I once traded in my Naca5 for some high priced cables. After a few years, I went back and bought back my Naca5, and put them back into my system.
The Naca5 stayed and the expensive cables were sold.
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To me, A5 is an expensive cable.
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Over the last 17 years I have had, or demoed at home, a number of Naim loudspeakers - n-Sats, SBLs, Ariva, Ovator S-400, Credo, Allaes.
All had, to a variable degree, a common sonic trait - a balance designed to enhance the rhythmic aspects of music, its immediacy, its ‘presence’. Properly placed and optimized, Sats and SBLs are the best in this area, the Ovator the less agile, the Ariva the most correct timbre-wise, the Allaes (to my ears!) the most strange, with an excessively pronounced upper midrange that seems to impose itself over the rest of the frequencies. Credos were an extremely enjoyable compromise, luminous but not bright, less idiomatic than the classic designs but reminiscent of the best Naim traits.
All, though, sound like having been designed to avoid the artificiality of more ‘HiFi’ speakers aiming at reproducing everything from subterranean bass to ultrasonic heights, usually achieving nothing else than ‘sonic fiction’, in favor of a precise choice: a balance conveying rhythm, energy, liveliness. Once I understood this, I could only use Naim speakers - with the single exception of Klipsch Heresy IIIs, not very dissimilar in a way.
To my ears, Focal speakers are just the opposite. If I am allowed a personal opinion and nothing more than it, they bore me. And they bore me most when they try to be ‘complete’. They’re not Debussy, they are Théodore Dubois. NAC A5 is the exact cable counterpart of the most classic Naim speakers and to my ears it brings some Naim-ness to the party, something Focal dramatically need.
That’s all. My opinion only.
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Naim n-SATs, NAC A5 and SA8s at both ends, are a match made in audio heaven!
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They haven’t stuck to JV vision IMO
Very much good enough. Hi end olive system at our place, spent a year on the alternative cables merry go round. All went back to Naim cable on everything. No regrets!
Martin
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You like fiddling around with cables.
That’s fine, but it doesn’t mean NACA5 isn’t good enough to work as a cable for Naim (and other) amps and speakers.
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Please elaborate, briefly.
That question was also touched on in this thread:
Nor I. Never heard a Naim speaker I would buy. Grudging respect for SBLs. Dislike for Credos, Intros and DBLs.
I know they’re good but just very much not my cup of tea. And if a petson doesn’t like their speakers, sure they may not be taken with A5.
Though I’ve stated before, A5 is the reference. It’s perfectly good. I used to have A4 in another system. But I went another way on my dealer’s advice after they moved away from A5 for Naim systems after 15 years.
Why grudging?
Do they have the new Naim gear to demo near you yet?
The years I worked with the SBLs, there’s no doubt they did things like recreate a live studio session better than anything else in twice their price bracket. I can’t deny that. But I didn’t like anything else about them like soundstage or tonal balance.
There’s no Naim in Japan at all. My dealer is UK based. Though I get the impression the new classic sound isn’t to their taste. Visiting the UK less than once a decade with no Naim at all here is a brilliant cure for upgraditis.
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How do you cope with 100 Volt in Japan? I used to live in Tokyo for 8 years, during that time, my HIFI was still in the US.
All the Naim 115v gear is certified for 100v (as seen on the rear labels even next to the power inlet). I’ve had a stack of Naim gear for 9 years here. No problem.
Servicing is a PITA though.
Good enough for 500/DBL imho.
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Then it is good to work with Naim
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