Over the past 20 years my Nait 2 (first Olive, then CB, always serviced) has been hooked up to a plethora of sources and speakers. I have also been able to compare it to Olive and Black integrateds and pre-powers (not CBs).
It is a sweet amp but creating a balanced and rewarding system with it requires some care, with some combinations punching well above their weight and other combinations proving less satisfying.
In my opinion, and in my room, and to my ears, they like speakers that are an easy load and sing by themselves. Obviously there are various flavours but ones I found to work well are Royd Coniston R (I have those) and Minstrel, all older Rega speakers, little Neat standmounts such as the older Critique and Petite and the newer Motive SX3, also Naim nSats, Linn Katan and even some Shahinians.
As for sources it really likes source-first. Analogue shines with for Rega a minimum Planar 6 or a Majik-level Linn LP12 or similar. Plus a cartridge that suits the phono board (there is a selection) or more universally a nice phono stage (but that somehow goes against the “integrated” bit IMO). Also all Naim tuners are a superb combination.
Digital works great with the CD5 XS and the DAC-V-1 with a nice digital transport (have not tried the nDac with the Nait 2). There a slightly attenuated cable works best, too bad we don’t have Flashback anymore to make those.
Finally I use long lengths of NACA5 with Naim plugs which helps. Having (dedicated) mains and earthing in your place sorted out by a certified company also makes an audible difference.
I have found that many of these approaches also work for shoebox Olive pre-powers (and thus likely for their CB predecessors as well). The mentioned pre/hicap/160-180-250 combo’s are really in a different league and don’t have these caveats (probably other caveats then but their owners would know better than I).
All this to say that in your system description I don’t find any of the items I listed above that I know work well. So at least it doesn’t surprise me that you have big differences or extremes between an unserviced Nait 2 (the servicing makes a huge difference in clarity) and your serviced pre/power. As much as they will always produce a different system outcome they should both be comparable in musical capability and house-sound, which you can then choose between.
Many owners here of both the Naits 2s and shoebox pre/power combos so you should get plenty of feedback. For my part I’m not trying to criticise anything I just hope these thoughts help your quest, good luck!
to be clear I use the phono as straight through with a Lehman black cube se. so not using the boards in the NAIT2 or the separates. And also my point is that on the same equipment the Nait is easier to listen to in a good way.
Yes, but a more fair comparison between the pre/hi/power combo and the Nait 2 would be to also service the latter.
It may be so in need of a service that now it’s just warm and fuzzy and in your system could show the same family-sound as the separates when it returns.
If so (and I have a hunch it will), you could then experiment with some of the options that I personally found to work above average for shoebox Naim gear with other combinations working much less satisfactorily, your mileage or that of others may vary.
For troubleshooting you could also swap in a loaner modern Naim amp to see what that brings with the rest of your existing system in comparison. Or take out the HiCap for example, check the cables between the separates (old or new SNAICs?), all to have more benchmarks.
Just my 2 cents, hope this better explains what I was trying to say.
A few years back my 552 and 500 were being DR’d and recapped. My Olive “CD” Nait 2 served as my hi-fi for a few months. It was toe-tapping fun. Certainly none of the detail and poise of the 500 series, but it boogied and was super fun to listen to. It kind of scared me as it was very good.
The nearest dealer is 2 hours away and I don’t think he would do a trial. I have never actually purchased anything there and I really don’t want to spend anything unless I sell what I have. I just want to get the separates sounding less resonant or over driven. Don’t know how to describe it
so yes some day I will get the NAIT2 serviced but it sounds very good. I am really interested in why the separates song so resonant of or in your face. Just not clean in the midrange. Kind of forced sound
My theory would be that the serviced separates are much more resolving than the unserviced Nait 2, and this highlights issues upstream (source) or downstream (speakers) or in between (cables) or all three combined.
Secondly, have you already tried the separates without the HiCap (also serviced or not?) to see how you like that?
A Nait2 with the correctly matched speakers and room can give any Naim amp combination a serious run for their money - this should tell us everything we need to know about it.
Is it for everyone and every pair of speakers - of course not, but when it clicks, for whatever reason there’s nothing quite like it in terms of music enjoyment.
Hi cap is serviced. even 18 years ago I had the same concerns but it just bugs me more now. Maybe because I pad quite a bit for servicing. I think I will try the cd on the same input as the vinyl. It is straight through and switched to RCA so I have a better interconnect there
As already stated by @Guinnless at the very beginning of this thread, you might want to try a different digital source, like a Naim CD5 (XS or the original one) or a ND5 XS (1 or 2), see where that brings you.
Good that the HiCap is serviced, but how do you like the sound with the Nac powered from the Nap, better or worse?
The funds invested in the servicing will for years protect the (resale) value of the items and will asure you they are in the best condition, so if possible I wouldn’t loose sleep over that.
