Alternatively, it might be worth trying a Chord Etude. It is physically small, yet has Naim-like speed.
Staying with Naim, I think I’d look for a well loved pair of NAP135s though! They really are extraordinary value.
Best regards, BF
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The Devialet is an interesting Hybrid. It uses a Pure Class A analog preamp to drive the digital power amp. It’s gotten a lot of very very positive press. It sounds very transparent but in a non bright way. Do some Goggling. There was even one where a reviewer was using one on his Magicos and thought it spectacular. Google is your friend. You should try to get one to listen to. Oh and the SAM ( speaker active matching) is superb. And the Remote is really beautiful and a pleasure to use.
Oops forgot really good Dac, streamer and phono stage. And the ability to configure inputs and outputs is nice and software upgradable from a memory card.
I should go hear the new Devialet. I borrowed one for 3 days from my local dealer in ~2015 but did not like it vs my Supernait2. It was quite bright. It was one of those products that was super interesting for the first few minutes, but then started to really grate on me. I could not listen to it for long periods of time; I found myself turning it off. But I know they’ve changed the product since then.
They also need, like Naim a long break in. I had the D200 back in 2014 and it took a good 400 hours to smooth out. As you said Bart it was bright out of the box. The newer units have seen changes such as the “Infinity Core” and other improvements. As a powerful one box solution, it maybe just the ticket for the OP
I really like mine (220 Pro). Easy to add more power (just add a companion) to go dual mono or active. Likes a good power cable and needs DPM switched off (silly energy saving feature that kills the music). I don’t use the SAM functionality myself. Whilst it’s got great streaming functionality built in, I still prefer it with a good digital source (NDX2 via S/PDIF here). It’s a powerful and neutral sounding amp so adds minimal ‘flavour’ - Some like that, some don’t. Definitely worth a demo though to see if it works for you. When Naim brings out a 500 series Integrated then I’ll be tempted to return. Until then…
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The NDX2 is designed to work into a preamp like 282 or 252, not direct into a 250DR. The volume control in the NDX2 is not really good enough to use without a preamp (it’s in there basically for certification purposes only).
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Thanks James… that’s really useful info.
He nailed it, neutral. Not in a bright way but it sounds like what you feed it. And it will wake up your B&W’s
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