Uniti Nova with Sonus Faber Sonneto 3 Audition

[flame_rose]

Just finished auditioning the Sonneto 3 speakers from Sonus faber.

To put things into context, current system is NDX2, CD5X, flatcap2x, 122x, 150x. On the way are the NAC 282 and NAP 300 so my current Sonus Faber Toy floorstander speakers will be upgraded soon. I am considering the Sonneto 5 or the Olympica Nova 3 as I already have SF speakers and prefer a warme and lush sound.

As I am in Dubai for the week, I got in touch with the Naim dealer and he said he can set up a Uniti Nova and Sonneto 3 audition. Although not an exact replication of my intended system it could give me a sense if the Sonneto line is good enough for me or the Olympica Nova line is where I should looking.

The music I listened to varied from Pink Floyd and Guns N Roses to Diana Krall and Whitney Huston. Even threw in some classical arabic music too. Here go the listening impressions.

The Nova is one hell of a system. Might not be as polished sonically as the separates but it is very very capable. The bass is controlled very well and the details are quite elaborate. I was extremely surprised and I am sure the Nova can be end game for many many people.

The sonneto 3s turned out to be superior to my Toy speakers in imaging, detail and even soundstage. I would say they are on par in terms of bass depth and “oomph” but being bottom ported they did not benefit from the back wall’s bass reinforcement that the rear ported Toys get in my home. I can also tell how the tonality of Sonus Faber has gotten a tad brighter and more forward than before, but not in an unpleasant way.

For a moment I just wanted to listen to music and forget about analyzing the sound which I think is a very big compliment to the electronics and speakers.

Next month the dealer is gonna get the Olympica Novas and I feel that is probably where I should be looking as larger cabinet and bigger sound is what I am after. The question becomes do I go for the Olympica Nova 3 or 5? The dealer is insisting that I also listen to the Wilson Audio Sabrina X and he is confident that they will sound very nice driven by the NAP 300. My wife oddly finds the Sabrinas prettier than the Sonus Fabers to my utter surprise.

Will update you how things progress.

[Jason]

Well, your 300 will certainly be up to driving the Olympica Novas nicely. I have Olympica 1’s on the end of a 250.2 and they regularly stun me with the scale, warmth and clarity they can provide in my room (helped on the way no doubt by the 552).

If you enjoyed the Sonettos, you will no doubt love the Olympicas, but if you are looking at the Wilson Sabrina X, then to be fair, I think you should be comparing them with the Serafino Tradition, which I believe are more similarly priced to the Sabrinas.

Either way, I don’t think you could go far wrong with anything from Sonus Faber or Wilson; both of which offer an excellent alternative to the speakers which seem most popular here on the Naim forum. Enjoy… and I would be interested to hear how you get on with the other Fabers and the Wilson’s.

[RvL]

Agree with Jason. Wilson Sabrina’s are considerably more expensive than the Olympica so that would be an apples & oranges comparison. The Serafino would be a more equal match.

[IainO]

Following with interest. Currently have Sonetto iii but when we change 272 for 252/NDX2 we’d look to upgrade and Olypmpicas would definitely be on shortlist. Eventually would swap 250 for 300 I guess.

We love our SF they work well on the end of a 250DR across a wide range of musical genres and across low level (wife) and high volume (me) listening without ever sounding stressed or losing the detail of the music.

[RvL]

Yes, long time SF fan and owner here too. For exactly the same reasons. My 3rd pair now.

[flame_rose]

When I first bought my SF Toy speakers well over ten years ago, they replaced some large Jamo speakers that were double the size of the Toys but boy was I surprised when the smallest speakers in the SF line at the time blew the socks off the Jamos.

Sonus faber gets praise for female vocals and classical instruments but they can rock very well and deliver with significant punch. Jazz, EDM or orchestral they just sound good.