Speakers! The death of

Oh, naspc needs to be as far as possible away from the rest of the gear!

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Excellent advice from Geoff, as is the recommendation to put the pre-amp above the cd player in your rack.

Keeping the analogue interconnects away from any mains cable will always help, sometimes a great deal.

Happy tweaking! BF

Plenty of good advice above, a couple of other points:
You will need an extra shelf on your rack if you add a Hicap.
If the wall in your photo is a stud wall, putting Naim speakers close to it may not be ideal.
If you want more bass, an olive 250 might be the way to go BUT not without first upgrading your preamp. Whether or not you do any of that, a Hicap is a good first move.

Thanks for all the info all of you, I’ll start with one at a time, service will be first then I’ll get the hicap, and I didn’t think the rack wasn’t big enough.

Need to win the lottery now hahaha

Yes, it can feel like that sometimes! If you get it right, though, the first few steps you are planning should make nice improvements, and the only thing it takes to stop draining your bank account is a little self discipline.

Made me smile, that’s the bit I have to be strict on. Slowly slowly.

I was lucky to find my SL2s at Andrews place. Great guy too. The SL2s replaced a pair of Allaes which I was going to suggest as they go ‘only’ for around £400 these days and are a great speaker but they need a solid wall behind them, even though I used mine a little further forward. Think the OP will need something that works away from his stud wall.

The rack is another thing to consider: the steel Target can give a rather bright steely sound. You might like to think about a used Quadraspire Q4. It would look a lot less industrial too. Putting the phono stage in top of the 102 is not ideal but it’s the best place on your rack given the limited space. If you don’t get hum on the phono input it’s probably ok.

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I’d even try moving the speaker drivers slightly forward of the rack. I’d probably go a bit wider too.

The OP ought to think about the money he’s thinking of spending on servicing against maybe getting an 82 & 250 that might have had already been serviced.

Replacing the steel rack (for Fraim lite) was one of the best moves I’ve made, I’d struggled with brightness from CD replay until then, timing also improved significantly and my turntable stopped picking up Radio Moscow.
Isoblu seems to have gone out of fashion but may be worth a look too.

Isoblue is excellent, and better than the Q4. If it could be found at a good price it would be a great option.

Right I’m looking at the Hicap and an XPS, I’ll also need to upgrade my unit, space is a killer as there is also a 50" plasma on the wall above all this :slight_smile:

I’ll see what this brings and then look at the speakers. If it doesn’t make it less bright at least it will be a good move for swapping the speakers then. Would adding a 2nd 180 help later on? I’d rather not swap the pre and power as I’m running out of brownie points with the missus as I’ve just bought a 2nd motorbike hahaha

We have a serviced CDX - XPS in the family and it makes a lovely, engaging and non-harsh sound. Not relentless at all.

By all means ask your Naim dealer for the cost to change your 102 for a 72 - Hicap. You will lose a remote control but almost certainly gain lots of musical delight for very, very little outlay. Oh, and the 72 and hicap are both half width boxes, so you won’t need another shelf.

I wouldn’t go anywhere near a second NAP180 for a long time, as your current one (if serviced in the last 7-8 years) is an asset for your system and not a concern. Your money would be far better spent on an XPS or more forgiving and cultured speakers.

Before doing any box changes though, do the free stuff that other Forum members have suggested. Swap the CD player with the pre-amp, move the NAPSC as far away from the rack as you can, make sure that the analogue interconnects are well away from any mains leads and ideally touch neither the floor nor each other. Then talk to the Audio Republic ( and say hi to Andrew for me!)

Hope this helps, BF

Doing the free stuff but have secured a hicap which was upgraded in April and an XPS and just been serviced. Both costing 1500, is that about right?

Cant wait to try this :slight_smile:

Moderated Post: I’ve had to edit your post to remove the name of a company who have told Naim that they do not wish for their business or products to be mentioned or discussed on this forum.

If they have been ‘upgraded’ with non standard parts by the company I suspect your are referring to, I’d suggest you stick with boxes serviced with standard Naim parts. These non standard versions don’t sound the same and who knows what the results will be?

I’m confused now, it’s a well known upgrade but moderators removed the company who did it.

I’ll have a chat with Andy in Leeds and get the XPS for now. Seems everyone is really down on the 102 and love the 72, I’ll see what I can do with Andy at Audio Republic.

Thanks all

Mark

There is at least one company that has stated that it does not wish to be mentioned on the Naim Forum, and so any mention is removed in order to comply. It’s best to leave it at that.

These ‘upgrades’ are not necessarily upgrades and are certainly not generally accepted as such.

Yup, taken on board pal, that’s exactly what I was told when I posted it.

Right, I’ve bought an XPS, serviced in 2015 by Naim, sonill get that.

I’ve also looked at a 72, and the guy also has a hicap. I will speak to Andy, and do the free stuff.

Excited to spend some time listening to this.

Any recommendations as to racks? I know there are a few above, but if I spend all this I’ll be limited. Thanks hungryhalibut.

I wouldn’t rush for the 72 just because someone says it might be smoother than the 102, or whatever they said. Both have their advocates. I’d get a serviced Hicap for the 102 and see how you feel. With Hicap and napsc the 102 is very good.

I’m wondering why the Rega Fono - why not connect direct to the 102? That’s a box gone and a few quid in your pocket towards the rack.

Quadraspire Q4 or - better - Isoblue would be my choice. Keep an eye on Pink Fish.