Naim CD5si vs Cambridge Audio 840C - quick comparison

Had an evening at a friend’s last night and thought it would be interesting to compare CD players. We ran them both concurrently (with the exact same CDs playing at the same time) through different channels on his system and just switched between them for instant easy comparison. Initially took it in turns to switch channels and without the other knowing which was playing – just to simply describe the differences.

Amp: Naim Nait XS
Speakers: B&W DM602
His CDP: Naim CD5si
My CDP: Cambridge Audio 840C

Music: Kate Bush, Aerial; Ian McNabb, Little Episodes; R.E.M., Automatic for the People; Dire Straits, Brothers in Arms.

In short, we both found the following characteristics whatever was being played. Differences between them were subtle but very clear once you’d dialled-in

- Naim had a touch more heft and lower-end drive. Very natural sounding...
- Switching to the Cambridge and you suddenly had more upper-end sparkle. Highs were lifted and voices sounded distinctly breathier. It didn’t lack anything in the low- or mid-bands, and didn’t sound overly bright – just seemed to lift a slight lid off the overall presentation...
- Switching back to the Naim and it wasn’t as if the highs were rolled-off, just dialled-back in slightly. You’d also notice, again, that the Naim has what you might call a particularly rhythmical approach – this subtly stronger drive behind it.
- Soundstage: the Cambridge brought and held voices more to the centre, but quite subtle really. That XS amp really spins the plates.
- Overall: neither CDP sounded distinctly ‘better’ to either of us. None highlighted any weaknesses of the other, just the differences as described.

(Note: the 602s are decent speakers, but not the most revealing in the world – he’s actually after some new ones, we demoed several models briefly today: in order of preference on the day: Kudos X2; PMC twenty 21; Rega RS5/Linn Majic 109 (very different speakers); Focal Aria 906 (didn’t like these so much...))

Rob

 

Price difference between players?

p.s. I tried Majik 109s for about a week, took 'em back. Made me sad, too; they were near-perfect for me (even tonal balance, great dispersion, wall-siting, "fun factor", etc.) ... but I noticed they have a suckout in the midrange that makes acoustic guitars sound wrong. (Nick Drake's "Pink Moon" nailed the suspect, sharply.) Otherwise, a brilliant monitor.

 

Thanks Gary. Yep, just done a quick review post of the speakers in question!

Price: 840C was £800 when first out (dropping to £750), but was replaced by the 851C around a couple of years ago (which actually came in at £1150!). CD5si - just over £1k.

Funny what you say about the Majiks - see quick comparison review in another post - we mainly used Nick Drake (Bryter Later) to demo... know what you mean and sorry they didn't work out for you!

 

Your comparison pretty much sums up my impressions of the two brands, although I haven't personally auditioned any Cambridge Audio equipment in quite a few years. My feeling then was that the air and sparkle of the Cambridge stuff made it sound too pretty for rock 'n' roll. Obviously, I prefer Naim's presentation as that is what is currently in my system. The bass and rhythmic drive (as noted in your comparison) work for me.

 

While I have not heard any Cambridge Audio equipment, I do own a Naim CD5si. I’ve been listening to music for over 40 years and wish I had the level of exposure to different systems and components that some here have. Within my limited scope I have realized for me personally rhythm, pace, and boogie factor are at the top of my list of attributes a component should offer. I had a CD player that was highly reviewed and while it sounded nice, in the end I had to move it out of my system. When I would have some drinks, it just never made me want to boogie. The Naim does a much better job but still does not match the boogie factor of my old NAD 5120 turntable and Signet cartridge. Everyone values different things within their music and systems are often a compromise. It’s important to determine what you value most and try to create a system that ticks the right boxes for your tastes.

 

Yep, Naim do seem to have that rhythmic drive thing down. The Cambridge did, and does, seem perhaps a little analytical in comparison; but the way it renders upper frequencies is exquisite. Couldn't help but think if you could blend the two players...

Boogie factor is a funny one - hard to define but it can come from the most unlikely sources (thinking of my bog-standard car stereo!)

 

Just got my first Naim - a used CD5i-2. What a crazy beautiful sounding player. You read things descriptions using the word "musical" and "natural" and while I can be cynical, I completely get it. What's interesting is that my system has - in the past - had trouble making certain discs sound cohesive. This player seems to help those gel. Have wanted one for years and thrilled I was finally able to get my hands on one.

 

Excellent - glad it met (perhaps exceeded) any hopes and expectations you had!

 

A sort of funny observation. I live in a small four room apartment. With the old player, music sounded good only in the room the stereo actually lives in. So if there was a CD going and I was in the kitchen, it sounded terrible - disjointed, disconnected, etc. With the Naim, it's completely different. Music travels through the whole apartment and retains it's cohesiveness. Of course not the idea way to listen to music, but it suggests to me that there's something fundamentally different about this player when compared to my previous one (Arcam CD73).

 

Hmm, not sure about that! All else being equal (volume etc) I could only imagine it's perhaps related a greater bass output/emphasis from the Naim, but really don't know. Guess it's a nice effect to have whilst chopping carrots.

 

Actually the opposite, which is what I've also noticed when listening to the player critically. where the Arcam did "better" (more accurately) when it came to LF and HF, the Naim seems to "narrow" the audio picture. Gets all the elements of a piece of recorded music to play nice together, work with each other. I'm a huge fan of this player.