Interesting….
Jas told me the same Gaza. I think that we will see the Statement Streamer first as it’s at least started going through R&D and that’s two years away.
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Having bought the mag for a detailed review, it wasn’t anything like this. Lots of page real estate was wasted IMHO e.g. no real comparison of the difference in traits and, worse, there’s a pic of stacked 350s!! Please don’t tell me they ran them like this?
I was lucky enough to be at Signals for yesterdays very impressive dem. Jason from Naim dealt with this point specifically from the outset. He said they had earlier tried the set up using one of the Kudos Titan range but had realised the 250 was struggling and it would have been easy for them to have then dropped in the 350s with their xtra power to prove the superiority of the mono blocks so in the spirit of fairness they had gone with the easier load Dyns instead. He was also fastidious with ensuring the volume on the pre-amps was the same throughout.
FWIW, I thought the switch to the dedicated preamp and streamer of the 300 series was a big jump over the 222/300 and on a par with the 250 to 350 change. So it would appear there are gains to be had in all elements of the playback chain with the new classic kit.
Afterwards, I popped into the side room and tried some of the same tracks on the 222/300/250 rig driving Dyn Heritage which was good but not at the same level of realism or drama as I had heard in the big room which is to be expected I suppose. Overall, a lovely afternoon and thanks to the Signals and Naim guys.
ATB
Ray
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Thanks – sounds like the atypical demo challenge of having to use a larger speaker to fill a sizeable listening space with quite a few ‘absorbers’ (people!) in the space. It still strikes me as odd not to have used the 350s from the get-go where there may be a concern over speaker-driving, as you really need to maintain constants in the chain to demonstrate changes in the non-constants. I’d be surprised if the differences between the series aren’t marginal (in hi-fi speak) as you report.
Yes, it makes you wonder how they actually test them. I used to have a lot of respect for Hi-Fi news and always laughed at What Hi-Fi? However, HiFi news seems to have lowered the bar and is not much better than What Hi-Fi? with measurements.
Maybe a little unkind as I did appreciate the break out segments describing the specs in detail for each of the products.
I took out a digital only subscription to Hi-Fi news but was so disappointed by the review that I cancelled the subscription.
I haven’t heard anyone use the term blow away when comparing NC to OC. Is that a thing? I prefer the NC to the OC signature but I’ve been at odds with the old classic from the beginning. It’s like a lot of things in hifi you don’t realize it until you hear something better. Ime the shortcomings of the OC are on the analogue side of the house. The NDS is a fine player as is the NDX2. I’ve demoed them with various DR separates and SNs. The best of those combinations is just okay not really exciting. From the second I powered up the 222/250 it was obvious what has been missing all these years. Listening to music is exciting again. As with everything it’s personal preference but I’ll say this, there’s a ton of confirmation bias in the comments on this forum and you need to listen for yourself and decide. Most of the negative comments about the NC here are from people who haven’t even listened to the kit. Fwiw.
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Thanks for the write up. I have had my 332/300 since Monday. So far it’s a significant step up from the 252DR it replaced.
I took the NPX300 off to de-stress the Burndies and listened to the 332 bare. It was a pretty big drop off.
But then again my home, my ears, my system
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Indeed, a home demo is essential imo……it is a large room with a very high ceiling, not typical of a normal home. Jason gave the 252/SC comparison to the 300 series.
I did hear the 200 series in a smaller demo room on launch versus a 252/SC….i much preferred the latter. But we are all different, enjoy your new system, its a great piece of kit.
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I plan to do the same. I skipped the event, but put in a request to compare the 332 vs a 252/SC they received in trade using the passive 50’s. I am thinking about switching from my 282/HC in front of my 50 actives and been following this thread with interest. Will report back if it happens.
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That reads like ‘blown away’ to me
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That was my 252.
Yes. The 200 Series is a good improvement over the 272 but found the 252/SC much preferred in my brief listening as well.
Ok, you got me, maybe I am a little blown away but the characterization comes from a first hand experience and not speculation or hearsay.
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Interesting that you say OC seems less exciting, I came from a 52/135 (known to be pretty exciting!) to a 552/500 and thought the 552/500 was far far better at conveying the musical drama and tension within a piece of music. I’m not sure a night goes past where I’m not playing air guitar or air drums, or the hairs on my neck aren’t standing up!
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Ha! Small world. I suppose I can guess what your vote would be then 
It sounds pretty good with my LP12 and Spendor D7.2’s…
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Well I only went up to the 252 so can’t comment on the 500 series and let’s face it, at that price point it better be good. Which was the problem for me, the old classic was not worth the money the higher up the chain I got. It was just okay. The olives were much more exciting and musical for me. I’ve also noticed the NC is much less fatiguing at higher volumes which is a welcome change. So far the NC seems to get you more SQ with fewer boxes and less $$. I’ll take it.
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I’m very very interested to hear what the 350 offers. Phoned my local Naim dealer and they stock the 200 series but not the 300 for demo. They can get the 300 in but I need to take a long hard look at my finances before I put them to that trouble. What has been heard cannot be unheard…
Yeah, at least you have a dealer. I went in blind based on the first hand impression of someone I’ve known a long time and trust. I’m curious about the 300 series so probably good I can’t demo locally. 