To preface - I am a Naim newbie.
I have the opportunity to purchase a second hand Nait XS2 for around £1000 ($1300 USD). Seller says it’s in perfect working order, and it’s from 2013.
Any thoughts on whether this represents good value for money and, more importantly, whether a Naim integrated amp that’s 11 years old would still be considered as an amp I could take on without any worry about degradation of sound quality?
It needs to be serviced right about now. Factor in those costs to the purchase price. Contact Darran at Class A Sheffield for a price.
Recommended service schedule for “black box” is 12 to 15 years so that unit is really not far away. It won’t be broken but it also might not be performing optimally.
If you’re not in the UK then servicing support becomes harder; but not impossible.
Hi @byrie, welcome to Naim
Where are you located? USA maybe, I see the ($1300)
As robert-h says, its coming up to service time and if you are in US you need to factor that in and find who is the Naim dealer able to do this.
That said it won’t fail at midnight if you don’t get it serviced.
Service on amps is replace the resevoir capacitors, plus a detailed check over and replace as required to be sure everything is within spec.
Thanks for the responses
Here’s the kicker - I’m actually in Australia where there are very few Naim dealers left. Which makes servicing this amp a bit trickier.
Sounds like I should probably fork out a bit more for an XS 3, rather than an XS 2 …?
If its a 2013 unit, then its due for service in 2025 to 2028…
How often should I service my Naim product? This is a question often asked, and the Service Department recommendations are as follows: for the Chrome Bumper (circa 1975 - 1989) and Olive (circa 1989 - 2000) range products, we recommend every 8 - 10 years and for the newer Black products (2000 - present), every 12 - 15 years.
In which case… Pass on this and look for a newer on perhaps…?
Which will not need servicing as soon. Although maybe 4 years (to 2028) is long enough…?
G’day byrie,
Where abouts in Oz are you.
Mitch in Victoria.
Hi Mitch
I’m in Brissie. Zero Naim products to be found up this way!
How do you like your XS2?
I currently have a Primaluna Evo 200 integrated which sounds fantastic but just not sure I can be bothered with the admin that tubes bring…. Hence my wanting to switch things up a bit and finally step into the Naim world which I’ve been wanting to do for some time now. Pity that Aus seems to have become a bit of a no man’s land for Naim!!
Cheers
Byron
G’day Byron,
If you can love an object, I love my XS2. I purchased my NAIM equipment from Audio Trends in Melbourne, which then, at the time, used to repair Naim equipment. Give them a Google and a phone call and see if they still do, as they no longer sell their equipment. I do not know why they dropped Naim, though if they can not do the repair or maintenance, I hope they will know who can.
There is a chap there by the name of Andrew who has his own sideline business called HI-FI Restorations on 0409029411. He might take on a home project or guide you in the right direction. Tell him Paul with Rosewood Linn LP12 put you on to him.
If you fail that, Google Naim in Melbourne will find a couple of dealers that still exist. Addicted to Audio comes to mind. Though, as far as repairs go, I have no idea.
May I ask for the SPL of your speakers and the minimum impedance of your speakers so you do not make the same mistake that I did? If I had done the maths before being so swept away with XS2 and SN2 audition and unable to tell the difference, I chose the XS2. Later a few years I did the maths and realised for the sake of headroom, I should have purchased the SN2 at the time.
Warm regards,
Mitch.
Hi Byron, I live in Brisbane. There was a Naim (and Arcam) factory trained technician based near the Gold Coast or Mt Tamborine (I can’t remember exactly or his business name), his name is Andy. I have a funny feeling he used to share premises with a speaker manufacture on the Gold Coast. He used to do the warranty repairs for the Naim distributor before the Busisoft/Addicted to Audio debacle. If you google Naim repairs Brisbane, a few places come up but they’re not Andy, he seemed like a nice chap. I meet him once at Caxton Audio, he used to go to Caxton Audio regularly to pick up repair jobs. But there are a few options in Brisbane.
Thanks Mitch - that’s super helpful. I actually used to live in Melbourne and I remember seeing Naim products when I’d go to AudioTrends. I also remember Andrew.
My speakers are Martin Logan Motion 20s. They have nominal impedance of 4 ohms and SPL/sensitivity of 90db
Thanks Brad! I’ll do some digging
Dear Byron,
From your information and the information on the web, the nominal impedance is stated at 4 ohms. I am sure the dip below that, though I can not find any information to support this assumption.
With an excellent sensitivity at 90 dB, they will be a very light load on any amplifier; an XS2 or XS3 will be more than adequate. I run a pair of Celestion SL6Si at 84 dB SPL with 8-ohm nominal impedance with a minimum of 3.9 ohms, and as stated before, I should have purchased an SN2 for these very inefficient speakers. However, at the power levels that I run them at, I have had no audible issues and enjoy them very much. There is a company in Queensland called Total Recoil Speaker Repairs that will change over your woofers for Kevlar and aluminium dome tweers for ribbon tweeters. Replace the cross-over with a re-engineered crossover and refurbish sound dissipation wool. I highly recommend if the XS3 or SN3 amplifier is being held back by the speakers. Or you could purchase a speaker upgrade down the track if you think the speakers are holding you back. I did and am extremely happy. Can you hear the symbols shimmer on your current speakers? The second double click of drumsticks in the background, Dire Straits. I now find it the edge-of-the-seat stuff and re-enjoy listening to old favourites and new music in a new way.
Mitch expat Queenslander living in VIC.
Why ?
The XS3 is very much expensive for what you get.
And what you can buy for that kind of money is a proper amp or separates, thats what I would do.
I have just bought the XS3 and I am very pleased with it.
I started with the idea of buying a new old stock XS2 that they had. But electrical goods age without even being used I would wager. So I went for a brand new XS3, which I believe has been improved compared to the XS2