Just got an email from my dealer regarding the new (well, newly available without the Solstice) Naim Phono stage. $3700 for the NVC TT phono stage and $3700 for the NPX TT power supply. That’s $7400 in all ($8,000 with sales tax in my State).
Makes the 252/552-powered Superline look pretty darn good!!!
Wow-that’s pricey…
Well it’s supposed to be a replacement for a Superline.
Is it?
It has added convenience but there aren’t many who’ve heard both (mostly in 500 series or older classic systems) that prefer the new one if the superline has a supercap. There won’t be a flood of used superlines as a result at this rate. Maybe in the setting of a New Classic system without Naim’s traditional system wide grounding scheme it will perform better in comparison.
From recent investigations, might say the NVC-TT is pretty good. Plus, the way the cartridge loading works, makes it a more flexible phono stage, for both MM and MC.
This, from another recent post…
Maybe if you were investing in 200 or 300, the NVC-TT makes perfect sense, for any vinyl source. It’s good enough and a perfect aesthetic fit. However, if you already had OC pieces, or wished for the best, the SuperLine is still the better phono.
Hope that helps?
KR
R
The NVT TT costs a little less than the Superline, and remember that it can be powered by the 222 and 333. Adding a PS is no different from putting a Supercap on the Superline. And you get MM and MC compatibility too.
Sure
The actual cost difference (in UK local £ GBP) is 200 or about 7%.
Maybe not enough to be a significant factor, by itself.
The NVC-TT can be powered from 222 or 332.
Similarly, the SuperLine can be powered directly from SN3, 282, 252, etc.
Both can be powered by separate psu’s.
Although, the NVC-TT can only be powered by matching NPX-TT.
The SuperLine extends beyond HiCap to SuperCap too.
In our case, we considered both carefully…
The NVC-TT c/w NPX-TT was compared with SuperLine c/w HiCap DR.
All other things being considered, we preferred the SQ of SuperLine.
Price wise, the latter pair is (was, when HCDR was still available), the lower cost alternative too.
Everyone makes different decisions, maybe depending on their specific situations, etc…
The NC phono alternative is still a great option. And it’s a more flexible solution, for both MM & MC.
If we had decided to go NSC222+NC250, we maybe would have added NVC-TT too.
Hope that helps further…
KR
R
Booooooooooo!
Our strategy of moving to Superline as everyone jumped ship to NVC is a bust!
Seen several posts now saying Superline was preferred to new NVC.
Yeah, remember chatting with you about this early in '23…
For what it’s worth, having carefully considered things, we decided to take the plunge and buy new, both SL & HC DR, together . (In case Naim stop making this excellent bit of kit).
Good luck
R
We might just have to take the plunge and pick up something used.
Would use 252 to power, we don’t listen to enough vinyl to justify a Supercap (he says, noticing used prices dropping……)
Sure.
Actually, we auditioned SL, just running off the SN3 and it’s pretty good, just by itself.
In our case, we added a HiCap DR psu to allow the SL, for flexibility, to be moved about and used in different systems. Without being tied to just Naim pieces that have that AUX powered facility. (As an example, our Olive shoebox NAC72 ).
Adding HC DR improves things a little bit. Not much. (For us, it was more about flexibility). The move to a SuperCap for SQ is more obvious.
FWIW…
Ian, “Top Tip”, take a look at the Airplug Z options, (for cartridge loading). Which any Naim dealer can supply, on request, from Naim HQ, etc. It is worthwhile investing an extra £150 ish each, for these bits. But, I’m sure you probably already know this 
(And lots of discussion on the forum to help guide which values best match different cartridges).
I think it’s possible that some new Naim customers won’t be interested in 500 series stuff or anything that has gone before, they will want to go in at what they perceive to be the top now. They will want the contemporary look, they know that Naim is made by hand in a place called Salisbury in the UK, and they know that their CEO likes it.
Exactly
If investing in new 200 or 300, it makes perfect sense to add a NVC-TT.
And its actually a pretty good phono.
There is a sound quality cost to other inputs powering a phono stage from the pre. I notice it most with orchestral music. I’ve taken to disconnecting my stageline N, which I use for mono with a Decca Maroon, when playing through the superline. A nuisance as it means powering off the amps each time. I always preferred AUX power with the superline to any outboard supply until I tried the supercap via a Burndy (which took a week to arrive so I that includes the supercap via Snaic against a new 552’s AUX).
We possibly haven’t seen the last phono stage from Naim if they’re discontinuing the superline/supercap. I’m sure they won’t want to replace it with a downgrade.
Agree with the last sentiment.
I also suspect there is more to come, in time.
Until then, was happy to go with what’s available now.
Well, at least some of it is.
I think naim will have set out to build a very capable phono stage which easily accommodates both MM and MC cartridges, whilst offering an upgrade path via PSU and connectivity to 222/332.
Now some people are saying it’s not as good SQ wise as SuperLine, but I still think naim will think job done!
I doubt we will see anything else in the phono lineup.
Being objective, I’m sure you’re right…
I guess I’m in disbelief. Like @Yeti suggests, the discovery that Naim might replace a thing with another that wasn’t better.
Never-the-less the NC phono is a perfectly capable product, more flexible, which works well with other NC pieces, for a vinyl source, etc.
As you rightly point out, it “ticks all the boxes” for vinyl users and the next NC period.
While it’s unlikely to be used with an MM magnet (given the cost), the settings on the NVC TT for MMs are fixed. The input capacitance is still 470pF - unsuited to most modern MMs, which are optimally loaded at less than half that value.
I hadn’t appreciated that and compared to every other adjustable phono stage on the market seems a strange decision.