Yes Mike. Tomorrow I am back at work! Happy days.
Go for the NAP500, Dan. I went from 135s to 500. It was a monster upgrade, one of the most effective - even my wife noticed the step change in sound. So much more scale and presence. Youāll love it!
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The 500 will definitely be better, but the price for this one is definitely high. Ā£7500 for a non dr?
I would personally walk away, seen dr ones at not much more, and non dr ones, over Ā£2000 cheaper.
Obviously the dealer might give you well over the top prices for your gear, but then i very much doubt that, plus donāt forget how the market is right now, the buyer is certainly in the driving seat.
Yes, itās at top end of 500 Non DR prices. I have seen them for less than Ā£6k. Itās 2010 and immaculate.
Alot of them at cheaper prices are scratched and alot older.
I would only do the deal if I can get reasonable part exchange. Otherwise will leave it.
My experience with this dealer is they are quite reasonable with prices and do do deals.
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Condition is very important i agree.
I guess both boxes have just been serviced for that price, as if not then definitely walk away, as thats another very big bill.
But personally i would wait for a 500dr, as you will always be thinking, what if, and also once you get a 500, a 552 will then straight away by on your mind.
But with the dr upgrade now gone, i would only want the dr versions, as they are so much better, especially the 500.
Agree Dunc
If you do a search on eBay for completed sales, youāll see a DR model (s/n 33xxx) sold for Ā£5,900 on 14 February. Not cosmetically perfect, but it gives an idea of how the prices have collapsed. Maybe this information could be helpful in your negotiations.
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33 is 11 years this year. Not far away from an 1800GBP service required then. And maybe the pricing has gone up even further as with everything.
Thanks Clive.
Letās see what they come up with. As fas as I know the 500 isnāt even serviced at the dealers.
Maybe itās the wrong deal altogether.
I will see what they come up with. My way of looking at it is if they can save me time by taking the old gear of my hands and then I have a great sounding amp it may be worth it.
But the costs need to be right.
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Hi Dan, when I purchased my CD555PS recently, I pointed out to the dealer that it was 16yrs old and was overdue a Ā£599 service by Naim. They accepted this and immediately dropped the price āto meā from Ā£2700 to Ā£2100. Saved another Ā£150 by getting the the service done by Darran. So itās definitely something to consider in your negotiations. I think the 500 is a good move as your late 52 was Naims top pre in 2000 when it was released. For me Iād go non-dr as that was what would have been used at the time with the 52 for first the 15yrs of its existence. I did the same with the 555ps which Iām very happy with. Iām sure youāll find a good deal as it feels like Olive gear shifts a lot easier than the OC stuff currently and dealers would Iām sure not enjoy sitting on several thousand Ā£s worth of 500. Good luck and looking forward to seeing how you get on.
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So what we are looking at is a discount of Ā£1800 on the service. Or the dealer can service it.
And then we need to factor in that the 500 could be hanging around for ages.
Perhaps it will be easier for them to shift the 500 to me and then sell my CB 135s, XPS2, all serviced and maybe they take a hit on my CDS2, although it works extremely well.
So if I factor in my 4 boxes for Ā£4000 trade in and Ā£1800 off.
So exchange the lot and pay Ā£1700.
Letās see what they come back with.
Other alternative is to leave things and wait on a 500DR, which are available.
Again, I believe although alot of them have had the DR upgrade, they havenāt necessarily been serviced. The service on the 500 and 500DR is a prohibitive cost in buying this kit. And only Naim can service them.
I can see why so many stick to a 300DR. Or spend more and buy a newer 500DR. Itās also the time your system is away having a service. Maybe get a 250 as back up!
Life is never simple.
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300DR is not to be under-estimated - Iām pretty happy with it.
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Itās more powerful than 135s, has DR technology and is easier to manage than a 500 or 500DR. Lots going for it and is another possibility.
But in someways itās a sideways move. Letās see what happens.
A non DR Nap 500 is much better than a Nap 300 DR.
A passive Nap 500 outperform a six pack active Nap 135ās.
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Agree and have made that journey 
I wouldnāt look at 300DR in your case Dan. Push it to the next level when time is right
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I agree a 500 is way forward. Letās see if the dealer is prepared to do something I can work with. I donāt expect them to give it away.
For what itās worth I wonāt necessarily go 552 or DR. A 52 and 500 could be all I need. And itās dependent on my health and finances. At present I know I can do the 500.
Obviously Iād like to go 552DR and 500DR. But for that youāre looking at alot more investment. One thing at a time.
I treated myself with a Nap 500 during the pandemic,canĀ“t afford one now, but i donĀ“t regret having it for about two years.
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Exactly. Better to have loved and lost than never to have had. 
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And ultimately, itās the enjoyment that a 500 can bring which is what I am after. If I loose money on it, or itās my last amp, it doesnāt really matter.
Itās living with it. You canāt always put a price on such things!
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As others have mentioned Ā£7.5 is a lot for a none DR500 without a service more like Ā£5 - Ā£5.5k as a service is approx Ā£1800.
I recently let my mint 2013 500 go for around the price I stated above to a good home, nice chap too and he has a 52.
The 500 is special and it was an itch I needed to scratch but a mint late 250DR quickly filled the void, personally I donāt miss the 500 and I will never return to multiple fraim stacks.