Not at all - it’s not a big issue compared to everything else in the world at the moment.
But the failure of the policy needed pointing out.
Maybe you just accept things as they are without pointing out inconsistencies and failures - maybe I should be the same.
I can’t see any kind of failure.
Clare, of Naim has made it perfectly clear that UK dealers are to all receive their demo decks at the same time and the reason why.
The UK is a tiny place, so it’s right that all dealers receive their decks at the same time.
It’d be easy for me to think “if Leicester doesn’t have a delivery, I’ll go to listen/buy one in Sheffield instead”. They’re only just up the M1 motorway from each other.
The USA is quite a different thing, with dealers often several hours flight apart, effectively different countries, so they’re hardly going to upset another dealer by getting their deck first and stealing customers from outside their area.
Perhaps everyone world-wide should be made to wait?
Perhaps Naim should have made absolutely sure that delivery times were absolutely timed to perfection? (Impossible).
Perhaps you should fly to wherever in the world you can listen to or buy one?
Or maybe just show some patience and wait?
Almost everything in here is incorrect…
You’re missing the point.
I’ve bought one - on the day it was released - the UK dealer network (Naim’s most important market - receiving 25% of the overall production) still don’t have any demo kit. And no UK customers have any kit.
Customers in the US have theirs. Dealers in the US have their demo kit.
I don’t know how much more obvious a failure of the stated policy that “all demo units will be shipped first, followed by customer units shortly after” I can point out to you.
Apart from ordering something unseen and unheard, I agree with Matt. It is rather poor planning that personal customers in the USA, with all the uncertainty of flights and thousand mile logistics runs, have their equipment already while customers that could probably drive to Salisbury and home in a few hours, do not have theirs.
I’ve been waiting patiently for a new CD5si for months, but I knew it would be months. I bought an Auralic streamer rather than an NDX2 because I don’t fancy waiting until after Christmas for a new streamer.
Delays in manufacturing because of global parts shortages are understandable. Not delivering already built and packaged equipment for fairness reasons does not.
If I were Matt I would be lived.
Dealers receiving a demo unit is clearly not a consideration for you as you’ve already ordered one anyway. Rest assured you will be getting yours soon.
I thought Claire has also made it clear that the delivery arrived in the USA much quicker than they anticipated. Get over it.
Paul at Moorgate Acoustics told me on Wednesday that he’d sold one but had no chance to set it up and have a listen. I assume the customer collected on the day of delivery.
I’m on my way to Moorgate today (for a Linn Krystal) so will double-check the circumstances if you wish me to do so.
Its your Duty as a Naim Forum Member, to do so - and report back…
She actually said that they’d shipped early - in order to counter the expected delays - but that those delays never came.
And with the UK demo units being held back deliberately so that everybody got them together.
This clearly didn’t work - as units haven’t appeared in UK dealers - or with customers. So we can surmise that this policy wasn’t quite as ready as it might have been.
I’m just stating facts. Nothing to get over. But thanks for your inaccurate input.
I’m not livid - but I’m definitely irked. And the silence from Salisbury doesn’t help.
If it’s a foul up - fine - these things happen.
If it’s an ill thought through policy that back fired - it’s not Afghanistan - but it’s not very elegant either, and a bit of a statement as to what’s going on is due.
Once again, Matt, I fully understand your frustration.
And any ‘silence’ on my part is purely down to waiting on a detailed update from our production and sales teams. I’m sure you can appreciate there are a lot of people on holiday this week, which means i haven’t been able to get an instant answer. As soon as I do - as previously promised - I will share it here.
So what is the refund policy? Are you at that point yet? I only ask as you are very unhappy and to me it kinda puts a curse on it. It’s something you should be very excited about not very upset about.
Alternatively, Naim took a view, at the time they had to take it, to plan production and shipping in a very uncertain time. Decks turned up earlier than expected. What were they supposed to do at that point? Embargo decks at US dealers/distributors? If you were a US customer, what would you feel then?
They haven’t got 500 decks sitting around. The first few made were shipped internationally, on the fair assumption that shipping and production schedules would allow a sensible sequence of deliveries. Unless they really are going to wait until they are all sat in dealers ready to go against a defined release schedule, what other option do they have?
We have all been frustrated waiting on new purchases I’m sure, but assuming Naim are doing anything other than their best isn’t necessary.
Imagine a world without the forum. You’d have some indication of delivery date from your dealer, and would be asking them for updates. You maybe wouldn’t know about US folks getting decks first, and definitely wouldn’t know much about the initial distribution plans direct from Naim staff, as we’ve been lucky enough to have. What do you expect from Naim that isn’t with the benefit of hindsight?
I’m sure Naim realise that selling premium products comes with premium expectations, and managing expectations is particularly important. They’ve tried their best, but any commitment to UK customers were made in absolute terms, I did not see where they made UK delivery commitments in comparison to the WW market? Though I totally get your point about the UK being a very important market for them. Perhaps they should have embargoed deliveries till they could enforce a release sequence, but IMO that would be brave given the global production and shipping uncertainty. Plus, the international market will not grow if it is treated poorly. You’d still be waiting under that scenario too! “No, we cannot release your deck until all the international distributors have theirs and we can impose our defined preferred order of deliveries”
And a lot of @Blythe 's post was asking questions, so cannot mostly be incorrect.
I really, genuinely, cannot wait to read your first impressions of your deck in this thread, and the Show Us Your Solstice thread. Heck, its own thread! I’ll never be in the market for one, but love that Naim (and Clearaudio 
) have developed this and am very happy for all the people lucky enough to be getting them. Meantime, whilst you wait, the kettle is always on here, bring some vinyl round, life’s all about contrasts, check out what a well maintained, but 25yo, Systemdek sounds like 
I don’t think so Guinnless. We are ALL waiting here in the UK
Perhaps most have been sold to the export market?
Maybe the holidays, specially august, explain the differences in delivery. If North America they are perhaps not on holidays time .
Hasn’t remotely entered my mind.
Just musing on Naim’s strategy to create a [quote] “level playing field” - and result being pretty much the opposite of that.
They’re not made, assembled, tested or shipped in the US though…. This is an issue around the priority in which they leave Salisbury
Yes, but if a lot of dealers are closed during August, they don’t ship to them.
I don’t know for UK, but in France >90% of audio dealers are closed between the 10 and 23 august.
I do think that’s a Southern European thing FR 