I am a new member (joined just this morning) as I am beginning to take delivery of several pieces of Naim equipment.
I have just moved from a Roksan K3 Integrated backed by a Roksan K3 Power, to a NAC202 with HiCap DR & NAP 200 DR. My source is an LP12 with a Rega RB808 arm and Apheta 3 Cart. I have retained my my Cyrus Signature Phone plus PXR-2 as it was my wife’s choice of Phono stage and she loves it.
My dilemma is (and the reason for the post), what speakers should I choose? My budget is £5k!
When we auditioned the phono stage, we had a pair of Spendor D7’s to play with, which be both liked a lot. However, they are now 7.2’s and have gone up by a grand which left me a touch cold.
I am scheduled to listen to a pair of Dynaudio Evoke 50’s on Saturday, but the amount of products in this market at my budget is mind blowing. I have short listed Dali Rubicon 6 and Neat Motive SX1, but would love a bit of input from Naim users who have been here and felt the anguish.
First of all - welcome to the Forum and congratulations on your incoming Naim arrivals!
All hifi has gone up alas, like so many other things. The most ideal solution given what I’ve read might be to ring round a few Spendor dealers to see if any have ex-demo D7’s available, that’s what I did earlier this year. Not only will they be cheaper but they’ll be run-in too.
If you like the Spendor sound, then the A7 may be a cheaper option to consider? Otherwise I think it’s a matter of calling a dealer who can set up a replica of your system with a short-list of speakers within budget and setting aside a morning or afternoon for a bake-off before taking a pair (or more) back for a home demo.
As @IanRobertM says initially you should spend some time with a renowned dealer hearing some speakers in your price range. The usual suspects include Kudos, Neat, Dyna, Focal, Spendor etc but there’s a multitude out there! Then you really need a home demo and of course personal preference is everything.
Given that personal preference is so important I hesitate to make a recommendation but in my experience Kudos are very room friendly and at your price range the S20 would be worth a listen, I loved mine.
Why not stick with what you both like and go for ex demo or second hand Spendors. A quick google and a pair of Spendor 7.2 , walnut are for sale from a dealer at just less than £3k.
Shame the rules don’t allow you to tell me who that is. I’ve been looking on and off most of the day and haven’t seen that…
I have got an agreement this afternoon from my local Dali dealer (he who sold me the Cyrus Phono), to home demo the Rubicon 6’s. I’ll have to wait until they can get a new pair, as the just sold their demo units last week🤦🏻♂️
I like my ProAc D30R’s and many people love ATC scm40’s. Try speakers in your budget with any suitable Naim amp your dealers stock. Then make sure you get a home demo on your system.
I have always found everything sounds better at home as well.
As an aside, I demo’d Evoke 50’s (amongst others) as one of the alternatives to the Spendor A7’s I eventually settled on and I think they’re a great speaker. I felt they shared enough of Spendor’s characteristics to be classed as “similar” and I’d have bought them had it not been for their size.
UPDATE…
That advert for the Spendor D7’s on HiFi:shark: was 7 years old.
Spoke to the guy and he was shocked it was still visible, as he’s changed his speakers twice since then. Nice chap…
Welcome to the forum @QuickSticks . Many of the popular speakers around here have already been mentioned so I won’t add to the list, but however you jump, I’d suggest adding a NAPSC to your amp. It’s probably the best VFM upgrade you can make to your system.
If you speak to Paul at HiFi Lounge regarding the Spendors you should also ask him about PMC speakers. He’s a big fan of PMC and often has some ex dem models for sale but I’ve not checked current availability. Paul is very approachable and helpful.
Thank you… we’ll see how things are after Saturday.
I have heard PMC’s on a couple of occasions and not loved them.
The Twenty5 23i’s have made the shortlist, however fairly low down the pecking order.
