NEW! Uniti Atom Headphone Edition – and streaming pre-amp!

Yes, but be aware that it’s different whether 115V or 230V.

It came with a spare. The old fuse was blown.

If someone can post where to order spare fuses for the US, that would be helpful.

Looks like it’s working again.

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Good news.

Contact your dealer. Failing that, the distributor should be able to advise.

Yeah I let them know I got it working and asked about spare fuses. I’m assuming they’re closed for the Holidays. Bought it thru Moon Audio and they seem to be a well known and reliable dealer in the US for a lot of brands. There are no local Naim dealers in San Diego. Closest ones are in LA.

This is pic of the cover.

Found this link but it’s a UK site. But if this is the right fuse, can just buy same type from Amazon. Have 10 pack for $8

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I just looked on old fuse. it’s a T2AL250, so different than the UK link.

Yes, see my posts above. If 115V then it’s a different fuse.

The T2 bit is important. Basically it means it’s slow blow.

The only disadvantage I’ve found is the quality of internet radio. My euro 6 flea-shop tuner sounds much better.

When I use my fm tuner, it gives me the feeling that I’m sitting at the table with the folks in the studio, something I’ve never experienced with internet radio.

That’s weird. I have been a FM lover for most of my live, owning tuners like the Technics ST-G70, Kenwood L-1000T, Kenwood KT-5020, Kenwood KT-7020, Kenwood KT-3300D and even a Sony XDRF1HD which I imported from the US based on a recommendation in Stereophile. But since I own an Atom and started using Internet Radio I never looked back. ABC Lounge Radio (France) and Paradise Radio (US) are amongst my favourites.

BR,
Richard

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Well, I’ve had quite an interesting little Atom HE journey for the past month or so. Curiosity became a little more urgent when it was clear the family would be coming to work from home during the lead-up to the holidays. Unfortunately my local dealer were unable to help in any way, but I noticed that the Sevenoaks shop in Hove had one on demo.

At first listen, it was pretty much cold out of the box and I was not massively impressed. This was not helped by the Focal Celestee phones with which it was paired also being pretty much brand new. They were also getting very little demo use in the shop, so although I could hear both opening up and coming into their stride over the next few days of popping in where detail, texture and PRaT were concerned, it simply wasn’t clear where things would end up. Comparing to some Audeze open and closed back LCD phones didn’t help much either, with the latter both going a little deeper and being warmer but with quite a bit less detail, PRaT and articulacy in general.

Bill the new manager provided really first-class service throughout - up there with the very best, making me feel a little ashamed I had never really taken Sevenoaks seriously in the past other than as a shop window to look in while waiting with the dog outside the supermarket. He was not only able to get hold of an Atom HE very quickly when I decided to just bite the bullet, but also got hold of a Focal Stellia and Utopia to demo, followed by a Grado GS3000SE that I wanted to hear, having loved my GS1000 some years ago.

The Stellia was clearly a big step up from the Celestee, even literally straight out of the box on a freezing day, and I opted for these immediately since I would need to work without disturbing or being disturbed by others working in the same room. They’re definitely the best closed back I’ve ever used - streets ahead of the Beyers I had a few years ago.

The Utopia is in another class however, when it comes to openness, detail, space and above all instrumental texture. A very fine phone and quite a bit ahead of the new Grados. They also bleed less noise out in to the room, making them more acceptable when you have other people around you. Anyway, I was very impressed and ending up buying these, too, since my better half will be working upstairs 3 days a week for the the foreseeable future and gets very distracted by most of my music from the “office”.

My new Atom HE, meanwhile, had been burning in nicely and easily demonstrated the differences between these headphones. There’s no doubt that it punches well above its price, but make no mistake it’s still quite a few steps behind a big 500 system in detail and texture in particular (as you’d hope for the many thousands of pounds more that the latter costs). This makes me somewhat regret there is no option to use the HE only as a headphone amplifier. It would be nice if Naim could allow one to use the analogue input without digital conversion.

That said, I don’t regret the purchase because it offers nice mobility/portability advantages over the big hitters in the headamp world (Pass Labs, for example), at least where I am concerned, since the latter would be tied to the 500 system, whereas I can use the HE very conveniently on my work desk, or move it to by the sofa, or carry it upstairs to the bedroom. I wouldn’t even be surprised if I took it on holiday.

Having a dealer round the corner who was prepared to very quickly get in all the demo gear to carry out these experiments and also get a solution up and running in time for the homeworking pandemonium made a massive difference. Many thanks to Bill and the entire Sevenoaks team behind him!

And remember, if auditioning an Atom HE, find out how much it has burnt in before forming a judgment: it starts out flat and thin with very little instrumental texture. Mine took a good three weeks to start giving its best. The Focal headphones also take quite a bit of running in - the Celestee more than the Stelia. I very much enjoyed having to revise my long-held prejudices against metal tweeters hearing the Stellia and Utopia in particular…

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Thanks for the informative post. I just bought an HE less than a week ago and I’ve been worried that I’m not liking it. It’s my first Naim product and I didn’t know what to expect. I’m really hopeful to get a high end sound out of such a versatile product. Just like you, I plan to use mine in the main system, bedroom, office, and even vacation. So far it’s been a dream to operate.

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What I didn’t write above is that while the Atom HE was running in, I left it playing 24/7. By around 100 hours it was starting to come into its own. It will never do what an ND555 with 2 power supplies can (no surprise there!), but it’s great for the price.

Don’t worry, you will be satisfied! I have been using the HE for over half a year and I am surprised every day almost about how good it sounds. Listening to 128kb internet radio this morning I noticed I was enjoying it so much as I could hear every bass line, instrument, tune in such a good and musical way. It’s definitely better than the regular Atom as a preamp, not even mentioning how good it sounds with headphones. :musical_note: :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

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Besides the hires streams, I really cant get on with internet radio. That not so much the fault of the Atom, but the streams for sure. FM every time of the day for me! Sadly, it will be switched of in some time.

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Using my atom now for some weeks. Now im sitting quite close to it. Do you also hear a humming sound when its turned on? Is that normal? And another question is it possible to turn of the naim lamp or do i need to cover it somehow? Thanks

Regarding the humming, mine is silent, but my nap 200 hums slightly. I have a busy house, so I cannot really get annoyed by it.

Regarding the light, the intensity can be changed by the light icon on your remote, but not entirely switched off.

A great amp, I’m really surprised by it. So convenient to use and such good sound quality. Perfect balance.

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Not being able to switch the light off seemed to be the only thing negative the guy has to say in a review I’ve read. Is it really that much of an issue?

Thanks. Yes i like it too but the humming is really easy to hear with my device. Its quite annoying. Thanks

Have you tried the standard stuff? E.g. my bedroom system humsif a toothbrush is being charged. Also lifting it up and replacing it sometimes fixes it. If interconnects are used (when a poweramp is connected) make sure they are not in parallel with a mains lead.

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The hum is unfortunately a side effect of the large transformers in Naim equipment. With the music playing I’ve always found it gets drowned out, but when in stand-by I really struggle with the background noise. If you’ve got good hearing you will likely be more sensitive to this. I can hear any Naim amp from at least 10 feet away and most I reckon I could hear from double the distance. The level of hum also seems to vary from one unit to another.

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