This is what I got from my system . W the sound aligned where my speakers are placed. And sound don’t go more forward than the speaker position
I also don’t really know how to judge what is truly neutral. Even in live performances, some people prefer to sit closer to the stage while others prefer to sit farther back. So I fully accept that listeners will set up their systems according to their own preferences, whether they like a more forward or a more laid-back presentation.
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It’s hard to articulate how I feel about this. A great system allows the music to dictate the presentation and that, if the system is neutral, should vary by selection. Some are forward while some are back. For me, PRAT IS important but not essential. Recreating the dimension of each performer with their nuances, overtones, nuances and techniques is very important. Naim does this very well.
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The way that the original album was mixed and mastered will always have a bearing on this.
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Problem is we will never know 
I’ve recently bought bolt down gear so I’ve now sampled every generation of Naim.
The older gear (bolt down) is very direct. It’s a lively, in your face presentation and doesn’t have the environmental information that the classic or new classic gear provides.
Some people will prefer the direct sound and others will prefer the nuanced sound. Thus far I haven’t heard any gear the incorporates both types of sound. Perhaps it’s unachievable as with everything in hifi there are things you gain and things you lose.
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I just listened to Nina Simone “In Concert”. No part of the frequencies was favored over any other part. She was seated at the piano in all her glory. There was anger in some of her renditions. I felt like I was transported to the concert. I did not worry at all about front or back presentation.
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The better the system, the less tolerant it is of poorly engineered and recorded music.
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You need to spend more on cables
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When I had my 552 etc, I found the exact opposite. I could play any old stuff and it would sound great.
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For the most part, I have been picking CDs and LPs at random. I can easily tell the SQ improvement. Another good sign is my husband, who is not into high-end seems more engaged, sings or hums along or asks questions about the performance.
I’ve sent you a pm on Hifive.
Good to know. From your description I presume the old bolt down Naim will sound better than the newer generation Naim particularly the Classic ie. NAC282/252/552 when matched with the Harbeth, though I noticed you have sold the speakers, M30.2 XD if I’m not mistaken.
Hi Ryder , Are you from our (wusplay and me are from same region ) region ?
Please re-send the PM to tachyons in HiFive. I lost access to my old account somehow.
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I’m with you on this one.
It’s interesting to remember back when Naim aimed to be an alternative audio brand JV’s view of ‘live music’ is like being in a gig. The environmental information isn’t important but the engaging and involving presentation of music, which is true for most music (exept classical etc)
With such presentation you found most HiFi terms describing the HiFi sound don’t work anymore. Music is in one piece and what’s the point of soundstage/forward or laidback, it’s the record!
Hi Bruss, I had played the song.. it was very pleasant sounding and good high and mid. Vocal was good. Never ear piercing . Played 3 times w different volume.. highest I went was 90 db, and sound good and live.. thanks .
And tracks really depend on recordings. Especially when you stream. A few different versions . Few tracks I mentioned earlier ear piercing I believe it’s the recordings off the songs.
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That’s good to hear. As you suggest, perhaps some recordings are less than perfect. The better the system, the more the recordings are exposed.
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Backwards. 
I used to think that, but experience has changed my view. I have a revealing system which won’t, for example, warm up an overly dry recording, but what it does do better than cheaper setups I’ve had is to allow me to listen “through” the recording to the performance. A case in point is a classic old live recording of Kathleen Ferrier singing Mahler’s Das Lied von der Erde. The recording quality is execrable and the audience is far from quiet. My system does not disguise that, but Ferrier’s extraordinarily moving singing shines through, complete with goosebumps and shivers down the spine.
Roger
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