Best "laid-back" speaker cable & interconnects for all Naim system?

" To balance everything out, I either need to resell the Nait and get an integrated that is more laid-back with excellent low bass response and punch (like the 4330SE... yes, I miss her) or try and find the equivalent in speaker cables and interconnects? If that is even possible? "

I had the 5350SE and the 5i. Also have Vandersteen Models 1, 2 and 3's. The problem is the 5i. Its just not good enough for Vandersteen's. It doesn't produce clean power. Your Creek was a much better amp.

For now, if you back off on the tweeter 1db and run 2 sets of identical speaker cables and double biwire, that should make it more listenable. It doesn't have to be anything expensive, a small spool of Monster or AQ should be fine. Eventually, it would probably be best to switch to higher quality solid core cables, but not now because cables won't overcome the Naim's weaknesses.

" At one time NAIT's were unstable using other brands of speaker wire. Check with NAIM first! "

He is using Naim cables. On the same amp the OP has I tried: AQ, Kimber, Tara, Synergistic, Harmonic and Cardas speaker cables. Its also interesting to note that when I tried AQ Cheetah and Panther (identical cables except one is silver and the other is copper), I couldn't tell the difference. It was the only time I couldn't hear a difference between copper and silver.

I didn't think it was relevant, but since you brought comparability, a while back I went to a Naim dealer to audition some new gear, and brought some of my components and a bunch of AQ cables because I didn't know what the dealer would have, and it was a long drive. The store owner asked if he could try some of my AQ cables, and of course I said OK. It was Saturday, and after the owner played around with my cables, he said he was picking up the line first thing Monday morning.

So given all that, I doubt there will be any compatibility issues. But I also stand by my original statement in that new cables won't be enough to fix the problem. 

" I agree... I think the issue is the amp. It wasn't an issue when I had the 4330SE, and things only changed when I introduced the 5i. Not that the 5i is awful... hardly. Just isn't the right fit. "

I think I can give you some info that may help. Most problems in audio can be traced back to the preamp. Its either the whole problem, or at least part of the problem. Very few people ever figure this out, and that's why you see some people always changing components. They're just not aware of the real problem. This is what's wrong with the Naim. Its extremely difficult to build a good preamp, and its even harder to build a good, cheap preamp. I haven't heard every product on the market, but I can honestly say that I've ever heard a good preamp for the $1500 or $1600 that the Naim sells for. Also, take into account that the amp section of the 5i takes up a good portion of the cost.

There are a few manufacturers that under stand this, and instead of including an active line stage in their integrated amps, they use a passive instead. Creek is one of them, Ayre is another, and if you gave me some time to think, I could come up with a few more examples. Either way, it will be a fairly small number.

Going with a passive line stage is away to get around so many obstacles that you run into with cheap preamps. My saying is if you can't afford a good active preamp, don't use one at all.

If you end up finding a used 5350SE, you need to be careful because there are 3 versions. The original 5350SE, a slightly upgraded 5350SE Classic, and the 5350SE Classic made in Asia. I would recommend that you get one made in the UK, even if its an original model.

Another option that will give you a lot more options, is to buy a stand alone power amp and a separate passive line stage. A lot of people do it this way and get results that would otherwise be out of their reach had they gone with an active solution.

" The original had a dedicated source knob for recording, as well as those blasted external pre-out/main-in jumpers on the back. "

I completely forgot about that. I had the original myself. The external jumpers is one of the best features on the 5350. If you remove them it completely separates the amp and preamp sections. So if you upgrade to a seperate amp or preamp, the Creek can be used either way without having the signal go through the section you're not using. NAD has the same setup on all butt their entry level integrated. If you can't find exactly what you want, NAD would probably be a good choice. Its at least as good as anything else in its price range. Same thing for a Rotel 1060 or 1062.