I didn’t realised that your pre is the 202.
As you have already a wonderful phono, at a 500 series Naim level, there is no point upgrading it.
A 252 or at least a 282 is mandatory. Other here have said that too.
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Memory can be fallible and it was one or two fora ago but I thought there was some combination you weren’t keen on around the 202,282,200 and 250-2. It must have been someone else that wasn’t taken by the 282 after a 202.
Various ways of looking at the Superline imho. In its context as a phono stage in a Naim system it ticks many boxes re its compatibility, but looking outside the box the Superline is old technology derived from even older technology. Naim’s abilities have never really been about playing vinyl records. They have dabbled with the ARO and the Armageddon and a few phono cards to enable their preamps, but their strengths have been in amplifier and power supply design and latterly digital systems providing the foundation for the Naim sound. There have been developments in the 21st century in phono stage design that have moved things on sound wise such as current amplification of moving coil cartridges by companies like CH Precision, Aqvox, Channel D, Sutherland and several others which has elevated the sound possibilities from vinyl to another level. Implementation of current amplification phono stages require balanced tonearm cables with XLR plugs and careful matching with a chosen cartridge: this has impeded its progress as a phono stage of choice. So back to the Superline. It does a good job but there are better sounding solutions outside of the box imho. I am a Naim lover by the way.
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No worries, indeed memory can be funny. My only experience with the 282 that is different from seemingly many was that I thought the SuperCapDR was a backward step (twin feeds) compared to the HiCapDR.
I’ve come round to that conclusion too but it took a while. I should have put the supercap on the superline instead.
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I had the opposite experience. I thought the SuperCap DR was a massive improvement over the HCDR on my 282. My wife noticed it immediately, and commented how much better the bass sounded. I ended up getting a 252 within a half year after that.
I’m looking forward to hearing what the SuperCap DR brings to my SuperLine. I’m also getting a HiLine as the DIN 4-5 IC.
I would have thought that running 2 hicaps against a supercap would be much the same, as you are only running the same amount of power rails, the only advantage could be from a much bigger transformer in the supercap that’s hardly working, but then you could also argue that you have better separation using 2 power supplies, like the twin 555 guys do on nd555
The only real advantage with running a supercap is if you intend to go up to 252
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But going back to the original question
If you are going to start adding expensive dr supercap to it, along with all the other expensive cables and plugs, you really should be looking at others, as I feel you will get a much nicer sounding phono stage.
I would certainly be looking at valves, as these have certainly bought a magic to my system over the last 2 I had, superline maxed out and rega aura.
I now run a tron severn gt, which I got for a very good price and it simply makes the other 2 sound wrong now in comparison, but you really just need to demo some
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Well that makes two of us then 
There’s an expression used for valves : “ when you listen to good valves , it’s difficult to go back to solid states”
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Solid state has its place, but for me it really was a turning point hearing a good valve phono amp, did make me think about amps etc,lol
It certainly brings more to the party and very happy with mine, just need to get this other deck to try now
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The Prefix with Supercap was a chugging boogie machine that was uncouth, a little unbalanced (its HF performance was subjectively more extended and better controlled that the LF), but always had a finger-snapping sense of rhythm and presence. In a way it reminded me of the time I tried a Supercap on the CD5-the dynamics went through the roof in a most compelling way, that made it much easier to overlook its other shortcomings.
Without a SC-and even when powered by the 552 powered input- the Prefix sort of retreated into its shell and took on more attributes of the CD5 sans SC (flattened dynamics and tonal colorations that were now pushed forward).
The Prefix/SC was like Iggy Pop, the Prefix/HC more like Plastic Bertrande, and the 52s internal phono cards like Norah Jones…
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Good description. As I am back in prefix I could not have described it better.
Mine has no hf issues at all - all fine without radio or hum and is well fitted in my Phonosophie no 3 TT.
Higher frequencies are better controlled, than LF - that’s correct. But both is nothing compared to SL.
There is definitely a lot missing (also in upper frequencies) but there is so much boogie that immediately results in foot tapping…
As I am from Hamburg I could describe it as follows:
- superline is elbphilharmonie
- prefix is a small club on kiez
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Very happy with Superline/Supercap here and have no desire to even think of switching from it. One of the joys is the crisp precision of drums etc. rendered through the Esotar-2 tweeters. Great for jazz, folk etc.
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I’ve always thought Dyns gelled very nicely with Naim gear. I look forward to my upgrade, coming in a few days.
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Yeah, should be good !
I had a 282 with a SuperCap (non DR) and a SuperLine with a HiCap (DR). Although there were trade-offs, I definitely preferred the sound after I put the SuperCap on the SuperLine.
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If someone asked me to summarise the character of pre-Classic era Naim, I’d be hard pressed to do better than uncouth chugging boogie machine.
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I am also considering my phono stage options and I’m considering the Naim Superline. I would say from all the reading I’ve done in the past week an audition is necessary. I don’t believe the Superline is old tech and modern stages will blow it away. So far from what I’ve read, it’ll probably be better in the bass and PRAT against similarly priced alternatives and perhaps alternatives would better it in outright detail. But this was the very reason I came back to Naim within the last two years. I tried several alternatives (amplification) and yet I couldnt get the enjoyment from my system that I do with Naim. The only exception to that so far has been Audio Note DACs. Having said that I haven’t heard the nDac with a 555 PS DR so….
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FWIW: I compared the SuperLine with the Herron Audio VTPH-2a (tube) phonostage ($3650) I owned before and the Boulder 508 (ss) phonostage ($5000) I had on home audition for several weeks. I powered the SuperLine from my 252 and used a standard SNAIC cable. The SuperLine was better than both in just about every way, and that’s saying a lot. The Herron and Boulder are both excellent phonostages.
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