I have been a great user of the Naim Nova for the last few yrs. I have been a one box setup fan and the Naim Nova performance has been spectacular. My room size is 20Feet x 30 feet & I have been listening to streaming music across genres.
I recently bought a pair of Audiovector R6 Arrete. I’m keen to upgrade the Nova now but want to limit the boxes. This is my end game system, famous last words.
Given the recent introduction of new classic 200 series, appreciate guidance, views, comments, suggestion for the setup. Thanks in advance.
I’ve always liked Audiovector speakers, and those R6 Arretés must be amazing. At £27,000 they deserve some top class electronics. I’d be looking at the NS333, NAC332 and a pair of NAP350s, adding power supplies later.
Since you have the R6 I wouldn’t go lower than the new 200 series in any case, and if you’re going all in then of course you’ll be aiming for the 300 series when they arrive.
Looks like I made the mistake of assuming these were the lower end r6 partnered with a nova.
With speakers of that quality and value you really need to look at matching them with appropriate electronics that can fully utilise their capabilities.
Hello @Ameetsonde I also have Audiovector speakers (SR3 Signature) with a Naim system - congratulations on buying into a great brand that in my experience match well with Naim.
The R6 Arrete is an amazing speaker - I wish I could afford a pair! I have heard them in a Naim system and I would be surprised if the Nove you have is getting close to exploiting them. As others have mentioned, I would be looking at the 300 series as a minimum, ideally with Audiovector’s ground linked speaker cable which makes such a difference - as it should at the price.
Audiovectors works well with Naim however for the new top version of 6 I am not sure Naim has a one box solution that would get everything out of your speakers. As others are saying 222 and new 250 or higher really should be tested, or look for other one box solutions, depending on what you can test.Hegel, Ansuz, or gryphon would be obvious choices among others.
Hi, thnx for the views. Pls can you share your setup as well, if possible. Much appreciate your and groups sincere views on this, one of main reasons I own & swear by Naim.
I would second exactly what HH has said, these are outstanding speakers & if you want to hear them to their full potential, you need the electronics to back them up (without forgetting the room you’re listening in). I have not heard the 200 series in person but have followed along with all the others that have & based on the comparisons, I would guess the 200 series would be holding back these speakers a good deal. If you were looking at old classic series I would say 252/300DR as a min recommendation & see no problem with going 552/500 either. So for NC, 300 series is where you should be looking. No doubt the 200 series will work well, but you likely won’t be hearing just what these speakers are capable of, without going higher up the Naim chain.
I do believe Audiovector used to be the Naim distributor in Denmark & one of the brands they use to voice their speakers was Naim, so obviously its a good pairing. This was going back a number of years but I believe Mads (current CEO) said they used the 252 (don’t recall what amp)
If you do not have a dealer that can answer such questions you can either try the group on facebook called audiovector owners group. or contact audiovector directly.
Hello @Ameetsonde - please click on my name to see the full details of my system but essentially it is a ND5 XS2, 282 and Hi Cap with 250DR power amp. I am currently using Tellerium Black 2 speaker cable but have heard the Audiovector cable with my set up and it was outstanding.
Until recently I had planned to return the speakers for an upgrade to R3 Arette but the cost was significant and I should really be prioritising the streaming front end first - possibly the 333 or a Chord DAC - and this is the minimum your speakers deserve. Hope that helps.
When we bought our R3 Arrete speakers we were told it was the NAP 300. I completely agree with your and HH’s thoughts on the level of system required to run the R6s.
Running 3s or r6s requires 3 amps so not a cheap way to go, especially not with many of the older amps being discontinued, and remember you need at least a hicap for the snaxo. that said I am sure my old snaxo used on my sr6 this is the previous generation is probably stil at my dealer waiting to be sold for a good price, I may of course be wrong here.
Claus
Thanks for all the inputs. It’s very clear from your posts. I just have a bit of budget constraint at the moment and wanted to build towards the new 200/300 system if possible. As an alternative could I add NAP 250DR or NAP 300 (old series) to the Nova pre out eventually change the Nova to the preamp (Nsc222) / power source (npx 300).
I think what you suggest would work and you can probably pick up a pre-loved 250DR (or 300) at a reasonable price. The Nova would be outclassed but not as much as it would be without the power amp.
This would have the advantage of being able to use the 250 with a future 222 and suitable legacy leads. The other option at some point in the future would be to go to a pair of 350s which would be a better match for your speakers.
Naim and Audiovector work really well together.
It took me 12 years to find a better combination, for a lot more money.
Hoping to sell them soon, to someone local in the Birmingham area - but almost want to keep them forever… because of their unique synergy with Naim.
Budget matters of course. Given your preference for fewer extra boxes and limited day 1 budget, you may opt to aim at a 222 system or a 332 system, but getting there might take some time. In the meantime…
You could sell the Nova and buy equally second-hand NDX2, 282, HC, 250DR. Your speakers would really let you hear the difference, and so they should when you look at how much of your money we have just spent and what has happened to your box count.
Ideally, you’d go even further than the above. Adding XPSDR to NDX2 is a noticeable improvement ( I tried it and quickly decided to keep it). A 252/ SCDR is a lot better than 282/Hicap too.
Rather than wait, you could get a big upgrade by opting for ND5XS2, 82, Hicap, olive 250. EBay suggests that that lot is not now that expensive. A serviced olive 250 is a lot of power amplifier for about £1000 for example.
Purists might argue that (given the potential of your speakers) the sound-per-pound principle would point to a 52/SC instead of that 82/HC, and to ND5XS2 deserving an nDAC and possibly even a power supply for that nDAC. However, I can’t imagine that you’d be happy with that box count even temporarily.
The great plus of any of these temporary-old-kit suggestions is that, if you upgrade from them later, you can expect to sell each for not much less than you paid.
If and when more cash is available, you could swap all but the 250 for 1 or 2 New Classic boxes. Then you can upgrade the olive 250 for NC250 or a pair of 350s if you choose.
Or stay as you are until you can jump straight to 222/250….