On a recent day out I visited a hifi shop and happened to listen to a 60k Naim system (300?) connected to some Kef R7 speakers. It was amazing the sensation of being on the stage with instruments coming past my ears was something I remember from a Linn Keilidh Activ set up years ago. For some time I’ve had the feeling my system was lack lustre being very veiled and almost mono in the placement of instruments. sO the upgrade seed had been set (again).
I was lucky to arrange a demo with my amp and compare to the latest SuperNait 3. OK, yes some extra weight and sparkle, but not £3.5 ks worth of improvement for me. Adding a hicap to the SuperNait really did immediate noticeable improvements. Going back to my original XS (which I always insist on at demos as you can lost your reference point). I did appreciate the Supernait + hicap combination. However adding the hicap to my old XS gave even more amazing improvements. So a hicap was purchased.
I’ve really enjoyed revisiting old albums and enjoying them again. The itch was still there though with the thought I could have that extra weight and heft from the bass region. Knowing the XS preamp is not dissimilar to the SuperNait (but not mounted floating), I took a punt on an ex demo NAP 200. I know have my nuance and detail with the musicality of the XS and the weight from the NAP 200. Very pleased.
Two questions: should I go for the NAC202 when one comes up ex-demo, or stretch myself to a NAC282, although the system will become somewhat unbalanced.
How do you specify your Naim systems on your home insurance? I see my policy is £4k per item and max £30k for valuables. Several friends have said though that insurers will see by Naim separates as one “hifi” item and thus I’d only be covered for £4k!
Seasonal signoffs
Darren
Rega Planar 3 with Ortofon Black
Naim ND5-XS, XS, NAP 200-DR, Hicap-DR
PMC Twenty 23
The 202 is the natural partner to the 200; guess it depends on your end goal, do you imagine upgrading beyond?
202/napsc/200 is good, hicap is optional but as you have it already it makes sense to keep and power the preamp.
I was initially with Lloyds, which was unlimited, but individual items to £3000. I didn’t find this out till closely reviewed and changed.
They changed to a maximum amount for contents and lowered individual items to £1500, which is when I checked, but the insurance overall, was much less.
Contacted them to discuss, but no budging from their new range of cover.
Shopped around and eventually went with Hiscox, their cover was unlimited and £15000 per item, which covers all my hi-fi bits. They tailor make it to what you want and are easy to deal with. Best news, they were similar in cost to my original,insurance before it changed.
Just shop around, but make sure that the individual item covers your components.
We just renewed and had to change providers for the same reason, our new one supposedly counts my system as part of general contents and apparently aren’t worried about the cost of the individual components. Just got the documents today so we can properly check.
If policy wording is not crystal clear you should always seek clarification, preferably in writing, so email if possible rather than phone.
My current insurer requires you to specify high value items (over £1500) only if they are portable, so I added my MacBook Pro, but didn’t need to add the HiFi.
In the past I did need to add HiFi, and it was easy to do so in the insurers website when getting a quote.
In any case, always get photos of valuable items and record their serial numbers.
None I’ve ever dealt with have counted hifi equipment as “valuables”, that being things like jewellery, art etc (it will be defined in your insurance policy documentation).
There have been several threads in the recent past discussing home insurance, usually one or two a year, and in some people have given detail of sone specific insurers’ approaches to hifi gear, which may be worth checking (use the search tool).
With any insurance do bear in mind that the total insured amount must be high enough to cover everything you possess in the home, because in the event of a claim if the insurance assessor visits and determines that you are under insured, say 50%, then you will only get that proportion of anything lost - even if it is only a single item. This is something of which many people seem to be unaware, thinking they’ll the full value of everything lost as long as the total isn’t over the max sum insured.
Go for the 282 over the 202 if at all possible. I have an ‘unbalanced’ setup - 282 with xs level source and nap - and it all sounds amazing to my ears.
Thanks for your suggestions. I might look out for a Rega RP8 in the small ads. as for streamer source, I am reluctant to go for a NDX2 as digital sources (and DACs to some degree) become obsolete quicker than I’d like. I tend to keep my amps and speakers for at least 10 years if not longer. I’ve been following with interest the forum posts on Bluesound Node streamers and Chord DACs. I’ll be closely looking at those options at the Bristol Hifi Show.
When I was selling the Lloyds insurance the £3000 limit was on what they classed as ‘valuables’, such as jewellery, watches, art etc. they didn’t class hifi in this bracket. Their new range of cover does seem a lot more restrictive and less comprehensive.
As NAC 202 units are being sold off, I picked up a new old stock one for £1500. It is amazing. That is the box that has made the most difference of all the changes. Looking out for a NAPSC now. The amount of dynamics, punch and detail is awesome, I really don’t think my brain could process any more, so I think NAC282 is now off the cards.