With regards to a 372 being popular, do we actually know if the 272 is popular. Do we know how may 272 units Naim Shipped?
Personally, I can’t see a lot of people buying a combined streamer/pre-amp. The streamer section will quickly become obsolete (the Qubus upgrades announced today have rendered the 272 partially obsolete, and the 272 is a current model). DAC technologies moves forward very quickly, the dac will very quickly become old/inferior technology.
Surely the smart option is to buy separate streamer, dac and pre-amp. Upgrade the steamer and dac as technology moves forward.
I purchased a Bluesound Node 2i to stream Amazon HD and is connected to the 272 BNC digital coax input, sounds incredible and highlights how good the DAC and Pre section is within the 272.
What a versatile unit the 272 is and will take some beating to replace it and to keep the price below £5k
In the tech biz there is this Steve Jobs quote doing the rounds. If you can see how to disrupt your own product then just go ahead and do it … or a competitor will do it for you.
I think Naim has done a great job so far of not playing games and just deliver the best they can do. Come on - just give us a modern 272 and a 572
Let’s not forget a strong argument when elaborating whether a new version of 272 will ever be released - the first iteration was launched in a time when streaming was not that popular as it is nowadays, in another words, it was likely to be bought by people with separates, who were still not into streaming. In an outside of Naim world it is rather strange product, probably most people won’t ever need. So why Naim would make something that will be sold to Naim owners only, and even those are limited to folks who already have a separate power amp and do not have a streamer. How many are they? On the other hand, how many will replace their preamps and streamers for 272-2 just because of a new streaming or DAC technology? Will it be worth it and at what cost? Will the preamp section be better?
Yes in a Naim world it makes (a lot of) sense to have such a product, moreover if it could be connected to a separate power supply, but I would not bet Naim will release nowadays a new streamer with integrated pre amp, given the extensive range already of digital products. NDX2 and SN3 were released recently, but these usually are used in a combo, If 272-2 is released now what combo will it be replacing, NDX/282 (250) or NDX/252 (300)? A single box of any of those is more expensive than the 272. Why would Naim make a better single box solution in the 5K range that is better than any of the above streamer/preamp combos?
Will it be aimed at folks with integrated amps thinking of going the separates route? Could be, but how many are they? Will 272-2/250 be better than NDX2/SN3? If it is, then it will cannibalise Naim’s newest products. It makes no sense.
Me myself as much as I would like to see a new stand alone DAC from Naim, I doubt that today’s market is in a bad need of one, given the explosion of streaming platforms. I do not stream, just play locally stored files from a Mac into a dac and an integrated amp, so for me a new DAC makes sense, given that the last one was released a decade ago, but…
I’d like to see a high quality Naim DAC, that doesn’t have facility to be upgraded with an add-on power supply.
Naim marketing policy for the mid range equipment is to offer a standalone unit that is very good, with the facility to add a power supply that makes it very good.
Take the Ndac as an example. There’s plenty of unused space in the box, they could have used two transformers, one for the digital circuits, the other for analogue. This would have improved the sound quality without the need for an add-on pwer supply. Although from Naims point of view this is not a good option, as it loses the sale of a power supply.
Agreed. I was considering starting a thread around people’s views on a stand only DAC. I won’t be trading in my 272 just cause a new one has more bells and whistles. Like you I only stream local files and am not interested in the streaming services. So if I was looking for improvements it’d back a new DAC.
I have a three box limit because of limited space. I’d love a new 272, I’d add a PS555 and be as happy as a halibut! But I am sick of waiting.
My dealer’s offering a good price on an ND555 which I’d match it with a Supernait 3. Not sure if that’s source first to the max, or a mullet.
Anyway, multiple boxes are not and will never be on the menu for me again. I am mulleting it over!
There is someone on the Forum running that exact system with full Superlumina to max out source first. I’m doing similar with the NDX2/XPS DR. If the SN3 is enough for your speakers, it’s a great system.
I’m not convinced that a 555 and Supernait would not be taking source first too far. The 272/555 and 250 or 300 is surely good enough if there are space limitations. When I compared NDX2/SN2 and 272/250 the latter was much better. A good power amp is so useful in getting the best from the speakers and the Supernaits really can’t compete with a regulated amplifier.
Thanks for the replies. My speakers are DeVore Fidelity, so very efficient, but as HH thought, they certainly benefitted from the upgrade from NAP100 to NAP250DR. Head says HH is right, heart says the ND555 is magical!
I want my music in the living room, not in a separate room. I have only one source - my local Twonky box. It has to be simple and inviting for non-techies to use - not look like the inside of Apollo 11. The 272-555-300 in a Fraim is great. Like an old radiogram
I do still have my 52, 135s, 252 and other stuff mostly boxed up. But the 272-555-300 in Fraim looks and work so well and I could happily stay at that level. If I want to upgrade I can go with Linn and others. I have no idea how the hifi-market works but not having an upgrade above the 272 seems like leaving money on the table. If there was an upgrade I would probably at least be interested.
They (272/250) should be better, although both combos are in a same price range, but nevertheless should not be compared in that context, as the 250 alone is priced as the “entire” SN2 (pre+power). So SNs cannot compete and are not meant to do with power amps. If SN is fed with the same 272 via av bypass, probably then the comparison might be more relevant and probably there will be no, or very small difference.
This starts to break down when you compare the relative costs of a NDX2 against the 272 though, with the costs suggesting that the NDX2 is a considerably better source, and if you follow source first, well a 250 won’t reveal what isn’t there.
I know the NDX2 is better but as above it’ll increase my box count and warrant a new rack, and cost way more to get there than I can reasonably justify. And the issues last year with Tidal into legacy streamers were widely met with ‘upgrade’.