Minor issue but something that jumps out at me whenever I look at my naim kit is that the boxes are different shades of black/finish is different e.g. brushed vs flat black anodising. Presumably this has come up before but I couldn’t spot an answer searching old forum topics - does anyone know when naim changed the anodising of the face plates?
For example if I want all my components to match perfectly when I upgrade next presumably I would need to buy everything from within certain manufacturing date range.
What boxes do you have? Your profile says an AVR850 and a Bluesound Node, so there isn’t much chance of those matching!
500 Series is different to Classic, and Olive seems to be infinitely variable. Then there’s the batches of Classic fascias that turned a funny purple colour.
The dyes used in black anodising are sensitive to light, particularly ultraviolet. They therefore change over time and vary according to exposure to light and the specific dye(s) used. Some dyes assume a bronze hue over time, while others assume a purplish hue. If the exact same dye formulation has been used over decades of production, the type of hue should be the same, but the degree of change will vary with age and light exposure. Unless Naim has been extremely particular in specifying not just the colour black but the specific dyes to be used by the anodising company which I would think is unlikely to have been the case, so even if they have used the same anodiser throughout, it doesn’t mean that the dyes would necessarily have remained the same, though of course the starting colour of black should be the same (however you define black…)
@Chaff As someone already said, your profile does not list Naim components. That not withstanding, any color variation is unlikely to change the SQ, I would think. If you are looking for a perfect match, I would think the only solution would be to purchase NC new from a dealer and even then, there’s no guarantee.
Of course, if someone sits there fretting about colour mismatch while listening to music it could adversely affect mood which in turn could affect the quality of hearing perception and enjoyment. But there are simpke solutions: 1) put out of sight 2) get a can of blacke spray paint (or white, orange, gold according to taste)…
@Innocent_Bystander It’s amazing how compulsive we get over our systems. Myself included. For me, I am trying to just listen to music and enjoy my new system.
I don’t believe the anodising on the Classic range ever changed as such. There was a batch that went pink, and if you have one of these you should ask Naim to replace the fascia free of charge.
Which boxes are you referring to? If they are early 5 series boxes it may be that they are sprayed rather than anodised.
Thank you for the replies. I’ll update my profile!
I’m looking to match NAC 272 and NAP 250DR (currently a NAP 200 non-DR). The OP question is more so that I might as well buy the ‘right’ year of NAP 250DR to match best with the NAC 272.
I’ve now had a chat about this with an ex-naim employee, apparently they did change the process at one point and were even swapping face plates for people (he stressed they do not do this anymore); he wasn’t sure what years and on what products only that they didn’t all change at the same time. I’ll ask naim directly then if I get an answer I’ll pop it in a table on the forum for reference.
just remember that buying same year, even consecutive serial numbers, might not guarantee a match, given that one may have sat where it gets a lot of direct sunlight, and another none or even mostly in the dark -or anything between. Even normal batches not the errant one may very well change. Aside from my previous suggested solutions. Just keeping your system in the shadows rather than in the spotlight or straight in front of you would likely make less evident (and might make your room look nicer to boot!)
Not really different shades of black, but there definitely was a change in the finishes of the three front sections of Classic components. My three boxes are all early models and the three panels are pretty much identical in finish.
A few years later, the middle one was very noticeably smoother than the outer two:
This is the finish I’m looking for! Looks like it matches my 272 perfectly. Does anyone know which year/serial number range the 250DR had this same finish?
I have a HiCap that took on a purple hue and that went back to Naim and the fascia was replaced free of charge without question, and it was well outside of guarantee, because it was considered a quality control issue.
Thanks for your help so far. I think I might have now stumbled across the answer looking at photos of preowned items it looks like NAP250DRs (serial numbers 4#####) around 2016 have the same brush aluminum finish vs flat finish.
Thanks for your replies. Noted, although if I can find the same brushed aluminum finish of approximately the same age as the 272 I am hoping it would be a very close match. I should have phrased my post better as ‘when did naim switch to brush anodised finish on the NAP 250-2 / DR range?’.
. I won’t lose any sleep over it though!
