Agree. 282 seems the loved child, while 252 is seen as the weird one in the brood…not good enough compared to 552, whereas 282 is the worthy runner-up.
Hey ho. Me…I like weird.
2 Likes
No, we already seem to get a new one every month 
I have had a 2014 DR 252 which was paired with a 250. I was not completely satisfied with the system. I had fond memories of the 282 the 252 had replaced. In its time, the 252 was replaced by a 552 and the 250 nonDR was replaced by a 300DR. The new system is fantastic. I kept the 252 though because my dealer didn’t make a good offer.
I just set up a another system with the old 252 and a NC250. It sounds great, precise and vivid. I guess that the 252/supercap DR pair is not that far from a 332/NPX300 combo and would cost a whole lot less. It might be a good way to set up a great system.
4 Likes
a lot of these views are posted without mentioning the source used at that time
Whether a 252 sounds boring or not, also depends on what source is driving it?
A chord Dave sounds fine in isolation, until an Mscaler is added, and then the bare Dave sounds a bit bland in comparison.
let’s assume that the 252 was paired with a proper source. Still though to my ears, the amplifier and speaker, and speaker cable play a big part in the overall result. The source to preamp interconnect plays a big part.
Dynaudio speakers to me sound thrilling, some other brands (all else being equal) maybe not as much.
is that the fault of a 252?
The NC250 works incredibly well with the 252DR. Personally, I think the 250 DR doesn’t show it at it’s best.
The 332/300 is substantially better but as you say it’s a big jump in cost. The 252’s are bargains these days.
I use my 252/SCDR with a 300DR and have no desire to change anything about it. I have Dynaudio Confidence C2 Platinum speakers with a pair of REL S/510 subs. The combination is really outstanding. I love playing large scale orchestral music and this setup has no problem delivering on anything I throw at it. It’s beautiful.
3 Likes
It’s a great set up. the 252DR comes alive with the 300DR. As I was saying in my previous post, I think the 252DR doesn’t show off all it’s goodness with the 250DR.
1 Like
When I got my 252/SCDR I had a 250DR, but I ended up buying a 300DR within a couple months and never looked back. My speakers benefitted tremendously from the additional grip and control of the 300DR. It was like I had added a major speaker upgrade to the system. I can also play music at low volume and it still sounds great. Amazing.
1 Like
Sounds like this initial reaction is again a case of a bad pairing/something else in the chain holding the 252 back. You mention swapping to a 250DR so I assume the initial pairing with the 252 was a 250.2? If so, I can see why you weren’t completely satisfied, the 250.2 was known to be darker & sluggish/bloated. Pair that with a 252 that is more neutral vs a 282 & one can easily see why some may prefer the more forward presentation of the 282 when paired with that amp. As you say, pair the 252 with a better matching amp & it will shine.
As a 252 owner, I’ve followed basically all the threads on it & as I said, I don’t see much negativity about the pre, just lots of threads about “why the negativity about the 252 is sounds amazing”. The majority of negativity is from users who experienced it pre DR (& still like to blame the 252 when likely the associated kit should have been taking a lot of the blame). That’s not to say its for everyone, after all, if we all had the same taste/room/partnering kit, there wouldn’t need to be more then a hand full of brands. As with most things in audio its all about synergy & a component can typically only be as good as the weakest link somewhere else in the chain.
As you hinted, my first NAP250 was a non-DR one. It worked very well with the 282, Less so with the 252DR.
Now being paired with the NC250, it’s a pleasure.
PS: the first NAP250 in the main system was replaced by a NAP300DR.
Its not boring just slightly different in character…and not as explicit as 552…
1 Like
And a few bucks (USD) less expensive. Us old retired farts on fixed incomes need to draw the line somewhere. And mine is drawn at my 252/300DR.
8 Likes
I’m with you. I’m part-time and will be fully retired in a year. I still want a new phono-stage, but have no desire make any changes from my 252/SCDR/300DR or anything else. 500 series anything is just not under consideration.
4 Likes
This is a great Naim setup…the hyper critical thing is speaker matching…which can make or break a system. Get that right and you will have biggest smile ever…what are you using???
The 300 is on my radar
1 Like
I am also very happy with the 252/300DR. Now the next step is finding a “normal” priced phono stage to go with my RP8 with apheta 2. Superline is not possible just now.
1 Like
Rega Aria?
1 Like
@frenchrooster, thanks that would be nice. Might be a little bit to expensive but I will check it for sure. Can that be the first version? Or else a FONO may be or a stageline which can be connected with 252 en supercapDR.
1 Like
I think the secret with the 252 is good speaker matching…something like one of the more explicit Focal speakers would be really faberoo…
1 Like
Try the Goldnote PH10. I don’t know if it’s reasonably priced to you but it’s well worth its price, or so they say. I haven’t compared it to other RIAA in the same price bracket.
Or PH5 if you find the 10 too expensive.
1 Like