Hi,new to forum.I have naim cds3/xp’s dr with 252/super cap dr/nap300dr into neat elite se using chord signature cable.I now want to upgrade speakers and i would appreciate people’s opinions on what to audition?
@pdormer welcome to Forum
I have 252/SC/300DR of all the speakers I have heard with dealers or demo’s my choice would be Kudos - depending on budget the T505, T606 I would also say the B&W 805d3
home demo if you can is a must
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I would suggest ProAc K6; I have had them with SN2 and shortly with SN3, and they are already a pass: full range, unfussy regarding placement, and very musical. ProAc and Naim is really one of the best synergies.
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Coincidentally I have a 252/Supercap dr/300 dr source is a ND555 the T505 and T606 are on my radar, in fact my dealer in Bath rung me last week to say that his Kudos stock had arrived so I am off into Bath today to arrange a demo of both.
Having heard them at the Bristol show and thinking how good they sounded it will be interesting to hear them at the Dealer then at home.
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Speakers are a very personal choice.
What size is your room?
Do you want speakers that go up against the wall?
Do you mind if the are away from the wall?
In the middle of the room?
Standmounts or floor standing?
Speakers I like best are Spendor D9s, but D7s are excellent too. They are more expensive than your Neat speakers. Problem is although I liked the better than other speaker I tried there are posters on this forum who prefer Kudos. Having heard Spendors and Kudos Titans side by side I find this preference mystifying. However, those folk choose what sounds best to them. I’m right to choose Spendors and they are right to choose Kudos. My point being the it is very hard to say what sounds best to somebody else.
My shortlist would be Spendor (D7 or D9), Harbeth P3ESR, Falcon Acoustics LS5/3A, ProAc K6s and a now-these-look-and-sound-different choice of Magnepan 1.7i. Of course, there are lots of makes I’ve not heard, but at least if you listened to this list you’d have an excellent idea of what you could gain (or lose) by changing your speakers.
I used to have some ATC SCM11 on a system very similar to yours, albeit with a streaming front end rather than CD, they were great and I’ve found the ATC “sound” suits my musical tastes or listening preferences so now have active ATC speakers driven by a 272
As a way of gathering suggestions to go out and try you’ll have some great responses here but, as always, the best advice will be to go and demo then make sure you get the chance to audition your final choice at home before you fully commit
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What’s your budget and musical tastes?
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TiberioMagadino, I am currently using Spendor D7s so it will be interesting to compare them with the Kudos T505 and 606.
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Speaker choice is so personal, all anyone can do is suggest things they like or believe are good. No budget given, but secondhand maximises buying power…
Given a NAP300 as the amp, a good range of speakers should be usable. I’d suggest hearing PMC Fact 12, PMC MB2SE, perhaps ATC SCM100, and maybe ATC SCM40 with Wilson Benesch Torus sub (ideally a pair). The PMCs I like. The ATCs are speakers I myself would be interested in hearing if I were to consider changing, having and loving the same wonderful dome midrange unit myself.
I’d be surprised if you changed, but then you may like Kudos distinctive presentation. Interested to know which your prefer when you hear them?
D7s are superb speakers IMO, they make everything sound natural.
D9s are more of the same, but slightly more control in the bass.
@TiberioMagadino I heard the new Spendor 7.2 on saturday at my dealer but not powered by NAIM
I have always liked the presentation of Spendor ever since my SE6e which I really liked
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Recently I ve demoed a pair of kudos in a no naim system bar the cd player ,everything else being tubes.
And again I’ve had the same impression I got with the discontinued 30s.
It’s the least British speaker I’ve come across so far, impressive liquid highs ,great stage etc. but no seamless integration with the bass.
Usually Spendor and others try not to go low and avoid the problem,ProAc the other way round.
Harbeth are veiled.
Neat are fine at showing off lesser Naim equipment
ATC may be the least interesting on account of their different presentation and not so great hifi attributes but all is greatly seamless and visceral.
I’ve yet to listen to another convincing product which doesn’t cost an arm and a leg, well the likes of B&W 8xx are not bad and especially Wilson Benesch and Vivid are terrific.
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What do you mean…? I just don’t get it; could you extend the argument, please?
Thanks in advance and cheers.
They have plenty of bass
Need to be tamed.
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I’d be interested in hearing the D7.2, I believe they modified the tweeter slightly to make it a little less in your face
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I certainly think you should audition the Titan 505s and 606s (amongst others). Like you, I had Neat Elite SEs until about three years ago when I replaced them with Kudos Super20As. Rest of the system is Nac52/Supercap, Nap250DR, ND555. I’m still happy with the S20s and they were certainly the best of the speakers I auditioned at the time (the others being Neat Momentum SX5i, Spendor D7, B&W 804 D3, PMC Twenty5.23 and ATC SCM40), but if the Titan 505s or 606s had been around three years ago I’d probably have ended up with one of them.
Hi,does the s20a sound good positioned against the wall and ina small room ?,thanks paul
I have S20’s and they are 17cm from the wall and sound fine, no issues with bass. Room is 17’ X 12’ firing down the length if this helps.
Dynaudio and Kudos are good matches with Naim.
It wasn’t in your face on the D7s.
If D7.2s are even more refined then that is an amazing achievement.
One thing I would never call Spendors is in your face.
That is how I would describe the Kudos speakers I heard.
Not a criticism just a difference in presentation.
I would definitely audition D7.2s or D9.2s.
If your presentations preferences are like mine then you’ll enjoy both.