Loving seeing all the gorgeous CB amps on here!!! There’s just something so incredibly focussed and cool about that range and the olive that followed I think…
Wonderful! I am still nagging Jason Gould for a shoebox streamer and Nait in either CB or olive priced around £1500 each…
JonathanG
I think that is highly unlikely. I would prefer if Naim released a 100 series range of shoe box sized units, an integrated, a pre and a power amp plus a streamer in the new case work. And if they can be upgraded with the NPX TT or a variation of this even better, they could also use a Nova/Star case for a 100 series supernait. I won’t be holding my breath though as there seems to be nothing new arriving but I hope to be proved wrong about this.
BTW, where you the JonathanG who suggested a song for the Marianne Faithful Now Listening Show on R6, a good suggestion I thought.
Paul,
You are probably right - any new shoebox range would likely be in the new casework, especially now the Nait 50 is discontinued. Personally I just think that Naim need to lower their entry level to attract more new blood into their range. I know many of us here were starting out with Nait’s etc or maybe a CD3.5 back in the day and the cost was a stretch but it wasn’t absolutely impossible on a modest wage or with a student summer job - and it was proper hi-fi from which you could upgrade.
Sadly I can’t claim any credit for the R6 radio show - there must be an imposter with good music taste going around impersonating me!!
JonathanG
I am always surprised by such comments.
For my part, the NC is not the Naim sound I was looking for when I joined the Club and I remember many negative comments about competing brands which, even then, sounded ‘similar to the NC’.
And to read that the OCs aren’t actually that good is strange too, especially as they were defined as the pinnacle only 3 years ago.
Different definitively , better…depends. But taste are changing time to time i agree
The NC range demo I had was impressive. But not wiping the floor with my current system. Certainly it didn’t seem worth the change just yet. Maybe another recap of my OC stuff and hold out to the next range comes along. It helps that my listening room is much better than most dealer dem rooms.
I think it had some of the Naim sound. The presentation was a bit different and would very likely involve a change of speakers to to get a decent match. But then again, I also found the non DR 250 and 250DR needed to be paired with different speakers.
@JonathanG What do you think of the new CI-Uniti 102? Could it be the answer? I know it’s in a different league and won’t compare it to the OC/NC gear, but the price could be right to attract new young buyers.
I agree.
My way in to Naim was via a review in Gramophone Magazine by Andrew Everard which recommended the original Uniti. When I went to hear it I asked to compare it with Nait XS and CD5XS and that’s what I came out with. That got me on to the upgrade ladder, though I never got beyond four boxes. But I suspect potential “new blood” listens in a different way and may still be living with parents, these days. The current Uniti range is probably a more attractive proposition to them.
Like you, I think a lower cost start to the upgrade ladder would be good, but that may be just nostalgia.
Rogwe
If you mean 5Si I certainly agree.
I do however believe Naim’s own opinion of entry level is Mu-so or Qb to get people involved in their products.
I just can’t imagine they come up with cheaper stuff like fx Rega or Fell Audio.
QB is history.
Roger
Until its replaced with something else.
They don’t scrap a good selling product, its being replaced soon.
Anything else is not logic.
Maybe they are just rebranding their boom boxes to Focal and hook up the price and facilities.
Would have to agree. Im currently in the market for a decent speaker for the kitchen, and a 3rd gen QB would be perfect. Otherwise, I’ll be going B&O…
Would imagine both Naims lifestyle speakers have been a great gateway for Naim newcomers too…
Fingers crossed the company have something new up their sleeve…
I agree it would be a very strange move but to replace it. I think you’re right and it’s most likely something new is on the way. Particularly with the likes of Cambridge and Ruark releasing new competing Muso products lately. The Cambridge seems to be getting very good reviews.
Volume is one thing but margin matters too. With an international trade war looking more likely than ever and consequent potential tariffs on goods made in China, that margin could shrink significantly. A QB3 looks a decent bet for the longer run but in the short to medium term, I’m not so sure.
Glad I picked up a QB2 last Christmas.
Roger
Good point.
It could mean more audio manufacture or assembly back to Europe.
Its obvious we are too dependent on the Chinese on many things.
Must certainly be challenging to be audio manufacturer these days.
Given that your budget is flexible, anything other than a SH/demo Naim Statement is going to be a lot of money spent on a compromise. 
On the other hand, given that you like precise, detailed rendering, you‘d be mad not to demo a fully integrated Klimax system from Linn. Their top streamer with the Organik DAC is in a class of its own. And it ticks all the boxes if aesthetic design is important.
I know you said you are concentrating on Naim but plenty of Naim dealers stock Linn and you can probably demo both brands in one visit.
They have most definitely scrapped popular products before which were not replaced for years. The 272 left a gaping hole for a couple years until the far more expensive 222 came along. And the 272 wasn’t even discontinued due to parts!
If parts became unavailable for things like the Qb and SN3 or Core, even if they had a new product in development, those now suddenly unavailable parts could render those new products dead on the drawing board. I’d make no assumptions about what goes on behind the green curtain.
I haven’t particularly enjoyed any of the NC I have heard. I can see the appeal for those who appreciate HiFi but for me, it’s a non starter as I feel that comes at the expense of the music.
It’s not a surprise a dealer is misinformed about Naim manufacturing or product details, my dealer and distributor don’t have a clue about Naim, they just sell the boxes alongside many others. The close relationships they used to have with Naim are long gone and they are now quick to recommend alternatives.
Given the way Naim have treated (and continue to treat) customers of their flagship products over the 4 month long (and continuing) FW debacle, and the death of the close relationships they had with dealers and distributors, I wouldn’t touch any new Naim product with a barge pole these days. I think the dealer was probably making the right recommendations.
I thought the NC stuff was very good. But like all hifi, aubject to personal taste. Not sure it was my thing and am not upgrading to it. Don’t have anything bad to say about the sound though.
But I think dealers are allowed personal preference.
I wonder about that.
At the time 272 was discontinued, the popular 272/250DR combination was roughly price and performance comparable with NDX2/SN2 and many posters on here cited the latter as the obvious and, for some, preferable alternative.
I still think the absence of a SN level integrated leaves more of a gap in the hierarchy with no obvious alternatives which I suspect Naim will be keen to fill.
Roger
It is very simple. Soulution and Wadax are so much better than Naïm. But also very expensive. I had a simular experience after 6 years with Naim. Now I am broke but very, very, happy with MSB premier dac and S202 poweramp.