Original Naim Nait 5 (MK1)

Hi-Fi Corner
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I just bought an original Naim Nait 5 (MK1) and a Stageline N (30 watts per channel). I will have it hooked up technics 1200 for vinyl listening in a room 10 x 7 with 8 foot ceiling. I’d like bookshelf speakers with a budget of 800-1500/pair.

Some pairs that I’ve been thinking about (Not sure if these would work)

Dynaudio emit 10 - (6 ohms - not sure if 6 will cause a problem)
Monitor Audio Bronze 100 - 8 ohms
KEF Q350 - 8 ohms

I would like to buy soon. Any suggestions would help.

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Congrats, that’s a great amp. I don’t know these loudspeakers but it is greatly beneficial to have easy loudspeakers with this amp. It’s only weakness is it’s lack of sheer power. If easy loudspeakers it’s hard to beat for the price.

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For small speakers with a great sound at a reasonable price, I’ve always really rated the PMC DB1i. They are not hard to drive and can go close to the wall. You can even get brackets if you don’t want stands. There are a good few pairs on eBay for £600 or so.

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Thanks. I’ll try to find easy speakers.

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Thanks… I have not heard of them but I will search and check them out.

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I have bw cm5s2’s by the way. Work great at the end of a Nait 5, but they are not a typical hifi loudspeaker. They are used here for av purposes.

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I will check these out…will this amp work with 6ohm speakers?

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A pair of LS3/5As would be great. Probably too expensive to buy new from Falcon, which still holds a BBC licence to make them (I have just ordered a pair), but a careful search of eBay might turn up a nice pair. (They were the inspiration for Linn’s original Kan, which used the same enclosure , but had different treble and mid drivers.).

The Kan may be an alternative, but it has different voicing (not as natural as the BBC monitor), so some listening may be advised.

Good luck with your search. Let us know in due course how you get on.

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I’ve heard great things about the LS3/5As and have been interested in them. I will add them to my list of choices. Thanks.

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I still have my DB1i’s in my office, I did at one point use same with my (then) NAIT 5, the sort of speaker you can just have on all day and not be left with fatigue.
I was very fond of my NAIT 5 as well.

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Still some new pre-meta KEF R3s kicking around well within your budget…lovely speakers

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I noticed that the amp is rated at 8 Ohms…and so are the DB1i’s. Should I for 8 Ohm speakers, or can 6 Ohms work?

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I ran Dynaudio Audience 50s with my Nait 5. They sounded great, but needed more power to get the very best out of them. I am still running them on a SN1. Some of the smaller Dyn’s would be worth an audition.

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The important thing is to find a pair of speakers you enjoy listening to, and ideally get a chance to try at home. The specs are just part of the story.

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Thanks…I may go for the Dynaudio Audience 50s. I was looking at the Emit 10 (is this what you mean by smaller Dyns?)

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Good point…I am building this system for the music and to enjoy the records I have.

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Remember that a rear ported reflex speaker needs some space behind it to avoid bass boom. That was my thinking in suggesting the PMCs. They are transmission line loaded and while they are vented at the back they behave differently to reflex speakers, and can be used near the wall. Another speaker that is easy to drive and sounds great is Naim’s nSats. They are quite hard to find, but are very good. They are sealed and can be used very close to the wall.

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You’ll probably want to aim for something relatively easy to drive and that suits the listening space and your musical tastes. It’s hard for anyone independently to recommend speakers on paper specifications alone, they tend to be system and room dependent however good they may be on paper.
I’ve always enjoyed PMC’s personally having got in to them through music production in a studio setting originally.
PMC still make the “Gold” version of the DB, you can get the regular kind used (long out of production) with a preference for the the later 1i (italic) version which had a smoother and more capable tweeter than earlier versions.

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The Falcon LS3/5a are one of the best small speaker I have heard - period. However I am not sure the Nait 5 will be able to drive them. From my experience they need a NAP250 to come alive; my Nait 2 was not close and sounded a bit lifeless in comparison. I should try my Nait 5 with them (maybe I can report back later this week).

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I used Rega Jura speakers when I had my Nait 5; it was a fun combo and got me hooked on hifi!

Any of the smaller Rega speakers would be worth looking into: the RS5 or RX5 would be great.

The only thing I’d add is that (in my opinion) the Stageline N was not Naim’s finest hour. I’ve had several and they always sounded quite dark and unappealing. What cartridge are you using on your Technics?

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