cdp soundstage

Just to make sure that what I said about absolute phase is clear, I was not referring to the connections being wrong.

Reversing the plus and minus of one channel to the speakers, for instance, would mean that RELATIVE phase is incorrect (relative between the channels), which would produce totally and obviously messed up results for all sources. That was not what I was referring to.

An ABSOLUTE phase problem would mean, for instance, that a dac or cd player internally inverts the phase of BOTH channels. The effects of that would be subtle, and not immediately obvious, but could conceivably account for the symptoms you described. Whether or not a component does that is usually not described, but you might want to do a Google search using the model number of each component in the cd path, plus the phrase "absolute phase" (with the quotes).

I have no specific knowledge to comment further on your question about transport and dac synergy or alternatives.

Hope that helps,
-- Al

I had the same naim cd5x with a flatcap2x front end for awhile
and even though I really liked the overall sound quality from the naim, soundstage size is the 1 aspect where it was lacking. My setup was in a smaller space and I got used to it. All of the music was there and proper space between the players;..in a stable soundstage that was always small & between the speakers. A power chord swap may make a small difference. I think that it is simply a characteristic of that level of Naim. Pretty sure the only way to remedy is a different cdp.
Very nice setup though.

While I prefer the tonality of vinyl over digital, a CDP has better separation than a phono cartridge. My vinyl rig had better sounding vocals and HF but my CDP was always a bit more dynamic and had a bigger and better image. I take it you are comparing the same recording on each format to come to this conclusion and not a few random recordings. My system will image HUGE.......if the recording has a huge image.

ET

"B" - if you are interested, I'll have a little get together in Jun/Feb.
Two analog setups: belt drive and vintage idler.
My own SD speakers as well.
We can do some comparison between analog and digital as well.
I can ask V.R to bring his DAC as he will be coming over with his new prototype battery/tube phono.
You can also bring your 30.2 & Juicy Music pre if you like.

Cheers
Mariusz

tks Mariusz. keep me informed. happy holidays