Naim NDS Network Music Streamer

The Naim NDS Network Music Streamer brings the company’s considerable digital audio expertise to a source component designed for serious listening. Drawing on engineering developed for Naim’s celebrated CD555, it combines high-resolution network streaming with carefully considered circuitry and an uncompromising approach to signal integrity. Support for audio up to 24-bit/192kHz, UPnP streaming and internet radio opens up an extensive world of music, from stored digital libraries to high-resolution downloads. Yet the NDS is about more than file formats and resolution figures. Its presentation has the clarity, rhythmic precision and natural warmth that have long been associated with Naim, allowing performances to retain their energy and character without losing sight of the musical whole.

Behind the understated exterior lies a thoroughly considered design, with separate analogue and digital circuit boards, dedicated power supplies for critical sections, sophisticated isolation and jitter-reduction technology. A high-quality Burr-Brown DAC and Naim’s established oversampling and digital filtering techniques further reflect its reference-level ambitions. Alongside network streaming, the NDS offers three S/PDIF digital inputs, covering BNC coaxial, RCA coaxial and optical connections, plus USB playback for music stored on a memory stick. It supports a broad range of popular audio formats, with gapless playback for uninterrupted listening. Control is available through the front panel, supplied remote or Naim’s n-Stream app for compatible Apple devices, while the absence of an internal power supply allows the NDS to benefit from Naim’s external XP5 XS, XPS or 555 PS units. For those building a high-end system around digital music, the NDS remains an intriguing proposition: a carefully engineered streamer that treats network audio with the same seriousness as traditional high-end disc playback.

This product is being sold on consignment and is not new.