Or drop the power amp of the Nova, and Bob,s your uncle…unfortunately probably not as simple as that. And knowing how long they take on just updating software, let alone hardware, could be some time until it surfaces.
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When I was at the Naim factory we had an ND555 on the table with its top removed. I said to Steve Sells, who designed it, ‘look at that great big space, put a volume control in there and you have the 372 or 572’. He didn’t say anything and just chuckled.
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It makes you wonder whether Naim could produce a new pre-amp at the level of a 282 but internally powered with a PSU as an upgrade option. Used with a 250 it would surpass the Supernait by quite a margin and pair nicely with an NDX2 and make an excellent 3 box system with options to upgrade further with power supplies on the streamer and/or pre-amp.
I talked to Steve about that on the same occasion and he convinced me, mainly by asking me “innocent” questions, that it’s all straightforward until you start to want to do more (like adding a volume control) in the analogue domain in the same box. In the ND555 the analogue domain is I suppose pretty well just some wires from the DAC board to the back panel output socket.
Best
David
Where there is a will there is (usually) a way.
The triumph of hope over experience?!
Maybe. Quite honestly I’d be quite happy if there was never a 372 as my old 272 is more than good enough. That said I’d expect a 272-2 with the new streaming board, which may or may not be sufficiently better to warrant the expenditure.
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Ultimately I expect it’s more of a business decision than an engineering one. Anyway I’m happy not to have to worry about how to buy it!
Best
David
For sure it would cannibalise sales of the new streamers, but that would be partly or maybe wholly offset by sales to those who don’t want serried ranks of black boxes. Naim surely won’t want to keep a current product going on the old platform for too long. I’ve no idea if the 272 is still selling in viable numbers. I guess it is or it would have been withdrawn by now.
I am off to a dealer event with Steve Sells in a week or two. I will ask the usual hopeful 372 questions and see if he responds…not too hopeful based on previous experience.
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What a wonderful idea! 
Just be nice and pushy at once and do not let him go…! 
He has heard it all before…but conceptually would be interesting to ask his technical vision for the future. I have a question in mind…
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Just because something is theoretically possible does not mean that it is a commercially wise option. Naim almost certainly could produce something like that. However, for Naim this might be an unacceptable compromise with reference to sound quality for a classic separate box and it would probably encroach on the Supernait market. I am not convinced that Naim would devote its development resources to a compromise that might not make good sense for their business.
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The other thought I’ve had is whether a new PSU could be developed to power the NDX2 and a preamp to reduce box count, and the addition of a headphone stage to the preamps. These limitations put me to the NDX2/SN2 setup, which I’m very happy with.
My take on this is that the 272 has been a successful product, it happily co existed alongside the nd5xs, Ndx and nds all of which sold well judging by the number up for sale now that the new steamers have got onto the market.
So why couldn’t a 272-2 co exist? And why wouldn’t it be an improvement on the original? From the reviews I have read the new streamers offer more facilities and sound better than the previous versions. Quality electronics design rarely regress, especially where digital elements are concerned.
I would be happy with a 272 although I won’t buy until it is superseded, but I would prefer one based on the new streamer platform with Roon support on board.
Based on the number of ‘requests’ in this place for the 272-2 from ‘one box’ supporters I suspect that if Naim do not produce one they may lose some custom to other brands who already support the idea.
I can’t see me with a 3 or 4 box source/pre combination
My steer from Naim sales when I asked about the 272 a couple of years ago (I offered my opinion on it being a neat solution with excellent performance) was that yes it was good, but maybe a bit too good…
From this I concluded that, although the 272 was certainly recognised as an accomplished product in the range, from a commercial perspective it was possibly negatively impacting sales of the higher margin separate solutions.
It may be that the apparent reluctance or non-commitment to deliver a successor streaming pre amp is based on that experience.
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It certainly punches above its weight. Years ago I had a CDS3/555PS, 552, 300 and SL2s. These days I have a 272/555DR, 300DR and SL2s. Today’s setup is not that far behind and I’m not sure I would spend the extra £30,000 on an ND555 and a 552.
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It certainly punches above its weight. Years ago I had a CDS3/555PS, 252, 300 and S400’s. These days I have a 272/555DR, 250DR and Tab 10’s. Today’s setup is not that far behind and I’m not sure I would spend the extra £35,000 on an ND555 and a 552.
G
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Nice one.
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Delightful sound from my 5272 sorry 272/555DR/250DR and as others state punches well above its weight.