Damage During Service

Hi-Fi Corner
1

I am writing this post as a cautionary tale for those with Naim products that are treasured and hard to replace.

For the past two years or so I have been looking for a really good condition Naim Nap 250 Bolt Down, to replace one which is not aesthetically as I would like it. I was lucky to find one which was as near to mint condition as I could find, it was a little more expensive than I would have liked and needed a service, due to a slight channel imbalance, but it was in such nice condition I bought it and have been enjoying it for the past few months over lockdown.

Normally I would use Class A or my local service engineer but I thought this amp deserved a trip back to Naim. I took it to my local Audio T who booked it in and sent it off.

When it returned I bought it home and put it back in the rack, expecting to be wowed, however, there was a humming coming from it that was not there before. Within minutes I had packed it back up and put the other 250 in its place, sounding fine…

I contacted Naim and they said for me to return it to them again. I did this through my local Audio T and waited for a response. Audio T contacted me a few weeks later and said it was ready to pick up, I asked to listen to it in the shop to see if the issue was resolved. Unfortunately it wasn’t and there was a note saying that it was the transformer and they didn’t have a replacement. Obviously, this was an issue. The hum was not there prior to the service and now I had paid £330 for a service that left the amp sounding worse (apart from the channel imbalance).

However, this was not the worst part, when I looked at the amp in the shop I noticed that the front corner had been dinged; it had a dent in it, on closer inspection there was also a chip out of the paint on one side and a few other marks I could not remember. I had photos of the amp from before it went away and I had thoroughly inspected it prior to buying it; I’m very fussy.

I spoke to Naim straight away and they were quick to look into it. They told me that the amp had been noted on their system as very good in condition, but they also said that they had spoken to the person unboxing who said that they noticed the ding. In conclusion, Naim refunded the cost of the service and said there was nothing further they could do due to parts not being available.

I find this incredible, my amp now, not only sounds worse than when it went to them, it is also aesthetically worse. I really don’t know where to take this next, but I feel really let down by Naim.

IMG_1292 by Jon Moody, on Flickr

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And you know none of this was a young kid at the dealers because… ?

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That most unfortunate. Naim have of course refunded you the cost of the service, which I guess is all they can do as that casework has been out of production for 40 years.

As for the hum from the transformer, difficult to say. I would have thought that no part of the actual servicing could cause it, but of course they can be prone to it at any time. Maybe @NeilS has an idea here?

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I feel your pain Faux75. The dink is odd because Naim take incredible care of our gear being serviced. Could have happened anytime.

The transformer being unavailable given the age of your 250 is hardly surprising. Naim have an enviable record of servicing their oldest products. How you react to this is of course personal to you. I run SBLs and I have to accept they might become obsolete as parts become extinct.

I would email Naim service and see if they can recommend an alternative transformer, or if you can swop out the one in your other bolt down 250.

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This would have been my initial thought but I was there at the time. They only opened the box to add the paperwork and sealed/opened it in front of me both times.

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I know what you are saying but if I took my car for a service and they put a dent in the wing, I would hope they would fix it rather than refunding the cost of the service.

With regards the transformer hum, it just seems odd that this happened whilst being serviced and that there are no modern parts which could do the job.

2 Likes
7

If the box was sealed in front of you and you have evidence of it’s undinged state then is seems the damage occurred in transit or at Naim, Did audio T’s courier have insurance to cover transit damage/was the shipping box damaged?

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I realise this must be frustrating, but can I ask what are you asking for, given no parts are available?

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Yes, I am certain it happened in transit or at Naim, the box was undamaged and I used Naim packaging plus additional bubble wrap.
I didn’t organise the courier, so this would be the responsibility of Audio T. They are trying to help.

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Yes, this is fraustrating and I do understand no parts are available.

I am discussing this here for a number of reasons, firstly to let let people know that if damage occurs to older products when sent to Naim, you may be left with the damaged item and no option but to accept this. Secondly, someone on here may think of a solution that myself, Audio T or Naim have not thought of.

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11

That’s good to hear, someone damaged it, disappointing no one is owning up, unfortunately sh1t happens :confused:

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12

Used salvaged parts from other units, maybe class A can help

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Thank you. This is on my list of possibilities. I was hoping to sell my other 250 to fund part of the cost of buying this new one. I would then be left with an unsaleable one. Other than cosmetics, my original amp sounds good.

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Well thats a disappointing story. I wonder if Audio t would loan you the new audiolab mains conditioner which might sort out the hum, and for a distressed customer do a deal, it’s usually £99.

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I’m not sure anyone at Naim would know how. Perhaps someone on here may have an idea.

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They have offered to lend me one to check to see if it would make a difference. They said that is unlikely going to help as I already have a Russ Andrews X4.

As I said, Audio T are listening and offering solutions. They are also going to ask about to see if anyone can repair the damage.

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17

It could be that it can be altered by filling/filing and painting, but it may well just look as bad, just different.

I’d ask a car body repair specialist what they’d do with it if it were a car, though you may need an artist to mix paint colours for a good match - I doubt they’d come out of an off the shelf spray can for the body shop.

If the colours are paint, not bare metal it may be worth asking Naim the BS numbers for the paint and getting cans made up by Halfords (named as I don’t know anyone else who offers this service, not sure they do now in fact).

A modeller may be able to help too - Airfix kit type of models, or model railway builders.

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18

The damaged corner is repairable but it’s not going to be cheap and may need the whole case painting afterwards.

Was it in original packaging? If not a Naim box should have been sources by AudioT at your expense.

Some ‘before’ pics should help here.

This is true and indeed the local Ford dealer had to pay for the repair of my dashboard that they damaged whilst they had the ECU out. I still had to pay the bill for the work that they had been commissioned to do.

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19

If you have photos and Naim says it was damaged when it arrived, surely you had shipping insurance?

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If it was damaged through shipping, then presumably the outer box was damaged. It could have been dropped which may be the cause of the transformer issue, but that would be hard to prove and wouldn’t show up on the outer box. I’d give Darren a call at Class A in case he has spares