Saying (maybe a temporary) goodbye to Naim

Hi-Fi Corner
41

I get just as much enjoyment from my Atom HE with active ATC speakers than I do from my main system… sure the multi box system is better but the margins v the cost are certainly questionable.

My main system is in a room under my daughters bedroom so when she is home from uni I tend to not use it and listen to music on a different room….

I would like to see a high end streaming pre from Naim as one box, 2 at a push. I certainly wouldn’t be building a multi box system if I was starting from scratch and prob keep mine as I still play a lot of records

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42

You do realise that in a roundabout way, you just insinuated that Julian and the rest of the gang were/are lazy? That had they done their homework we wouldn’t need all these boxes.

I think the point is that the products are BETTER with separate PSUs. That’s kind of Naim’s DNA, no?

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43

No I was happy to stay with Naim, I never thought of changing brands.

I had an Atom that I quite liked so I’m hoping that the Nova is at least as good. :upside_down_face:

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44

@Mike_S @Pete_the_painter

You guys are too young to downside

Me on the other hand - well !:zany_face::face_with_tongue::winking_face_with_tongue::flushed_face:

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45

When I was at Naim last week, some of the discussion was about what we as customers felt was missing from the range. It was very clear that a big integrated amplifier and a higher end streaming preamp were on the wish list. I said to Steve Sells that Naim needed something better than the 222 so people have an option that isn’t Linn. The Naim guys seemed very positive about the idea of an HE and active speakers and I very much hope to see some new stuff going in this direction.

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46

Sounds interesting HH and agree they are two of the big gaps.

I love the Naim sound so unlikely to switch brands but would welcome less boxes and a steaming pre.

When I had an issue it was a nightmare to diagnose with so many boxes and cables and without my excellent dealer I would have been stuck and to be fair to my dealer he spent a lot of time (ergo) money on supporting me… not ideal for either of us….

Glad Naim are listening as it’s a competitive market with lots of options for consumers these days.

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47

I immediately thought of this track.

You might find it amusing. I do. :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes:

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48

@30hertz

Hi,
I’ve had Naim for 40 years, not uninterruptedly but regularly. I started with a Nait in 1984 and ended with chrome bumper 62/90, a few months ago. In the meantime I had close to everything, something more than once, the highest point being CDX2, NAC282, SuperCap, NAP250. I now am firmly convinced that the sweet spot in Naim is the entry levels. I’ve just discussed this with a friend and forum member - the greatest, most immediate, less distressing pleasure I got from Naim was with the latest set, 62/90.
There is no true alternative to Naim, if you love that voice. But I’d stick with the lower levels. CB, olive, the 5 series. Making excellent stuff with cost limitations is a much more challenging task than building a Rolls. Naim seemed to excel at that to me.

Choose wisely,
Best,
M

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49

Did that actually need saying? Seems self evident to me that you could read that from “as much fun”.

50

I’ve always the integrateds and entry level stuff was where it was at putting aside the obvious that that was the only level I was ever going to be at. The thing I struggle with is the idea of there being “that voice”. It’s very interesting to listen within CB, within Classic and within New Classic. Having done so I think it’s actually really hard to argue there was ever one voice. I’d also argue that there is far far more than Linn as an alternative available and very obviously so. Yes, PRaT is a signature thing but even Naim have been unable to implement it in a consistent way and there are plenty of other implementations which satisfy just as much if not more.

51

Well, i thought it did because you actually said “so much more fun”. But perhaps the operative word was ‘can’, indicating possibility not certainty - just how likely or frequently is what will vary considerably between different people. But no matter, just my observation.

52

Given the existence of the AtomHE, I wonder if that means active versions of existing passive Focals, as well as possibly a higher level streaming preamp.

53

I don’t know. My recommendation to Naim was for an Atom DB, with the DB an acronym for dogs’ bollocks.

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54

My grasp of the new stuff is sketchy but haven’t they already covered that with the NSC222?

55

To better the HE, when used as a straight streaming preamp, you need to add the NPX300 to the NSC222. So that’s two large boxes and £12,400 against one small box and £2,300. There is a big gap to fill, and that’s where the DB comes in.

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56

Ah, yes, that all too familiar consumer bugbear of matching audio aspirations with disposable income!

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57

Again I agree!

58

I recently said goodbye to Naim myself. I sold my SN2 and NDX2.

I do not beleive these types of products are good value in 2025. I bought a Wiim amp ultra (all in one). It rivals my former Naim kit in sound quality, for a fraction of the price.

I seriously wonder if companies like Naim (and others) will be around in 10 years.

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59

I started with my Nait 1 in 1988, upgraded to 102/180 in 1999, added a Hicap and then went to 102/250 probably around 2003. Around 2019 I moved to 82/250 before finally upgrading to 82/350 this month, with the plan being to eventually move to 332/300/350 as an endgame system.

For financial reasons these upgrades have all taken years and years starting in 1988 - it’s been a 37 year journey so far!

The original Nait was an absolute joy to listen to and use and I will never ever part with it… Every other step of the journey has brought improvements and a huge amount of joy to my life for what in the grand scheme of things is a pretty modest outlay. If I measure hours of smiles versus cost I would have to say that my hi-fi/home cinema system is probably posession that has brought me the most joy in my life by far. Certainly cars have been vastly more expensive and never even approached the hours of fun I have had playing the music and films I love.

Today my long awaited copy of Buckingham Nicks on Rhino Hi-Fi finally arrived and I’m waiting for Amazon to deliver the Blakes 7 series 2 box set later today. With the missus out tonight to play with horses I simply cannot wait to crack open a bottle and sit by the fire savouring the system that has in truth been my life’s work and greatest passion…

While others are downsizing I am making a final push towards the zenith of my audio journey while there is still a salary coming in i.e. before I am on a pension. Crucially I expect that retirement will offer me more time than I have enjoyed in decades to spend listening to music and enveloping myself in the movies, series and music I love. I actually feel that retirement is the right time to have the system of your dreams for that reason, so I seem to be going in the opposite direction to many of you!

I don’t doubt that more modest or simpler systems can provide great musical enjoyment, but I think it’s also true that there’s a level of dynamics, power, impact, scale and gravitas that only big systems can really deliver. When you hear a high end SME turntable play a really great cut of a much loved album, when your loudspeakers offer full bandwidth clean sound to session levels in life sized scale, when the whole system is alive and being driven by a majestic tower of Naim amplification delivering high levels with sublime detail and control, it’s an absolutely life enriching and emotional experience…

I’m just not prepared to give that up any day soon…

I still remember going to the Bristol show in my late teens and early twenties and hearing the six pack DBL system at Naim’s ticket only demos and having tears in my eyes. Personally I have wanted that sort of sound in my life ever since and so I’m still on the journey and hope it continues for a good while yet…

After all, it’s only money and you can’t take it with you… So I might yet move up to ATC SCM50’s/100’s if the room in my retirement house (in about 3 years) can carry them and I’m eagerly awaiting the delivery of my new SME Series 35 turntable later this month. That turntable utterly blew me away when I reviewed it for Soundstage this month. The extraordinary detail, dynamics and infectious power it delivers replaying vinyl makes it without question one of the world’s greatest turntables and it’s an utterly sublime piece of British engineering… I can’t wait to explore the outer reaches of my vinyl collection with it in the coming years.

As they say, life is a journey - travel it well…

JonathanG

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60

Glad that works for you but that’s a serious concern. A friend bought one whilst his 300B was back in Switzerland being repaired. It was comprehensive and competent but probably one of the two least engaging hifi products I’ve heard in recent years. I auditioned an NDX2 three times some years ago before concluding it didn’t engage me. I do not however believe the Wiim comes remotely near it in terms of detail, timing, timbre and a fair few other things. I’d suggest something was broken if that were the case.

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