apologies in advance on the uninformed questions I’m about to ask. I did a dig through search and any posts that came up about these two units more more of a 201 level rather than the type of info I’m looking for. My google-fu is usually quite good but I’m finding really limited info about these units online which lead me to this forum.
I recently inherited what appears to be an NAC 42.5N and a SNAPS and I’m wondering what folks suggest for their uses. The family member who previously owned it seemed to have used it for both a headphone amp as well as a phono stage for a MM cartridge, but are those the primary uses for this setup? Is the SNAPS power supply required for the 42.5 to function or can that serve as a phono stage on its own (does it work fine for MC cartridges as well?). Is the SNAPS meant to power speakers? If anyone could provide some clarification on these for me it would be greatly appreciated. And again, I now these types of posts are annoying if this has been covered extensively in the past. I just couldn’t see much when I searched up these model names. Even a link to online manuals or specs would be amazing.
The snaps is one of the possible power supplies for the 42, which cannot function without.
42 is a preamp.
You could add a power amp eg nap110 to drive speakers.
You need to search for Naim-Audio-full-line-manual-1984-1988.pdf on the avoptions website.
My love of NAIM started when I bought and owned a NAC 42.5 SNAPS and NAP 110, all second hand in 1987. Absolutely adorable set up. Even with a pair of Linn Nexus!
Geoff at Acoustica suggested I got them serviced which I did for £330 a box (or thereabouts) and it was well worth it. Again this is something that I really admire about NAIM, that they never stop offering services on our treasured equipment.
Traded them in for a 282DR and 250DR.
Which I then traded in for the 252/SCDR, 300DR.
It soon becomes a big addiction if you’re not careful!
But enjoy your 42.5 and SNAPS, and yes if you can find one, get a 110.
If well mantained, 42/Snaps/110 is a wonderful combo. The 42 can even work fed by the 110 alone or eventually upgraded with HiCap. At the moment i’m really enjoying my CB collection of pre and power amps. Bearing in mind that i also have a full 500 system among a few, this is quite and achievment.
The 42.5 is a preamp, and includes a phono stage. The N means it’s for MM cartridges. It cannot act as a headphone amp. If you want to drive speakers, you need a power amp, such as a NAP110 or NAP140. The 42.5 needs an external power supply to make it work. A 110 or 140 can provide that power, as can the snaps. Even with the snaps you need a power amp.
This is fantastic, thanks all. I’ll have to hook it up and give it a try, although I don’t have a MM cartridge at the moment. Is it possible to modify it to work with MC instead?
I was reading in some other threads that using the tuner input for something like a CD player works well? It would be great if I could use it as a switcher between my CD and turntable inputs if there was an audible benefit as well.
Check which cards are currently fitted inside. See the FAQ for card info. Cards are interchangeable. Low output MC carts need NA323 cards, either S or K.
Yes, you can use the tuner input for your CD player. The tuner and tape inputs are normal “line” level units, you can plug any line level source into them.
I use the tape input for my DAC, and the tuner input for my external phono stage. I do not use the internal MM phono stage at all on my 42.5N
Ortofon T5 step up transformers or similar from Empire or Sony could work for you if, for some reason, you wanted to stick with the existing MM boards.
Edit: apologies, I have just seen more or less the same thing from @robert_h . I hate it when stuff gets duplicated here!