Who said that?
At these prices, they should stop humming and actually sing ⌠time will tell.
As planned, I disconnected the 300 from the 333 to go back to listening to a 5-box system. It lasted about ten minutes. What can I say! Letâs put it into context, I was still listening to the second best configuration I have ever heard (now the third â see below) but the life, the musicality, the enjoyment had simply evaporated. Certainly, if I stick to five boxes over time I would get used to this sound, and embrace it, but I cannot erase that fundamental change from my memory.
Previously although there was an improvement I was not hugely bowled over simply by adding the power supply to the 333 and I really wasnât anticipating such a difference when I took it off again, so why might the impact have been so much bigger than expected? Between then and now the boxes are definitely fully run in, they are now connected to the mains via a Powerhaus block and a decent mains lead, the speaker cable has also been upgraded. Perhaps the six boxes need these extra tweaks, or equivalent, to release their potential. I really donât know.
The last configuration I planned to try out was the bare streamer and two power supplies on the preamp. Having just dissed the sound of the bare 333, I really wasnât sure what to expect but my first reaction was âwowâ. That was only yesterday and I need to do more listening before drawing any conclusions. Itâs going to be an interesting weekend!
And here it starts again. 2 powersuplies on the 332 , then further 2 powersuplies on the 333. Woooow.
In the end Naim is still about amount of boxes isnât it?
I think Iâm going to see what comes out with regards integrated amps. Keep the Auralic which I like and possibly SL2 and get shot of the rest. Still need to see about the LP12 what to do with vinyl. Also get a decent transport for CD
I could definitely live with a 3 box 200 series but not for that price and I donât see why box hum stops with oversized toroidal transformers
The great thing for me, away from arguments about which Series is âbetterâ, is that there will now be more pre-loved OC gear coming on to the market and I can pursue meaningful upgrades to my OC system at fantastic prices.
Given that the level of pleasure my sonic experience at present is analogous to the taste experience you might get of your favourite dish produced from Hestâs cooking laboratory, things (as someone Once said) can only get better.
Could I ask how many sockets would be used by either a 200 or 300 series. Am I right in thinking 2 double sockets would suffice even for a 300 given that 300ps would take over the power for a 333/332 and two for the 350s
Thatâs right, you only need four sockets/cables, even if you add two power supplies later and have six boxes.
Of course, if you decided to go the double power supply route for the 332 and 333 then you would need 6 plug sockets. But Mark is right in the normal course of things 4 sockets are all you would need for either the 200 or 300 series.
Thanks Paul. What is double power supply?. I assumed that an npx300 takes over the power lead from the source
Or you can go 555PS with white logoâŚ
Iâm not Paul but ⌠You can add two NPX 300 power supplies to the 333 and the 332, so four power supplies in total ⌠that would need two additional sockets/cables.
That would be a roughly £20k streamer and £20k pre-amp though ⌠getting very close to 500 series prices!
And the $64,000 question is whether they also get very close to 500 series performance.
Got you. So an 8 box system with 4 npx300s in that case. Wow!
Indeed! I wonder whoâs going to be the first to try ⌠sounds like @clog is heading in that direction
A used 332 just went up for sale on my market. 6650 EUR.
Heading perhaps, but unlikely to get there. The thought of pulling in one more box fills me with apprehension, let alone two. If nothing else, where would I put them?
And then people would ask for an actual comparison with the 500 series? Hmm.
So far, by the way, listening with two 300s on the 332 is quite something!
Sorry to divert, but can I ask @clog what mode is the Zenith running in? Also, how is it connected to the 333?
Understandable! One of the attractions for me was a reduction in box count
Any comparisons at that level would have to be done by people themselves really.
Been wondering how youâve been getting on with the dual power supplies on the pre, sounds promising ⌠might you consider keeping them there and not having one on the streamer?
Itâs great that the new power supply approach allows us to try things like that, and allows for 222 users to take their power supply with them on the upgrade path ⌠smart thinking from Naim
It could well be. There are still two or three balls in the air before I settle on a final configuration. I havenât connected the 333 to the PhoenixNet yet. Itâs just sitting in the corner with a Sonos box streaming 24/7 to help it get settled in. I keep dipping in to see how itâs going and my gut feel is that the Zenith/ PhoenixNet combination is going to be at least as good as putting an external power supply on the 333.