My SN2 went to Naim to be repaired on January 3rd and amazingly 14 days later it was returned repaired and I picked it up yesterday.
It is really good to have it back, the Rega Brio that I used since the SN2 failed over a month ago has given sterling service but is not in the same class.
Over the period I was without the SN2 I had plenty of time to think about what to do next, I have no intention of going over to separate boxes for amplification but over the 10/11 years I have used Naim each of the 4 pieces kit I have had has failed at some stage and needed repair, under warranty to be fair until the SN2 which was just out of the 5 year period.
So my decision is to try to sell the SN2 ( the only Naim I have) and look elsewhere but remain with UK manufactured equipment.
Oooh, so which HiFi Marque do you have in mind for your future UK based amplification?
If you want something like an sn2 then possibly the rega aethos, leema Tucana ii, atc or exposure.
Out of interest, what Naim bits needed repair?
The sn2 should be good for another 12/15 years before a service is due.
Hi @Charles.
Seems a shame to move it on if its just been serviced and you like what it does.
I had one for 5 years and loved it. I would still have it but wanted to get a turntable and exchanged it for the SN3 because I wanted to utilise the MM phono stage in the SN3 which is very decent.
I really liked the slightly darker sounding SN2 and second hand these are currently great VFM in the context of Naim (this is all relative right?!).
It will be interesting to hear what you do decide to go for. What do you think you are looking for that the SN2 doesn’t have?
Possibly Rega.
I have had repaired -
2 XS amps, a CD5XS (twice) - all purchased new.
SN2 (from 2017) that I purchased 2 years ago that failed about 6 months after it’s warranty expired. Turned out it had been repaired before but the dealer I got it from either didn’t know or didn’t tell me.
Yes nothing wrong with it but the reliability hacks me off. Also on reading this forum there are for me any way too many failures or whatever.
Also it has been repaired not serviced.
The SN2 does a great job and I will look for something with similar characteristics and better reliability.
What fantastic service from Naim - fourteen days turnaround immediately after the year end shut down.
Well good luck with finding that level and commitment to service - I can think of one major audio manufacturer in the uk who doesn’t service everything they have ever made - for some products even once warranty is expired.
You may have been unlucky - seems you should be having a conversation with your dealer, rather than raising that specific issue here perhaps?
I have enjoyed music systems for more years than I care to remember, long time Naim owner. It’s not just reliability, it’s how issues which do arise, are dealt with.
Naim doesn’t have a reliability issue here; suspect many others may well agree.
It is the nature of Forums like this, that the failures & problems are reported and get a lot of attention, whereas the 99.9% which are fault free, are not reported on.
But… YMMV.
Yes I did, but the dealer I got it from used / preowned said he did not know, fair enough I guess. Dealer I use where I live discovered the previous repair on arranging it to be sent back.
Can’t dispute the turn round it was excellent.
Reliabilty – I must just be unlucky.
I sold my cyrus amps and bought naim for the very same reason. I still have a broken cyrus iii integrated in a box.
If not naim then I would look first at the rega.
Or there’s Sugden or roksan.
Sounds like it, in general I think Naim typically have very good reliability. No matter how good a product is built, there will always be failures, unfortunately it sound like you got more then your fair share. As mentioned above, its typically only the ones that have issues that go online & complain. The vast majority of Naim owners have zero issues over the life span (& for many, this is a very long life span).
You mention Rega, in the past I’ve had two Rega TT’s, one of them had an issue with the tonearm & both had problems with their cartridge. So while I had bad luck with Rega TT’s, the vast majority do not.
Glad the service is quick turnaround, new kit seems to take longer except it the new classic range it seems. Still waiting for full Fraim I ordered.
@Charles Nice, they seem to have kit at lots of price points and are robustly sticking to the analogue world.
Obviously this is a Naim forum so the crowd are going to be a bit partisan, but I find this place to have good footfall and people are usually happy to talk about alternatives, especially big and expensive integrated amplifiers where Naim don’t yet offer any competition. :0)
Good luck, I suppose Musical Fidelity might also be an option. (I do like the look of their bigger amps.)
I think if I was starting again I would look at the simplicity of a PMC Cor integrated. No real upgrade path bar selling it (a good thing financially!)
Naim DO offer competing products against expensive integrated amps, they simply improve over them by removing compromise by increasing isolation of pre and power sections and power supply by housing them in separate cases… the best integrated amp could always be bettered by such separation
Industry insiders and renown designers Stan Curtis and Bruno Putzeys have said much about the benefits of integration.
Market pressures dictate otherwise. Its a commercial world.
you have named two ‘industry insiders’ who talk of benefits of integration (and there are of course some - reduced box count and increase likelihood of product failure (a benefit to manufacturers) are examples to illustrate this) but there are likely insiders for each nay sayer that argue separation is less compromise and better. Of course market pressures dictate product design - as indeed marketing can equally persuade the market’s needs - but the market is also driven by buyers who clearly oft prefer separates. The younger market may be driven by features other than purity of fidelity, blame the iPod(!), perhaps the flawed integrated pieces will take over a we die off…