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Accuphase CD players versus Naim CD players

i have an accuphase cdp(DP - 55V) which on the whole i like a lot(I have thought about upgrading to a DP-67, see seperate question) but sometimes i wish my accuphase was more dynamic in its presentation of the music. overall though i feel it gives me plenty of detail and a real sound. i have also thought about a naim cdp but for every person who seems to love the Naim 'sound', there seems to be someone else who hates it with a passion and thinks the 'sound' Naim creates is false. the main criticism seems to be that 'yes', it does give you a very dynamic explosion of sound and is very fast but that it misses a lot of the musical detail and that the naim 'sound' is actually quite artificial. i would be interested to hear if people agree or disagree with this argument. i have not done a direct comparison yet between an accuphase cdp and the naim cdx2(which is the player i would be thinking about)but whilst i might sometimes crave a bit more dynamism from my accuphase, i would not want to sacrifice the accuphase genuine sound for something that may be slightly artificial. i would be particularly interested in hearing from anyone who has directly compared Accuphase with Naim.
merseyboy

Showing 1 response by eril

eril
52 posts
 
I know the Rega Ela speaker well. It's a great speaker!
I also know Naim CDP's, inc the CDX2 and Naim Nait and Naim separates.
Naim and Rega go well together, but there is a definite Naim "house sound" that is fast, and rhythmical (which I like) - but to my ears it tends to impose these qualities on all music. This does seem to be less so the further up the Naim line you go.
I found the Cairn Fog CDP give a lot more air and open-ness, separating out voices and instruments, a lighter touch and still worked well with Naim Amps (the Naim CDP's were a bit "grey" and rolled off at both ends to my ears). To my ears the Cairn was much better than both Naim CD5 and CDX2 (even with extra power supply) while still giving the PRAT that Naim gear is renowned for.
The other option was Rega CDP's. They are are a great match with Naim Amps. My local dealer sells Naim and Rega. To my ears Rega Jupier CDP (I haven't heard the new Saturn but I believe that it is a significant step-up from the Jupiter which I did hear with lots of Naim gear) and Rega Ela speaker with Naim Amps was easily the most open and musical combination I heard at the dealer's while ensuring I got rhythmic coherence.

Hope this helps.

And remember it's all in what we individually hear and prefer.

Cheers
Eril
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