New Naim & Focal what?

Well, 2022 has been miserable for many reasons, we need something to cheer us up I think!

3 Likes

I’m excited. Incidentally I have an appt at my dealers on 20th Jan to have an audition and look at next steps - hoping that if there are “new things”, that the dealers will have them on demo by then (even though I’d expect a significant wait for customer orders thereafter).

Also, to upgrade or “downsize” from whatever complete system someone may have is a much bigger change than just changing a source, amp or speaker, and unless a very favourable part exchange deal for the lot can be achieved could be a much bigger financial challenge than the size steps to which people are more accustomed. I suspect that if it weren’t for this particular factor more people might have changed to active speakers like the ATC SCM50, 100 or 150 than have done to date.

3 Likes

I remember the CDS555 release which (and I’m going out on a limb here perhaps) was a big disappointment with some going back to a CDS3 with 555ps

I remember the CD555 launch very well but certainly don’t recall any great disappointment - quite the opposite in fact!

10 Likes

If anyone is still disappointed with their CD555 I’ll happily provide my address.

15 Likes

Yes I suppose I should not generalise based on a few people I know. Possibly something to do with the quirky features and little teething problems. However there were those that preferred the cds3

I’m looking forward to being the owner of late vintage Naim amplification and mid-vintage Naim speakers.

.sjb

2 Likes

I loved my CDS3 (and still have some regret that I let it go) but would not have hesitated for a second to swap it for a CD555 if that were offered. Only things I didn’t like about the CD555 were the lid, the rather brutish looks, and the high price…

2 Likes

I think that sums it up very well🤣
I felt the same with the whole 500 series even though I suffered many temptations to upgrade, I resisted and kept my naim suggested system 4 :sweat_smile:

The only disappointment I had with CD555 is I couldn’t afford it.

9 Likes

The lid was :sunglasses:

1 Like

That said the CDS3 lid is sheer class.

As I said previously on this thread - Naim tend to release the good stuff at the Bristol Show , coming up on 24th February. CES is a sideshow by comparison… :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

Don’t forget the UK doesn’t drive this company anymore. Bristol? Où?!

7 Likes

The suggestion of the vid above is that it’s not just one release but a year of change. Dream greater.

2 Likes

It seems to me that if an active speaker is going to have the amps built in, then the connection to the preamp will need to be balanced – rather than single-ended as Naim separates are now – to support longer cable runs.

1 Like

The Statement NAC S1 and Atom HE sport balanced outputs in addition to the standard single ended, so perhaps we’ll see these appear on any new preamps / streaming preamps ?

4 Likes

The market in France for Naim is tiny compared to the UK. Naim will always promote their products in their biggest markets - daft not to.

1 Like

Your focal speaker will now fit atop your statement amplifier. This is to conserve space and kinda sort of lower your box count . The other advantage is a shorter run of speaker wire :laughing:

2 Likes