Whoo Hoo. My Naim CDI is back and working perfectly :)

[pjdowns]

So I have a weird one for you.

My CDI was suffering from a 'Popping' sound after approx 10 mins of playing the CD Player, so, about 4 months back I decided to put it in the loft as I had made the decision not to get it repaired.

My wife and I decided in February to go ahead and get it repaired, so, I take it out of the loft and visit Audio T in Basingstoke who sent it off to Naim.

A lovely lady, Shiela, called me from Naim last week to explain that they had had had the machine on test for a while and couldn't find any problems it. It is decided to return the machine.

I get it back yesterday, play a number of CD's on it, and quite right, it is working perfectly.

So how could this be ?

There is a thought that it could have something to do with it being placed in the loft, allowing it to cool down, but that sounds like hype to me .... I guess it could have been something within the machine that was playing up or I guess it could have been the start of a problem, which will return ....

But, Hey, I have the CDI back and I am sooo happy.

Oh and it literally kicks the living crap out of the Squeezebox. So much deeper and controlled bass, warmer almost analogue sound, you can listening without having to turn off the system due to fatigue....oh and the instrument seperation is stunning....

Paul.

[NRG]

The squeezebox needs an external DAC, you can't compare one to the likes of a Naim CDi without it. Try the comparison again with a SB/Beresford combo.

[Marco]

Nice one, Paul

Am I right, Neal (or anyone else), in saying that the CDI uses TDA 1541s?

Marco.

[Spectral Morn]

Hi Marco

No. I thoughts so too, but it was the CD1 which has these dacs not the I model. I had to trawl a bit to confirm this.



Regards D S D L-----Neil

[Marco]

I suspected so. In that case it explains a lot. Multi-bit TDA1541s sound nothing like modern DAC chips, particularly when they're properly implemented such as in the case of the CDI, and I would therefore expect the Naim player to "kick the living crap" out of a Squeezebox.

Comparison with the Beresford would be very interesting.

Marco.

{Edit: just noticed your latest edit. Are you absolutely sure? I thought that the original CDS (the CD1 you mention) and the CDI both used TDA1541s}.

[Marco]

Hi Neil,

The Naim CDI does in fact use TDA 1541s. Scroll down to the list at the bottom here and you'll see

http://www.lampizator.eu/LAMPIZATOR/...r/TDA1541.html

NAIM AUDIO CDI TDA1541A-S1 (Single Crown)

There's even a picture of a CDI near the bottom clearly fitted with TDA1541s...

Interersting site, too!

Marco.

[Spectral Morn]

Hi Marco

My gut feeling was that it had (but not being a Naim expert I decided to check). However I did a bit of checking and all indications I could find was that it didn't use these chips, I even had a look in the Naim forum.

I have a link to that guys site and as you say very interesting indeed...and indeed there it is, my gut was right but my mind was wrong


Regards D S D L---Neil

[Marco]

Observe the picture, Neil!

Marco.

[pjdowns]

Hi Marco

No. I thoughts so too, but it was the CD1 which has these dacs not the I model. I had to trawl a bit to confirm this.



Regards D S D L-----Neil

Just to clarify, Naim never produced a Naim CD1, only a CDI. A number of people have got confused about this over the years.

When Naim first started producing CD Players back in the early 90s:

There was a CDS1 (2 box CD Payer, Transort/DAC and then Powersuply) and there was a CDI (Single box player) Mine

Paul.

[pjdowns]

I suspected so. In that case it explains a lot. Multi-bit TDA1541s sound nothing like modern DAC chips, particularly when they're properly implemented such as in the case of the CDI, and I would therefore expect the Naim player to "kick the living crap" out of a Squeezebox.

Comparison with the Beresford would be very interesting.

Marco.

{Edit: just noticed your latest edit. Are you absolutely sure? I thought that the original CDS (the CD1 you mention) and the CDI both used TDA1541s}.

Marco,

I agree totally, I think a Squeezebox with a Beresford would give the CDI a real run for it's money....and on that subject if I had the money, I'd buy one and be able to make that comparison

For the past hour or so I have been sitting here, listening to many different genres of music and can confirm that the CDI was very much missed while it was away, there hasn't been a point on any album, where I have had to go and turn the volume down because it sounded too bright.

Also, the wife was listening to Tears of Joy by Antonio Forcione and said ...

"You can hear him tapping his hands on the guitar, while playing"

My life, on the Squeezebox it sounds like a confused mess, on the CDI, almost as though he is in the room....

But then again, I am being a little unfair to the Squeezebox, for convenience, it is an excellent machine and like we've said, connected upto a Beresford it would be pretty good.

But it has to be said that Naim do something very, very special to the CD players to make them sound so good

Also, they gave it a very nice clean. Thanks Naim

P.