Muso Qb 3rd gen?

I see Muso Qb 2nd gens being substantially discounted in US, Canada, Germany, etc. It’s tempting, but if inventory is being cleared in anticipation of a 3rd gen model, I think I’d like to wait for that since digital technology does advance by leaps and bounds. I haven’t seen any official announcements for Muso Qb 3rd gen, but what do you all think are the chances that a Muso Qb 3rd gen will be released in 2023?

Naim never says anything about new products until they are launched and there has been no such launch. But there have also been no rumours about a Muso 3 or a Qb3, so far as I am aware.

We are expecting more New Classic products this year as Naim have said that explicitly and some dealers are not fully respecting the embargo. There could be Gen 3 muso/Qb, but who knows? Anyone who does actually know that there will be certainly won’t post here in this forum.

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My guess would be that discounting a QB doesn’t indicate much beyond they want to clear stock. Any a 20% discounted QB is something a lot of people would buy without much thought.

I expect Naim to focus on 200 and 300 models this year. Not that I have any insider knowledge.

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Received a dealer email today saying the standard Muso had reduced in price fro £1299 to £1149. Make of that what you will.

Roger

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Not exactly a “everything must go” price drop.

Bear in mind the streaming platform on a Qb 2nd gen is the same generation as the brand new 222. I know that proves nothing.

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It gives some hope/indication for the longevity of the current streaming platform. For me at least.
(But it proves nothing in regard to the question of the thread, indeed.)

My guess is that a third generation product is on it’s way…

Never had any qualms about buying a product at the end of it’s run

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Same. I save a packet by buying last year’s domestic appliances as soon as this year’s model hits the shop floor. Often at half price.

Although the streaming platform is current, Muso could do with some aesthetic tweaks.

Thanks for pointing this out though. It’s certainly a good point.

I wonder however whether there might be gains in audio quality if Naim updates the DSP or other components used in the Qb 2nd gen, and having support for aptX would also be quite nice…

For me, the sound of the Qb is “good enough”. The whole point of that tiny box is that it sounds good but is very room friendly. And the grey brushed metal finish isn’t my thing (though it didn’t stop me from buying two of them). I’d have loved to see Muso in brass or copper. In other words, the “warm” tone metals.

They might be reconsidering Alexa integration too. Luxman recently brought out their Qb-like wireless speaker, the ASC-S5. I’d quite a bit smaller than a Qb.

image
image courtesy of Luxman product site.

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Both Muso’s are heavily discounted here as well. I think they’re having trouble shifting stock and the penny has dropped that they seem over priced for the average punter. I took advantage and bought 2 QBs for almost what it would have cost for one had I purchased a few months ago.

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I’m just about to buy QB2, now I have seen this I might just hold back purchasing one for a while

Personally I wouldn’t hold back from buying a Qb2. For a start it’s very good, secondly there is still no rumour at all of a Qb3 and if the New Classics are anything to go by, if there were a Qb3, it would be a whole lot more expensive than a Qb2.

But no one knows…

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With a complete sweep right through the core of the range, I doubt there was any brain power left over to reengineer the musos as well.

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Not to mention, the new stuff not even available yet and the 2nd generation Muso are still on the same streaming platform.

Let’s also not forget that the Muso went up in price relatively recently. My Muso Qb2 cost me 70% of the current Australian MSRP two years ago.

My original Muso cost me $1,600 seven years ago, its retail price is twice that now. There’s been good discounts on both the Muso and the QB recently. I bought 2 QBs late last year for under the list price of one. However I do believe they’re retail price is way too expensive.

That’s kind of my point, suggesting that discounts at the moment are not necessarily sign of a new model.

Think the discounts are a result of too higher price and too much stock.

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Very possibly, as they’re manufactured in china there’s probably a minimum that have to be made to make it viable whereas the higher end units are more likely to be made to order or at least smaller quantities at a time. I notice here both the Musos and Uniti range have substantial discounts, still expensive though.