Well, your speakers are going to take a long time to break in. Probably 300 to 500 hours. I’m on my second set of Dynaudio speakers and they get better then worse for a while. So until they are broken in all the way hard to tell. If possible let them run with a long playlist to help speed up the process.
I’m sure before to long you will be grinning from ear to ear!
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@Mike_S I can certainly say the SL cables have made a difference. Things sound tighter, I did add my Fraim at the same time so hopefully it’s a combination. But I’m very happy. Not having to play my music so loud (problem with the Neats) has also helped. Love my Royds. With my current setup they work well. If I ever added a 300 or higher I’d probably need to rethink, but I’m not planning on that any time soon (well that’s what I said last time).
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Excellent news @Pete_the_painter. I think they sound very natural, in that they present the sound as it is. So yes, certainly tighter and also more open.
This is a great happy spot to love the speakers and having the system synergy sorted out. I’m in a similar place and wouldn’t really want to replace my speakers, so are probably limited in how far to go with them - my dealer says the 300 would be maxing my Totem Forest Signatures. With your 272, you have the benefit of just swapping the power amps out. With my SN2, I can add a 250 or even a 300 I guess, but I always hesitate with creating a redundant section in a piece of kit.
I’m really interested to see whether the pre-amp range is updated, ideally I would like to see a high end preamp with a headphone stage since I use headphones a lot and box count just gets out of hand in the current range. Certainly the headphone performance on the SN2 has improved a lot with the S/L interconnect, Powerlines and refining the network switches and cables.
Same here. I really need to focus on the retirement plan at this point. I’m already reducing my work hours and have 3 to 5 years to probably be fully ready to retire. I need to be quite focused and avoid a rabbit hole at this point. The hole has been deep enough as it is!
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I’ve always thought a SN2 would make a great pre amp, it saves having a separate headphone amp and now SN3 you even have a phono stage and other SQ upgrades, none of the existing pre amps have any of that. I still believe that Naims pre amps need updating. In terms of features the 272 is the most versatile, something a lot people forget. Head phone amp/DAC etc.
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Another advantage they have is system automation for the headphone stage (well automation for the SN2 and not even needing it for the 272), which can’t be run with a Headline and Naim pre-amp.
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As for retirement I’m awful close and don’t think I’ll be making any future upgrade for my main system, however I was thinking of trading the Atom in for the ND5 XS 2, I only use the Atom as a streamer through my AV system upstairs. Seems a waste.
Thanks to Peder’s unwitting help, I have acquired some Bowers and Wilkins P9 headphones which are truly excellent.
I auditioned several headphones at a local dealer, some on my shortlist, some not. I really liked the Focal Clear but did find myself coming back to the P9s but the bass was strong and sometimes muddy. But I was overauditioned by this point and my head had turned to mush.
I went away and thought about the Focal Clear and went back with my existing headphones - a 40 year old pair of Yamaha HP-1 orthodynamic. I listened to both - maybe not in ideal conditions but I found that the HP1s still acquitted themselves extraordinarily well and I simply couldn’t justify the cost of the Clear for the amount I was likely to use them.
I read this and other sites about the P9s and specifically Peder’s comment that they need to be given a lot of hours for the bass to bed down. With them being end of line and being sold at a significant discount to list price, I took the plunge and couldn’t be happier. In fact the bass on this pair was strong but controlled from day 1 and it continues to get better.
There is a warmth to them which I like and which complements the rather more pure sound of my ATC speakers.
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I would second that although only experience with two types of standmounts. Assume drive units are the same though?
My next foray will be Nap 100 and Dynaudio floorstanders, s/h if possible.
Spendor D7’s on Ebay for just over £2k, bet they are good.
if it makes any difference - i removed 1 Orea Bronze from underneath my CDP
so now the 3 Oreas can do = 3 x 3.6 kg each = 10.8 kg
The weight of my CDP is 10 kg
Maybe its placebo - somehow this sounds a tad better to me.
Chrome bumper NAP 110 arrived on Friday to join a NAC 42 as a second system. The combination has been driving a pair of Wharfedale 10.1 speakers to test everything over the weekend and is simply divine. This Naim combo will see a lot of use for background music and the occasional critical listening session.
Modern black boxes are great but the old shoebox-sized kit still performs very well.
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Well done taking on the care of the NAP110. I love my NAP110 - it’s never anything less than a great listen. In fact, I’ve put it back into the big system in the last few days, since my NAP250DR has developed a distortion problem on one channel following a particularly nasty power cut on/off/on/off situation (probably another squirrel on the exposed lines outside) and now needs to go back to HQ for a check up. What’s remarkable is that while I’ve lost a bit of soundstage depth (it’s fairly 2 Dimensional compared to the 250DR) and also a bit of low end weight, scale, and top end refinement, overall the system is still as engaging as ever. In fact, in some respects the engagement factor has even increased, although it can come across as perhaps a little forced sometimes by comparison. But it just underlines what a great little amp is the NAP110 and how Naim got it so right from the start.
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The nice people at Naim service have nothing in their service records on my NAP 110, but they tell that it was built on 19 October 1983. Apparently, it’s protruding screw-down banana plug/spade speaker connectors are probably original to the unit. Despite it’s age, it sound really very nice.
When I turn the amp on and off, there is a metallic hum on the speakers for a second or two followed by a slight pop, then everything sounds as it should. Is that sign that it needs to be serviced or fairly normal?
The test combination with a NAC 42, Bluesound Node 2, Rega RP6 turntable and Wharfedale 10.1 speakers is surprisingly good. I plan to use it with Spendor 3/5 speakers on good stands very soon.
Will this amp comfortably drive larger speakers, such as Spendor A6 standmounts? What is the largest size of speaker that it can drive at moderate levels in a medium to large room, e.g. 6.5 x 4.5 metres?
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Yes, my own NAP110 is the same, with binding posts.
If it’s powering a pre-amp (i.e. no dedicated power supply on the pre-amp), then it’s likely normal.
It’s less about the size of the speakers and more about how efficient they are and what their impedance is like across the frequency range. Right now my own NAP110 is doing a great job driving Naim SL2s, which should give you some idea of its capability.
Many thanks for that information. The NAP 110 powers the NAC 42, so I am relieved about that.
This combination will have to stand in while my NAP 250.2 is serviced and possibly given a DR upgrade in the near future.
I have a few speakers to try it with and the SL2 spec gives me a good idea of what will be worth trying.
David
Super Lumina spkr cables 5m pair, used (and don’t look abused). Unheard, but I figure if I don’t like them they’ll get rehomed fairly easily at minor loss…
Wonder how they’ll be compared to my TQ Black II…
Can’t wait to find out 
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I’ve just added SL speaker cables, big difference don’t think you’ll be sending them back.
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This interconnect just arrive yesterday from my friends at AV Options. It connects my cds 2 to 52. Replaces Lavender cable.
So far it’s quite good… note it does come with locking collar
David
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rather a fan of jolida glass FX valve dacs . they are superb value . got a modwright modded one and hope to get another soon . they would give audionote dacs a run for the money
