I have heard that the amp section is close to what the SuperNait 3 is? Any intel on this and what the sound differences would be? Don’t have a local NAIM dealer.
And given the Nova is 6-7 year old tech, is it still relevant to new stuff out there–Cambridge, NAD, etc?
@naim-marketing any thoughts here?
Claire’s account is probably no longer in use; she left Naim 2 or 3 years ago.
The supernaits are better amps than the unitis.
Hi @Markblosil, I have the Nova and the SN3. They are both excellent products. The SN3 is considerably better and can handle much more demanding speakers. And of course you can pair the SN3 with a better source too. What speakers do you have?
i am auditioning the new focal aria evo x no 2’s. tried them with a moon 100 watt integrated. nice amp, speakers were nice for sure. a tad bright at times, but a lot to like.
But i think i am going to go with the focal kanta 2’s, however, even though my room is only 11x16.
a lot of great amps of course, but i like the synergies of naim and focal. read great reviews on both pieces, and i was told that the nova amp was close to what the sn3 is. and the focal/naim website pairs the nova with the kanta’s too.
But from the reviews I have watched on YouTube and read–they say the sn3 really rocks, and yet really musical.
thoughts?
A lot depends on your budget here. Remember that the Nova is an all in one, and the Supernait 3 is only an amplifier. The natural partner for the SN3 is the NDX2, which is being discontinued and is available for about 2/3 of the original price. The NDX2/SN3 will sound better than a Nova, which is what you’d expect at twice the price. But you need two shelves to accommodate it, and to link them using system automation. The Nova has a much nicer volume control and is easier to live with. It depends what you want really.
The Nova is reputedly much closer to the amplification of the XS3 , than the Supernait.
It is more about software than hardware and there has been a recent update.
I had a Nova and was happy with it , but the Nait 50 met certain requirements for lower box count and a reduction in size
These are the speakers I have on the SN3, coincidently. When I first got the Kanta, I did use the Nova and it worked well but of course when I moved to SN3 + NDX2 the uplift was significant (noting the NDX2 would have been a substantial part of the uplift).
Whatever you go for, I think you will be happy when combined with the Kanta 2. If you don’t have enough space or the shape of the room is a concern, try the Kanta 1.
I have the Kanta 2 with the SN3 and NDX2. It is a wonderful combination and I have no desire to upgrade.
I have a bead on a nova and sn3–both less than 2 years old, in pristine shape, with low “mileage” and equally priced–great prices for both. So really just focusing on what is the “best” sounding amp–which is hard to do solely based on online reviews. But this forum’s valuable feedback has helped a ton.
Again, more important for the sound of each amp–the streamer of the nova is secondary as I can add a streamer on top of the sn3–like a bluenode sound. And is the nova nearing its end of life giving it is 7 years old? I am guessing streamer technology changes pretty rapidly?
There is no local dealer that sells Naim, but the sn3 i am considering is local, so i can at least hear that.
I am going to go with the Kanta 2’s.
Supernait 3 - no contest, I’ve had both
I have watched several reviews on the SN3, and there is always at least one guy that is very critical of the build quality, the leadership turnover, etc. Sour grapes, or anything to worry about.
Nova is excellent but SN3 with a ND5XS and NDX2 will be a fuller richer more engaging sound.
I’ve never had any issue with the build quality of Naim stuff, just the flakiness of the app.
Yeah–but the ND5X2 does not have HDMI to stream TV audio–and the NDX2 is too pricey for me.
So again, I am just focused on the amp sound quality, not so much the streaming. I can add a streamer to the SN3 if the sound quality is that much better over the Nova–which i have heard others state here.
You would just use the optical output from the TV, which is what I’ve done with a NDX2 and a Nova.