Imagine your system left the house

I would do the same exploiting the 2nd hand market although availability of another Artemiz arm might be a problem in which case I’d look at alternatives.

I just realised what I would do with the money - buy nice wine … :wine_glass:

Besides the LP12 taking a well deserved retirement after nearly 40 years service (albeit with extensive upgrades over years) I would be bloody annoyed and jealous it was able to retire after so little work, speakers are 2 years old and Star about 6 weeks old. I would stick with the Star and Rega RX3s and get another LP12.
If my second system retired as well I would replace my uniti lite with an Atom and the Ela speakers with a smaller wall mounted speaker.

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I’ve never explored much beyond Naim at the 500 level other than hearing a bit of Audionote (which doesn’t quite do it for me). The last time I had something else at home was the Rega equivalent of 5 series separates. If starting from scratch I think further investigation is in order but Naim is welcome to win out. The equation changes if I move to the mainland before auditioning, which is on the cards all the sooner thanks to the Europhobes.

Hi,
and many thanks for all your replies, please keep more coming.

If you ask yourself about the reason for the self-retiring system, that just seemed to be a much nicer scenario than burglars and insurance money :grinning:

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It is better, too: apparently insurance also will often not cough up the full vaiue, but will buy for you at the knock-down prices they can get direct from source, so if you opt for the money that is what they’d gove you, which may be quite a bit less than the cheapest deal you can get yourself.

IB, thanks for your insights and a 2 component based system with standmount speakers and an appropriately integrated subwoofer could well form the basis of an acceptable ‘starting over again’ system. Thankfully this is a hypothetical situation that we are discussing, as truthfully I am very satisfied with my current system (noting that I do need to bring the power amp side up to a level comparable to the other components) and have neither reason nor desire to downsize. One of the most interesting aspects of this forum is reading about others’ systems and the different and in many cases non-conventional approaches to system building which otherwise would not have occurred to me. Which brings me back to the OP’s topic. If I were to start over again and for arguments sake I wasn’t satisfied with the 2 box system which we have been discussing, I would like to first try some of the alternate approaches used by other forum members rather than repurchasing the equipment that I currently have.

It would depend on what software I was left with. If they got the vinyl, I would not replace the turntable. If they got the CD’s, I would not replace the CD player. If I were left with one or the other, I would reconsider what to do. I have an idea.

I would replace the NAP500DR with the same unit. I might hold off on the 552DR and play with the 272 and PS555DR. Shop for speakers and see what happens on the front end.

Given I have kids at a difficult stage and a cramped domestic setting that makes putting it out of harms way impossible, I’d welcome the money back and the lack of recapping headache in a country with no Naim dealer. Buy a Muso and use that until we move or the kids are older and rebuilt a current system with the remainder plus a but more I’d chip in to take it further.

But I feel the money would have to go on counselling. My wife is emotionally attached to the current system and doesn’t like change. She shed a tear (really) for the PMC Twenty.23s when they went to be replaced by the Twenty5.23s.

I only run a 5si Series system with Hi-Line into Neat Motive SX2 speakers but find it very enjoyable nevertheless. If I came home and it was gone then I think I would have to go into my one of my cupboards and resurrect my old NAC92/flatcap/ixo/2xNAP90.3 system. Send the whole lot off for a service. Hunt for a pair of Allaes in the mean time. I would then put my phono cards back in and then hunt for a RP8 and go down the vinyl route instead.

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Crikey, I’d be tempted to resurrect that old system now. One of my favorites, though I’d find Linn Tukans to go active instead.

I lament the loss of the entry level pre/power amps from Naim.

Does the 5i really outperform it?

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Usually nice and sunny places are meant to be more or less posh locations by the sea. Not really good for electronics and cars. Once a Tuscan dealer told me about Accuphase amps
living in the Isola D’ Elba area nearly destroyed by the saline air making any subsequent repair unsuccessful. I’d prefer living in a medieval or reinessance town int the heart of Italy (Umbria, Marche, Tuscany) in a bulding with pretty large rooms and solid stone walls. I think
that even a basic system like my Nait XS nSat would shine.

Regards
Roberto

Hi feeling _zen,
It was a great system for sure and I ran it with Credos for many years. That old olive slimline active system was certainly more explicit and revealing than my newer basic system but was it more enjoyable? hard to say really… I find the newer stuff a lot more tolerant with a wider range of music and find myself listening for longer periods than I did with that older system. The vinyl idea would be a newer approach as I’ve mainly stuck with digital throughout the years, although I did run a Rega P3 for a few years, back in those active days. I still have that old system in storage and may well reinstate it if need be but in the meantime, i’m happy with my SI system. I’m nearly at that point now of purchasing a ND5 XS 2 so i am really looking forward to that day for sure. In fact, I may well pull that trigger this weekend!!!

Many thanks.

After being quite far up the ladder, and back down to 272/XPSDR/250DR, I find the latter a very happy place.

I think it’s just at the level for maximum enjoyment for sensible(ish!) outlay, so I’d happily buy the same system back again.

G

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My system has literally just left the house (olives, fronted by CDX2 into active SBLs) and i now find myself listening to our Denon DAB41 into Q acoustics speakers…

…its nice, we still have lots of music to play and enjoy but we’re now looking into how to front a pair of Active ATC SCM40 speakers (we had SCMs before on the end of a previous system) and currently considering a Schiit DAC to feed ripped files straight to them…

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