or two and it will get better. As for speaker cable check out Tellurium Q black ( a lot of positivity on Naim forum,good reading 🙂. I had a Chord Epic twin and it was little bit bright sounding especially female vocals (Rega Rs5 speakers) .

 

[NJB]

I have tried various cables, but always end up back with NACA5. After 20 years, numerous house moves, and lots of fighting with this inflexible monster, I am surprised that it still works. However, it gives a very even presentation and nothing else has ever really caught my attention in the same way. As a habitual upgrader, I am interested in threads such as these in case a new miracle cable appears; still waiting.......

 

[surreyfrog]

Just reviving this as it's months down the line and I'm still not happy. I'm thinking it's not a cabling issue per se, it's the characteristics of the UNiti and/or the neat speakers.

Bottom line is I don't enjoy listening to t he setup as it sounds too hard and thin.

For years I used mission 752f speakers, I heard them again the other day and remembered their smooth warm analoguey sound which added a seductive quality to whatever they were playing. In comparison the naim/neat sounds hard and digital.

Maybe it's question of back to the drawing board. Oh dear.

 

[andyjm]

My first 'real' HiFi was Neat / Naim / Meridian and I still have all the bits around the place somewhere. The guys I bought it from (The Sound Organisation around the back of London Bridge) recommended Naim NACA4 cable. I wrestled with the damn stuff - inflexible jacket made it a real pain to bend and run and a swine to plug in the back of the amp.

After a bit of research and some testing of my own I reached the conclusion that any decent cable would do as long as it was thick enough, and I could avoid the coiled spring problems of the NACA4.

What really did matter however was the placement of the speakers. The Neats seem particularly dependent on room positioning. I notice that earlier in the thread you mention that you tried different positions and it made no difference. This is very suprising - I found moving my Neats a few inches toward or away from the wall changed the tonal balance completely.

Listening room effects swamp pretty much every other factor when it comes to the 'HiFi experience'. I would recommend that you try moving stuff around again to see if that helps.

 

[rainsoothe]

The uniti 2 is a bit on the thin side imo, so it should be partnered with full sounding speakers (I haven't heard the Neats). My mom uses Uniti 2 + Piega Premium 3.2, and it's great (at least for jazz and orchestral). Piega classic range is even warmer sounding still, but can seem too fat at times, imo. Sonus Faber Venere might also be a good match.

 

[surreyfrog]

Andyjm, Rainsoothe, thanks for your thoughts.

I'm thinking it's less a cable issue, perhaps I shoud audition some other speakers that give a presentation more like the old mission 752fs. Andy, no amount of repositioning of the neats seems to make a noticeable difference.

Also Andy, funny you mentioned the Sound Organisation at LOndon Bridge. That's where I bought my first serious hifi in 1982. In those days it was all turntables, | ended up with a LInn Sondeck, and they sold two makes of amp, Naim and Exposure. I still remember the audition, and that the Exposure was open and detailed while the Naim was less focussed but more rhythmical, I ended up with Naim (42/110). Perhaps the Naim sound has changed since those old early days.