Anyone compared these two? I have SN3 but very tempted to test Accuphase. Why? Because i’ve always wanted to own Accuphase. 
SN3 is fantastic amp in my opinion, what do i lose and what do get with Accuphase?
How much i lose PRaT with Accuphase if any?
Speakers are Linn Majik 109 at the moment, but i’m interested at ATC also. Sealed box has always been my favourite.
Cheers.
They are both fine amps, it basically comes down to your own personal view. I have never done that direct comparison, but have heard a number of Accuphase amps including the E370. They just don’t engage me to the extent that i could listen to them for any great length of time. On the other hand there are ex forum members who have made the switch from Naim to Accuphase, and are delighted.
I’ve heard the Accuphase stuff a few times and it’s always struck me as very impressive with certain genres. It has a very airy but warm sound that seems to conjor magic with simple jazz arrangements.
Most on the forum jumped to Accuphase from a Naim pre and power setup rather than an integrated so the specific 1:1 comparison you are after may be tough.
It’s possible to like two very different presentations too so even if you had access to both, there’s no guarantee the decision would be easy at all.
You are comparing chalk with cheese. The short answer is you may prefer it or on the other hand you may not. One thing is for sure - it will sound very different.
I used Naim pre/power amps for decades until a move to Klipsch horn loaded speakers necessitated getting a different amp. I ended up with a Moon 340ix integrated which we’ve been very happy with. It has a very different presentation to Naim but is no less enjoyable. Is it better or worse? I would say that’s a pointless question as I simply can’t use Naim with my speakers anyway. And that’s the point really. You have to look at things in a system context.
You don’t say why you are contemplating the change other than you have always wanted to own Accuphase. Is there anything about your SN3 that you don’t like? It’s a fantastic amp for sure as you point out. Fair enough if you just fancy change but maybe you should give a little more thought to what’s prompted this and what you are actually aiming for. Otherwise it could simply be a very expensive experiment that may lead nowhere.
I’ve found Accuphase in general, and the E-370 specifically, combine well with speakers that are themselves more on the “exciting” end of the spectrum. If your speakers are on the refined/polite side of things, the overall presentation could lack some excitement. Really well-made stuff though.
I owned E-480 and E-650 before switched to Naim. I bought Accuphase all down to my childhood memories as my dad got one in the house back in early 80s.
It turned out huge disappointment though – the very high damping factor makes music played through it virtually sound dead, lacking dynamic and excitement. Bass is weak, very comfortable sound but not real music. E-480 sounded a bit rough and so I moved onto E-650.
For the class A amps (not real class A) everything sounds full and graceful, I mean even the rock music turns elegant. In the end I replaced the internal phono board with a EAR 834P and everything gets better, but still after hearing a 40 years Naim amp I sold it the next week.
Had a listen to Accuphase E5000 last week and it sounded less power than a Naim SN3. Imho SN3 wins hand down. But of course if you are tempted by its colour and vu meter there is nothing comparable in the market and I do miss those sometimes.
Need anyone have more evidence than the above that you must listen for yourself and make your own assessment. From my limited recent experience of various Accuphase items ,they are worth a listen. Im well impressed .
So tempted that i am with Accuphase i think it’s wise just hang on to SN3 though. My musical taste has no boundaries and i like sound that has good drive and rhythm. No smooth silkyness, there has to be rough edges also if music has those elements. Soundstaging or 3D images is not my cup of tea. I like to enjoy my music mainly elsewhere than sitting on a spot. Lively, dynamic and rhythmic sound is that gives me good vibes and chills. SN3 gives me that. 
And i assume that adding HiCap DR to SN 3 gives me even more “Naim”. I listen pretty much with headphones also and i assume that adding HiCap DR elevates headphone out quality also. Though it’s pretty difficult to find service free HiCap DR from europe i have noticed.
In view of this I think you would be daft to swap your SN3 for an Accuphase. Just stick with it or I’m sure you’ll live to regret it.
I came to the opposite conclusion. If you mainly listen through headphones, a Naim amp makes very little sense at all. Other than the Atom HE, built in headphone outputs on Naim amps are a ways behind a dedicated headphone amp.
If you have decent headphones and speaker listening is a lower priority, I’d probably rethink both the SN3 and the Accuphase and go for high end headphone amp and a lesser integrated and lesser pair of speakers for the rarer occasion when you listen that way. Or if funds suffice add a analogue headphone amp to the SN3 instead of a HiCap.
I have had decent headphone set recently; DCA E3, Aune S17 Pro EVo, Melco N100, dac’s were denafrips Ares 15th and Rega Saturn mk3 dac(which was really good btw). With easy drive headphones (Grado, Fiio Ft1) SN3’s headphone amp is very, very good imho. I have had Uniti Atom HE also but it could not handle E3 way that Aune did. And soundquality was not the level that Aune gave. In my point of view at this point SN3’s headphone amp is truly good enough for me.
I came to Accuphase after a long audition of many alternatives (including Naim). Sound staging and Imaging are some of the reasons I chose the Accuphase route…along with the Vue meters and build quality…make no mistake, PRAT is there with the Accuphase but I was surprised how each amplifier handled the music.
Its a personal choice and not one to be made without directly comparing them using the same speakers et al
Also wanted to mention that while the headphone output on the Accuphase is fine, to my old ears driving my Meze Elites, the HE is superior (I am using the balanced output)
Accuphase seems tempting now. My 2014 hicap dr gave a loud pop yesterday. SN3 left channel went dead.
Luckily my Majik 109’s are still fine.
Sorry to hear about your misfortune. That is the risk with getting used gear. I presume you would need to send both Hicap DR and the SN3 for repair before deciding on the next course of action?
FWIW no harm trying the Accuphase. You would never know, you might end up preferring it more than the SN3.
Thats the area Naim loose between these two brands.
A friend owned a E202 back then, way back.
An impressive amp at the time, mind you more than 100W, he was proud.
I’ve heard a few Accuphase amps since then, none engaged me into music like this old amp - this experience was before I experienced Naim mind you, we are talking 70/80’s
To continue the friends story, he later on purchased a 200W Rotel amp, mainly because it was 100W more powerfull 
I never forget the panic in his face when we tried my Nait, it was low watt, and his Watt world broke down in minutes.
Ive lived with the Accuphase E-700 now for a week . My amps are 332/300/350s into ATC100.
I can say quite conclusively that the Accuphase is out Naiming Naim in the prat timing dynamics stakes. And you get tone controls if you need them and you get a loudness button if you need it ,and dont even start on the slot in phono card ( which is installed in the demo ) it’s flipping amazing .
The test will be when I swap back …
I don’t know how this will ultimately play out, but my overriding feeling at the moment is that I don’t want to own equipment with inadequate protection circuitry and that requires servicing every ten years. Right now, my confidence in Naim isn’t very high—even though the sound quality is amazing. Once I get the Naim SN3 and Hicap serviced and back in working order, I’ll likely start looking for Accuphase amp to my set. I’ll definitely keep the ND5 XS2 as my streamer, though—it’s a reliable unit with great sound quality.
Reliability and longevity are just as important to me as sound quality.
Naim’s inadequate protection is something I simply cannot accept—a fact that really came to a head with this incident. Fortunately, my speakers survived this.
Sorry to hear, have you found out what actually happened ?
I’ve had tons of Naim amplication the last decades, apart from a Nait XS relay and fading Uniti display screen, I’ve had nothing but reliability. I still have some Olive kit made 30 years ago, solid as a rock.
I wouldn’t bother much with the “10 years” recap/service rule. Just turn off at night or when not in use, then 15 years is more relevant, The SN3/HC is a superb combo.