I’ve got the oppurtunity to get my hands on a pre loved nap 250 as a replacement for my nap 200. System is nac n-272 with PMC twenty5.23 speakers and tellurium q ultra black speaker cable.
Is the older nap 250 an upgrade over the nap 200?
Is the old 250 more rellentless than the new 250dr?
@feeling_zen: i remember from a closed topic you choose the Nap 250dr over the older 250 combined with PMC twenty5.23. What Made you do so? And did the older amp sounded that off with the speakers?
Hi,
Well I can’t comment on how it would match with PMCs but when I had a 200 I tried a non DR 250 with my then Dyn Contour 1.8s I found it heavy and laden and stuck with the 200. But I then tried a 250DR and it was night and day.
Regards,
Lindsay
Are you talking about an Olive 250, or the 250.2?
It is a 250-2
I use a 250DR to drive a pair of PMC Twenty5.23 – and I rather enjoy this combination. It’s a cracking combo, I think. I haven’t though compared the 250DR and 250.2. In the Forum, however, I often read that the 250.2 is “darker”, which might align @LindsayM’s decription that the 250.2 is “heavy and laden”. This perceived wisdom makes me think that it would be worthwhile to save up a few more pennies and then go for the 250DR. I wouldn’t want what I have any “darker”. I hope this helps.
I have owned both 250.2 and 250DR. I’ve previously described the .2 as slow and lardy, whereas the DR version is much more dynamic. In my view it’s simply better all round. Used prices aren’t vastly different if you shop around and if you can afford the DR then I’d say that’s the one to go for.
I originally had a 250.2 with PMC Twenty.23s and it was fantastic. I DRed the 250 and it was a step back. No amount of running in got the groove back with that combination. I could hear that the 250dr was more open and possibly a better amp, but that had nothing do to with the fact a 250dr is simply a different sounding amp to the 250.2. Specifically, the low end had just wandered off never to return.
Assuming that if you non DR amp in you system, that you can swap it out for a DR version and be happy is a fallacy. They might work. But they are different enough whereby doing so untested is the same as buying a power amp you’ve never heard of on a punt.
Anyway, the 250dr broke the spell. Luckily I had a pair of Twenty5.23s arrive and they just happened to work amazingly well with the 250dr and I got everything back and more.
Ditto. I have PMC Fact 3s. 252 with Supercap DR
My 250.2 is near service 10 years old so I tried the DR version. Yes the DR is more open and offers more detail but I seemed to lose some of the bottom end and drive with the DR amp. There is a difference between the 2 versions
The older version gave me a better balanced sound.
From what i read above:
250.2: more low end, but little less detail. 250dr: More sophisticated, and a less but more refined low end.
Would a NAP 250.2 still be an upgrade over the NAP 200 (non dr) as the PMC’s like a bit of current?
I do have a non-dr200 at the moment and souls like a bit more low-end from the system, so might be worth a shot?
Also i think the price of the NAP 250.2 is low enough to eventuali justify the outlay to service and DR it.
I wil ask the seller if i can get a home demo of the 250.2 alongside a 250dr (Which probabbly will be a slipery slope)
It’s a misconception that 23s are hard to drive. They are happy with lower power amps. And the 25.23s are noticeably easier to drive than their predecessor. But they do respond very obviously to better quality amps. I think that’s where the misunderstanding comes from. Yes they sound so much better on a 250 than say a UQ2 (I’ve compared). The lstter doesn’t really struggle with them at all. But it’s an inferior amp so a 250 sounding miles better isn’t a surprise.
A 250.2 is still leagues ahead of any incarnation of a 200.
Only if you like the fatter slower sound. It’s really not possible to say the 250.2 is ‘leagues ahead’ if you don’t like it. I’d take the 200 given the choice.
Thank you all for you’re reactions.
By darker sounding you mean warmer? Also previous I had a UQ 2 feeding the NAP 200 wich was a little more upfront (and not disliked), could I like the 250.2?
At the moment I’m on a crossroad, the NAP 250 for sale is from 2005 and service history not known (should be documented?) but Elco’s are in good condition, so must have had som kind of service?
Would i choose to DR in the future price invested will be same money as ex-dem unit right now.
I moved from a 200 to a 250.2 and I liked the darker sound. There was certainly a more obvious bass presence, so much so that when I auditioned the 250.2 against a 250DR I came away feeling that the DR was a bit light at the bottom. However, 12 months on and I did a home demo of the DR and changed my mind. I think that the DR is more dynamic, the bass is every bit as strong, but it is faster and thus you do not have the ‘relentless’ type of reinforcement.
Both the 250.2 and DR present themselves differently. For me, I am always nervous about the system sounding too bright and the 250.2 certainly resolves that. However, I am glad that I moved to the DR because I feel that it has the power, but applied more delicately.
I had a 200 for nearly ten years and now have a 250.2. Previously, I had Naim Allaes and when I tried a 250.2 with those, a long while ago, I preferred the 200 and so I stuck with it.
As time went on I upgraded my Allaes to Sonus Faber Olympica 1’s. I tried a 250dr which I liked with the Fabers, but I ended up improving my source first.
After upgrading the source I had a little money left over but couldn’t stretch to changing the 200 to the 250dr. The dealer who sold me the Fabers (not my Naim dealer unfortunately, he doesn’t stock Sonus Faber) suggested a little extra umph would be beneficial and so when a late model 250.2 came up for sale at a great price, I decided to give it a try. It didn’t go back… the improvement over the 200 was significant with the Fabers - in every way.
So, I think the moral of the story tends to be… it really is speaker dependent. Of course the best way to know if the 250.2 is right for you is by personal experience, trying it yourself. The other option, if you can’t try the 250.2 first yourself, is to find someone you trust who has used your model speakers with both the 200 and 250.2 and can give you an informed opinion on their experience.
If you can’t do either, then you can take a punt and hope for the best, but just make sure the price is decent enough that you can sell it on again if it doesn’t suit.
Before DR was ever around, I remember my Naim dealer saying that the 250.2 takes some careful matching, much more so than the 200 and 300, but when it does match well, it can be very special. He’s been known to be right once or twice 
Thanks for the reply.
The unit itself is from 2005 and hasn’t been (officialy) serviced, but capacitators look fine according to Seller.
What is decent pricing? Unit is for zal for approx. 1600£ (or €1800).
Rene,
Not sure where in the world you are and how prices are there, but if it’s an unserviced 2005 model, by Naim’s recommendation it will be due a service now. I’m sure it probably sounds ok, but it’s unlikely it will be sounding its best after 15 years. The recommended service interval is about 10 years, so if you do decide to go ahead, I would factor in the need to get it serviced too.
I ran 272/XPSDR/250DR into PMC Fact3s for several years. With the Facts positioned fairly close to the wall behind them I got both the Fact signature precision and openness with ample tight bass for my room. It took active ATCs to displace the 250DR/Fact combination.
Roger
What’s the typical lifespan of these DR amps before they need servicing? I’m under the impression these newer amps last longer than their predecessors.
Same as non DR. About a decade. The caps are the same and have the same lifespan.
FWIW, the best match between 250.2 and 250dr is hugely speaker dependent. You’re better off looking at general 250.2 vs 250dr threads rsther than in a 272 context.
With the 250DR running @ $7K or better, I would shop around for a Pre-loved 250.2. Give it a listen for a while, then have Audio Plus or Avoptions upgrade her!
Do the Math!
But the big picture, you now know the difference plus saved a couple of bucks!
JMHO
Allante93
Enjoy Your Music and Stay Safe!