Seeking some guidance from those who have faced the upgrade conundrum. I bought my Unitilite back in 2012, sadly it’s now showing its age with the usual problems. The screen fading to oblivion and the CD draw struggles to open and when it does shows ‘no disc’ on the app. Otherwise I’m still happy with the quality of sound coming over my Neat Monitor SX2’s (flac files from a Synology NAS via an Ethernet connection). The question is whether to replace or refurbish. Those who went for a Naim refurb of a 10+ machine, any regrets? If I update what is the equivalent in sound quality in today’s all-in-one players - Atom, Star or Nova (a CD whilst nice to have definitely isn’t essential).
Any guidance gratefully received.
The screen can be fixed by Naim or you can DIY it using the original screen type, which is available on eBay from a French company. The CD player can often be fixed by changing the drawer drive belt. This is easy to do but it’s bit hit and miss regarding what is the right belt. Both of these issues have been discussed here at some length, so you should be able to find them using the search function or even just using Google to find the right thread.
I think the UnitiLite is pretty good as regards sound quality. I would say it’s about Atom level. But of course it doesn’t have the latest streaming functionality, so you need a work-around for Qobuz for example.
If you fix the screen yourself then it’s about £100 to do it and you can buy a bag of miscellaneous drive belts for £10 and choose one (or even just drop the old belt in boiling water for a couple of seconds) to fix the CD player drawer. An actual service from Naim, if they are still able to do it, is extremely expensive and I would say it’s not worth spending that money.
You could take advantage of Naim’s current buy back offer and get yourself a new Atom or Star.
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Hi David,
thanks for the quick response. I’d read about a quick boil of the belt for a temporary solution but thought it was just a solution if the tray wasn’t ejecting. I’ll certainly give it a go as I’ve nothing to lose. If it works I’ll think about a new belt, do you know the optimum size belt, there seems to be so many on eBay?
I didn’t know you could replace the screen yourself so will look it to that if I refurb rather than replace.
The significantly improved connectivity of the new Uniti’s is a draw as is the option to easily set up favourite albums. Trolling through all the albums I’ve accumulated over the years is a labour of love at times.
Refurb seems viable, just a case if I can resist that new kit itch that has laid dormant for a few years!
Thanks again for your help.
It’s a very small belt, but I don’t know the ideal size. If you take off the old one, you could measure it.
Just remember you don’t do any dismantling of the Unitilite at all to get at the belt. No amount of taking covers off and so on will help even the tiniest bit. You just need the drawer open and look underneath it and backwards. It’s easy to unhook and fish the belt out and believe it or not, it’s also easy to put it back.
I managed to get the drive belt out and gave it a quick wash in boiling water. The draw now opens and shuts sweetly and there is some sign of life as the mechanism activates but unfortunately I still get the ‘no CD’ message. I guess something more serious is wrong?
Although I’ve given up on repairing the CD drive, I went ahead and ordered a new screen from the French seller on eBay. Very happy with result so thanks for the guidance.
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