Hello to all here
I seek enlightenment from the Naim faithful on the following
Is there any reason why some seem to have a dislike of the NAP 90 (shoebox) power amplifier ?
I am certainly a big fan of these shoebox amps
I see inside the amp is slightly different with a motherboard with everything mounted on it, What’s wrong with that as many manufacturers do this ?
I did read a thread somewhere about an overheating problem with these amps but cannot see why ? Can someone explain this maybe ?
I am currently using a 30 watt integrated with my N272 and see the Nap 90 is similarly rated, I listen in a small room with efficient speakers and there is more than enough power and will guess a NAP 90 will bring a further improvement
On top of that the amp does not even need to power my pre amp which i believe can also help ?
a little amplifier is being fed with a high quality source seems logical it will work well
The 90 was really a starter power-amp, IIRC, a development of the Nait power amp stages albeit with a bit more power.
If you’re looking at shoebox amps then the 110 or 140 are really the ones to go for. The 110 especially is a cracker. Both will need servicing if not recently done.
Agree, I had the NAP 110 and NAC 42.5 and SNAPS which I bought with one of my first pay checks as a junior house officer (doctor) second hand from a great Hifi shop in York in 1987!!. Absolutely loved this system.
Then I discovered Acoustica.
Geoff told me I could get it serviced so I did. £1000 (~£300 a box), and man what an uplift in sound that produced, and as I liked Geoff and his wonderful shop Ialso bought a Muso qb2 then a Muso2 then a Nova and Dynaudio S40’s and then traded my Naim separates in for a 282,250 and on I went and on I go…but I regret trading that initial system in. Gave me 30+ years of great listening. I think that they are a really good investment ie they won’t lose any more value. A real treasure if you can find them.
Nothing wrong with the Nap 90, but as ever the higher up the chain you go the better the result. Second hand prices mean that generally the nap 140 is better vfm. If you find a nap 90 at the right price though the one thing I recommend is that you don’t pair it with a nac 92 of the same era. The nap 90 will benefit from a better pre amp. Nac 62 or similar.
Here’s another voice saying that 140 (probably) beats 110 beats 90, and that any of them deserve a 62 (or even a 72 if you find it) to show why we all got addicted to the Naim multi-box kit in the first place.
I too started with a 42/110/Kans and an LP12 as a junior doctor! Still got the Linn TT and speakers. Finally traded the 42/110 as part of an excellent deal on a new 500DR.
IMHO the only classic Naim piece to avoid is the NAC 102.
Even though my current set up is nominally far superior to the 42/110, nothing surpasses those heady days in the mid 1980s. Ah well…
The 140 is a bit more refined, but the 110 is a bit more of a party animal. I still have my first ever Naim amp - a NAP140 bought 37 years ago, just in case I find a lovely CB pre to go with it again.
Interesting - may first Naim amp was a 102/140 combo. It rocked. I demoed back to back with a 72/180 and preferred what I perceived as a more forward sound.
Back to the OP, a NAP140 is a very powerful little shoebox amp and worth seeking out if you can find one.
The 90 shoebox is underated here and sounds lovely.
I use mine with the n272 pre/streamer,which is a much better pre than 42.5 62 or 72,which I also have. This is in a small room though.
The original NAP90 was an amp that Naim didn’t really want to make but the dealers twisted their arm just enough to make it happen and lower the cost of entry into the world of Naim pre/power combos. It’s a lovely little amp, although if you can stretch to it, the NAP110 is my favourite shoe box power amp of all. I still can’t quite believe how good it is when I listen to it partnered with a NAC552 and driving SL2s…
I suspect the overheating issue the OP read about, relates to the early slimline series 3 NAP90 models (& Nait3), as they suffered with a thermal runaway problem.
Guys - note the word early above - I had loads of experience with 90/3’s and n’eer an issue. I keep one under the bed for potential 500-less episodes and have no fears slotting it into my NDS/555/552/500/MartinLogan system.
I think all the shoe box NAPs are good amps 90, 110 or 140 one just has to pick the one that suits your taste and what speakers they are powering. The later slimline NAP90 is just fine too.
In fact, a pair of Olive slimline NAP90s were one of the few times I thought a Biamp system anywhere near worked well.
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