So my xs3 is a well maintained 2yo used unit and is a secondary system. My main reference is a hegel h190. The xs3 runs stock with 4m nac a5 cable, a non-naim dac and streamer, ma gold 100 5g’s, and a velodyne sub. I’ve abided by the naim lore of plugging it directly to the mains and leaving it there.
With that in mind, am i supposed to be feeling the prat? Because I don’t think I am. I feel like something is missing like maybe an external psu. Or maybe I’ve yet to train my ears and brain in distinguishing naim prat? At this stage the xs3 sounds “unrefined” compared to the hegel. Maybe that’s it?
I wouldn’t expect the xs to sound unrefined, rather the opposite. I have found the xs2 to lack depth in the sound staging with more demanding speakers, but I have used it in a small room with Spendor A5’s successfully. I wouldn’t expect it to be as successful with the same speakers at higher volume in a larger room.
I’m wondering if the gnarly and grunty Hegel is the better match of the two amps for your MAs, which the internet shows to be a 4Ω load.
Naim amps like to run the sub from the back of the speakers, I’m told. It will take someone else to tell you exactly how and why. But is your Velodyne connected this way?
The XS3 sings with efficient speakers, sounds like you’d be more into the dark muscular big balls Supernait 3 sound. No harm done, the XS3 is easily sold off, and a SN3 easily acquired preloved.
Wild card: many forum members consider the Nait 50 to be the very definition of PRaT, and also those are still available at very attractive prices, so you might threat yourself to one for X-mas.
I’ve had an XS3 for 2 years. Powering Tannoy Revolution Signature DC4t towers and 4 active subwoofers (high level) it has plenty of ‘rhythm and timing’ even at low volumes. The Tannoys have Titanium tweeters mounted concentrically - before I purchased a Flatcap XS I did find the sound a little too bright on some recordings - the FC fixed that + added more depth, texture etc.
I used a CD5si or an Arcam D33 as the main sources - the XS3 easily shows the differences between the two. I can’t comment on your speakers as I have had not heard them but, depending upon your source and, assuming your speakers have plenty of room around them, I would expect your system to be more than reasonably foot-tapping.
So much written on this subject but I find the most important aspect that Naim gets right is the timing. Many systems can achieve pace and rhythm and then the component sounds can all be heard , but the trick seems to me to be in the micro timing that brings it all back together as a cohesive whole. Naim just gets this right, from my slightly muddy sounding Nait 2 right through to the 552/300 kit. The major difference then is matching the amplification to drive the chosen speakers in any given room to give the control over those speakers. It sounds here that the OP’s speakers may need a little more oomph to control them, rather than more prat.
My first Naim system was a ND5 XS2 into a Nait XS2 with a a Pair of ProAC D2D and later with a pair of Naim Ovator S400s and I enjoyed the music. I also used 14 feet (4.26 Meters) of NAC A5 cables with the system. …and still use those cables today with my current system.
Good luck with finding the right combination of system components… just part of the musical journey.
In my opinion, PRaT gives me the ability to track the music or to be engaged with the music - at least that is what i get with naim equipment. It definitely wont sound like a bass boosted PA system at a concert tuned to accentuate the kick drums at 80Hz.
Maybe what you found with the xs3 vs the hegel might seem like the hegel would be smoother, or more detached with passive background listening, whereas the xs3 would encourage you to increase the volume and listen actively. It would not be a huge night and day difference.
I am currently using a nait50, and it is very refined and light but has a sense of speed to it. The NAC82 which i had previously sounded like a wall of sound - very unrefined and aggressive. Some people would consider this PRaT as well. An example of equipment that I consider to have poor PRaT would be harbeth speakers. They smooth out and thicken the midrange a lot, causing it to feel slow and bloated.
I have no clue what PR&T is and at this point I’m afraid to ask but in my experience you either like the music that comes out(most of the time) or you don’t. Not being satisfied with the music and always searching for your personal sonic grail but mostly being disappointed has a name and it’s Audiophilia. There is no cure and is very, very expensive in extreme cases.
Thanks all for the suggestions and encouragement. It looks like an external psu will be in the cards as would some extra oomph (power output) as a member pointed out. I have a 280 watt purifi power amp that i’ll deploy for the latter. Let the naim audiophilia rabbit hole dive commence.
It is easy to provide an illusion of PR&T by voicing (deliberately or otherwise) an amp to sound bright. Anyone around in the 1980s?…..this is, I think, where the myth originated. This balance was one of the reasons that I changed brands, there were other reasons too. The art is to design a good amp, which by definition needs to ‘do’ PR&T, while at the same time maintaining an even tonal balance, also a requisite of a good amp. I need to be honest and admit that I do not know what modern Naim amps sound like.
Your profile doesn’t indicate what those are. I’m willing to bet you’ll be surprised how your PRaT experience improves when you replace those with a ND5-XS2 first, synergy and all.
Based on my (wonderful) experience with a Flatcap XS on the Nait XS3 I’m inclined to predict that alone won’t bring what you’ve indicated to be looking for, more cherry on the cake.