Sound of Naim cd 5i italic

You might be surprised by the sound of the Music Hall 25.2 - certainly not in the $2000 range but a good player nonetheless!

In the post above, Arthur wrote: "I find the older Naim 5i a bit dark on top which might not work with some systems. I assume the new italic version is quite similar."

Based on my experience, I'd say that assumption is not accurate. I own the CD5i-2 (the "italic"), and owned the original CD5i before. The new CD5i-2 is a significant improvement over the original -- less of an electronic edge to the sound, warmer, fuller, more natural sounding, lively but not edgy. The difference surprised me -- I had both players on hand for a few weeks and was able to make direct comparisons. Maybe it has to do with the new DAC (Wolfson) in the later model? In any case, while Naim has only distinguished the new model from the old model by italicizing a letter, they have in practice produced (in my opinion) a significantly more musical and engaging CD player.

You should also check out the new Creek Destiny player IMO. Very resolving and very toe-tapping.

I find the older Naim 5i a bit dark on top which might not work with some systems. I assume the new italic version is quite similar.

I have had many players in this price range. See my system page for more info and feel free to ask me questions.

You got yourself a great amp, by the way.

Arthur

Thanks for the info.

I have had a couple of the players you mentioned.
Glad to see you like the sonics of the naim.

I just got one about 2 weeks ago, so it's still breaking in. But I have to say that it beats hands-down a number of CDP's that I've had over the years. These include: McIntosh MCD201, Lector 0.6T, Marantz DV-8400, Sony DVP-9000ES.
First thing I noticed right off away was the deep, well defined bass. Overall sound is very smooth. Abosolutely no digital harshness. No sense of shrillness in the highs.
This player seems to convey all there is on the CD without sounding overly etched.
I think the Niam is a great choice for a CDP in the $2000 price range, even beats players that cost much more.