I have my Nova about 7 months. The Nova replaced a Atom. It’s a huge step in sound quality. I was very satisfied with the Atom, but the Nova is absolutely brilliant.
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I’ve got the Nova - love the simplicity and elegance of it. I’ve heard the SN3, 202 combo. I’d say it comes close to the SN3, at least for me - whilst I could tell the difference they were not big enough. The 202 combo was when difference was starting to get big. I’d go 282/250dr/ndx2 for my next upgrade as that’s when I believe the difference is substantial enough to move away for a one box solution and to give up the elegance of the nova. Wish Naim made Nova on steroids.
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The most important thing is it does what the op wants and he enjoys listening to it.
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Well yes HH everything is relative. If I remember correctly you were coming off a 272/555/300 at the time so inevitably it would have sounded less convincing in comparison, it would no doubt be the same if up against my system. But that’s not the point, what Naim have done is trickled down their latest technology from Statement and applied it to a series of excellent one box solutions. As you yourself acknowledged when you reconfigured your system all the pesky burndys and other wires can become a nuisance so for many customers it’s a superb one box solution. I’ve now heard said box 3 times the first with Focal Arias, the second with Titans 505s and then 606s. On the last 2 occasions I was very impressed with the resolution, dynamics, bass and image of the music but most the authority.
Where does it sound in comparison? Inevitably having all the digital stuff, pre and power in one box has to lead to some compromise but I reckon it very broadly pitches at ND5/XS level but could give a ND5/SN3 a run for the money. But of course it’s largely subjective we will all hear things and judge differently.
Leads me to speculate! I of course have no insider knowledge but I wonder if the much heralded 272 successor will be a Super Nova without power amp (Atom HE on steroids) with a series of new (white logo) power amps, and perhaps no external PSU option in the same way Statement is configured.
Perhaps the green logo will ffffffffade away!
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Also HH is known on the forums for strongly advocating against the use of large, expensive speakers with more affordable electronics. However according to earlier posts he tried the Nova with a pair of Naim SL2’s, a roughly £6000 pair of speakers, which would go against that mantra:
“I recently tried using a Nova with Naim SL2 speakers and felt that the Nova was way out of its depth.”
I’m not sure if he also tried the Nova with his current much more affordable ProAc Tablettes, i see no mention of that on the forums.
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I heard the NOVA on demo at a dealer with Fyne audio 501’s
there were a great match, punch of NOVA worked really well with the 501’s - lovely system
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@litemotiv yes HH holds a strong view on source first and it’s fine up to a point, and clearly works for him. Where I differ is for the person who wants a neat one or two box solution they should then optimise with the best speaker possible, to say that because the Nova is a £4K one box solution you shouldn’t pair it with say Titan 505s is ludicrous when it clearly works well if not as well as say a NDX2/SN3.
@Antz haven’t heard the Fynes at our top shop but they look good.
Regards,
Lindsay
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Yes i agree with you @LindsayM, i think it’s ultimately all about synergy and personal preference, rather than price per se. Ofcourse some pairings might seem more extreme than others, but if it really fits someone’s taste, both in sound and aesthetics, then that’s the most important thing.
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In his defence, HH did say:
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I have to be very careful. Everything is recorded in this forum. The world will know about my past mistakes soon.
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I have a nova in the study linked to some KEF R3’s. I listen to that every weekday from 7am until 6pm. I have a 500 series system in a dedicated listening room as main system. “IF” I had to sell one the 500 system would go first. Yes it is obviously better but the nova does such a great job for its price point and it lovely to use I really would not be without it.
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What speakers do you have in the Nova?
KEF R3
A degree of consistency in communication is desirable ofcourse, in order to not unecessarily muddy the waters. If someone is advocating a certain approach in thread X, but is providing negative comments about a Naim product in another thread while not following this approach, then this is at least confusing and potentially misleading to other readers.
(and yes it’s the internet, everything is recorded)
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I knew it was going to happen…
Amazing, I also need to be told two times the same thing. Must be age.
Thank you anyway.
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Ha, not a problem at all. I do it all the time !
the others in the range I really like were 702’s - forget the F1’s
sometimes the source just matches the speakers and to me on this day was a perfect combo - hope the T505 are still rocking your world - love Mine !! 
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I was hoping that a Nova would give a satisfying result with the SL2s, which I loved. But sadly not, it just couldn’t give the control and drive, and sounded a bit ragged and weedy. That’s why I’m a bit surprised that people are so pleased with it with something like the Kudos 505, which you’d think was on a level with the SL2.
Setting aside the SQ, my time with the Nova was enough to make me realise I didn’t really like the interface and preferred something more traditional. I also wanted a built in phono stage. The original plan was to use an ND5XS2 and a Nait XS3 with small speakers, but one thing led to another.
The Nova is a good all in one for £4,000, and works well with suitable speakers. But the talk of it being ‘brilliant!’ and capable of adequately driving illustrious loudspeakers is slightly exaggerating its capabilities. The mullet tendency will say otherwise of course.
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For what it’s worth, I have SL2s that are in all respects identical to those HH had and I tried those on my Nova. I thought it sounded a bit strained when the volume was turned up and a bit underwhelming when it wasn’t turned up.
So I tried a Quad 606 power amp (that was helpfully in store in my loft) between the Nova and the SL2s and it was a surprisingly better listening experience. I now have the latest Quad power amp, the Artera Stereo, in place of the 606 and I’m very pleased with it all. So I agree with HH that a Nova doesn’t drive SL2s well.
Best
David
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