The 300 Series - Just Listening Experiences

This must be a new cable then, that has slipped under the radar?

I would guess its the same as used on Statement preamp to power ampsā€¦ā€¦as they are balanced connectionsā€¦ā€¦different to the older unbalanced pre to power connectors.

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Who wants to hold on to older higher priced inventory. Hopefully he offers a good discount.

It makes sense in the Hierarchy. They are indeed 300 series products and not 500 series. So the 500DR should better than a pair of 350ā€™s.

Iā€™m just delighted that my NC250 is at the level or a whisper away from the level of the 300DR and the 332/300 is a substantial uplift over the 252/SCDR it replaced.

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I listened to a 333/332/350 for quite a while this weekend. At least I think thatā€™s the numbers, it was the new streamer, preamp and monoblocks. I thought it sounded very nice actually. Lovely wide sound, great imaging and clarity in the soundstage, but it was noticeably smooth and refined more than I am used to. I was chatting with the dealer a bit and he said he felt they were ā€œgrown upā€ a little bit and I completely agree, my 282/250DR felt like the slightly unruly teenager in comparison, a bit more in your face, a bit more grungy. Personally I preferred my gear and thought it was a more exciting, engaging sound, but the 300s were really, really lovely. If I was a richer man with a collection of spare rooms, Iā€™d have them both and listen to the one that suited my mood. Alas I do not have unlimited money, nor floorspace, so Iā€™ll stick with my 282/250DR, but I could see the 300s having a place in my life someday, just not in the foreseeable future.

I liked the look of them. In the original images I wasnā€™t sure and even when I saw the new streaming pre I was a bit off with the style, but actually, in a rack they look great.

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Was your 500 non DR?

Yes I too thought they looked great in the flesh - modern and more likely to appeal to younger people. And yet Naim have made them backwards compatible with the new cables so as not to disenfranchise their traditional customers. Circle squared.

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You had a long thread about your 500 Dr.
As I understood now you also sold your whole 500 set.

I hope it is not impolite to ask Ā«whyĀ»? Was there an own thread about?

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It was 500DR. It was my 552 that was non-DR.

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I have moved to a smaller house with a smaller living room so I had to downsize. I now only have room for one stack of Fraim, not the two I had with the 500 system.

I went to a Nova as a temporary move but have just acquired a NC 222/300/250 system.

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Hereā€™s a bit more meat on the bone of my ā€˜flat and uninspiringā€™ comment. While I had initially concentrated on just playing albums, I have now done a structured test, playing the same album (Hunky Dory) through four different formats.

  • Hi-Res streaming from Qobuz is actually pretty good
  • CD connected digitally to the NSS333 is close behind it (as are high definition internet radio stations)
  • normal streaming from Qobuz is quite naff in comparison
  • streaming from my local NAS (flac files) is more naff

My CD player is an old entry level Linn machine so I was surprised that its performance is closer to Hi-Res streaming than to CD-quality streaming. Does this tie in to more experienced peopleā€™s expectations?

Resolution and processing with the 333/332/300 is undoubtedly a step above the 222 where I couldnā€™t hear any difference between NAS playback and normal Qobuz streaming.

So, it seems the 250NC isnā€™t so bad after all :smiley:! Still, there is going to be a big step forward when the 350 arrives.

I think there may be some crossed wires or a slight misunderstanding here. According to Jas, the Dynaudios were used at the preference of the dealer for that particular dem, but certainly not because Jas felt the NC NAP250 would struggle with the Kudos 808s. Indeed, Jas has confirmed to me that he feels the NC NAP250 is well up to driving the 808s, just in case anybody gets the wrong end of the stick. Of course, the NAP350s are even better here (as they should be) - the words Jas used to describe how good it was are probably not repeatable on a public forum!

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I find that there are so many more variables than just bit-rate that it makes answering this impossible.

If streaming a cd quality file from your local nas sounds noticeably worse than streaming cd quality from Qobuz (same exact version mind you), my reaction is that ā€œthere is something wrong with your home streaming setup.ā€

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Fair point. If there is something wrong, itā€™s not been an issue until now. One of the hidden dangers of doing a big upgrade.

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Kevin Fulcher from Signals has done a nice write up of the event over at their website which goes into a lot of detail, including the rationale behind their decision to switch from 707s to the big Dyns, and covers the two days/four sessions. I think he has well captured the progression in sound as we ascended the Naim hierarchy - my only objection is that his camera must be faulty as I appear to be six months pregnant/resemble a fusion of my mother and Mussolini.

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Ahhh :slight_smile: Thank you for clearyfing.

Somehow in the same situation and interesting to hear how you move on with the new set. Congrats!

Hopefully it will give you many hours of joy! Going new ways is always exciting and good Naim voiced the new series in a different way, so maybe you will not miss the old set.

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I wondered who it wasšŸ˜‚

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Interestingā€¦I bet when the new 500 comes outā€¦it will be almost in the position of challenging the Statementā€¦exciting. If I had the cash and space I would love to go for a second 500drā€¦and run one for each speakerā€¦

@nicnaim As a current 252/SCDR owner, I read your comments re: 332/300 with interest. Are you able to describe the uplift qualities for you, relative to your experiences with the 252? (Apologies if youā€™ve done before - could not find across threads.)

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Interesting write up. So they added the NPX300 to the streamer first and then another one to the preamp with less of an impact. Perhaps that could have also tried PSU to NAC332 first and then another to the 333 and compared. Perhaps the 2nd PSU is just not needed?

I have just listened to all of these tracks on Qobuz - nice tracks that I have never heard before so well worth a listen - I enjoyed them. However, not really demanding as test tracks IMO. All very good recordings. I personally aim for some tracks that have a few more challenges such as a busy mix or slightly harsh vocals.

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