Attached is a photo of my rather eclectic selection of equipment. I am looking to replace the Cosmic rack with a narrower one - I have an open mind on what, but wouldn’t run to a full Fraim, to house the following:
H x W x D Weight
Naim NAC-N 172 XS 70 x 432 x 301 5.65kg
Yamaha RX-V667 AV Receiver 151 x 435 x 364 10.5kg
KEF 100 centre speaker 174 x 460 x 169 5.2kg
Sony BDP-S790 Blu-Ray 42 x 430 x 193 1.9kg
Rega Fono MM phono stage 45 x 170 x 140 1kg
Naim NAP-140 Power Amp 76 x 205 x 300 6.3kg
Humax FVP-5000T 48 x 280 x 200 1.03 kg
I also have a LP12 which sits on a Half Decent wall shelf which I would keep and you can see sitting immediately above my current Cosmic rack in the attached photo. The speakers are Credos, which I’m very happy with.
I’m struggling with how many shelves, given the fact that Blu-Ray is probably on the way out and how I might best share shelves.
I do find glass shelves attract a lot of dust and also have a constant battle with cable management.
Your thoughts about racks and order would be appreciated. There are good reasons for each piece of equipment being chosen and the only upgrade option in the near future would be the NAC-N 172XS. This is the first piece of Naim equipment I own to be a cul de sac. I am disappointed that the display has faded after 7 years and I am being quoted some £300 plus many weeks away for a new display. Otherwise I’m happy with its performance but clearly the firmware has reached end of life - very disappointing for something bought in 2013 - unlike my NAP140 bought from Julian in 1973!
Hi @philiphaines, interesting system and never be tempted to sell the 140!!
I would suggest you look at Quadraspire Q4 evo bamboo. It is less expensive than many and also adaptable as you can buy shelves with a range of heights one at a time. This is a straight forward hi-fi rack and I went for it because of the sound quality for the money.
I had never rated investment in racks before but this was good enough to convince me to save up for a Fraim in the future.
Thanks AJK, I’m looking at a Simrak as there is some flexibility on shelf width, which would make it easier for me, but thanks for your input. Be good to hear of any others with experience.
My original purchase was a NAC42N/NAP110 before Naim moved to Salt Lane. The 110 was converted to a 140, has been serviced a few times, and isn’t going anywhere! I still have the NAC42N in case I ever want to pair them again, but over the years I changed to a NAC112 added a CD5 and a Flatcap, but replaced all of that with the NAC N-172XS when it came out as it suited where I was heading. Sadly it’s been the worst investment of any piece of Naim equipment and will need to be replaced with something else as it is now history. In my lifetime 7 years for a piece of Naim equipment is not good news. Sadly there doesn’t seem to be a suitable replacement, unless I’m missing something.
What I like about the way my system has developed is that it handles hifi and a/v with minimum fuss and equipment and I have not needed to compromise on the audio side.
I have a SimRack in Oak. It is a great piece of kit and apparently similar in SQ to the Naim Fraim Lite. One of the good things about it is that you can add or remove shelves as your system changes.
Thanks @DiggyGun, I looked at the Fraim some time ago but backed off when I was advised that it had a 6 shelf max. My configuration has slimmed down a lot since then. Good to hear you are happy with the Simrak.
