I note that you have never had a Naim amp, IB.
Surely after so long posting here, and with Naim amplifiers being at the heart of what they have done this past 50 years, it’s time?
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1985 Nad 3020 (I thought everybody started with one of these!)
1989 Cyrus 2 with PSX added a few months later (I had a Cyrus 1 for a while but cannot remember how that fitted in re dates or maybe in second system)
1999 Naim 102 / 180 / napsc
2007 ish added hicap
2010 replaced hicap with supercap and at round the same time replaced 180 with 250 (olive)
2011 replaced 102 with 52
Not sure of dates of some of the following but here is the approx order from 2017 to 2020
Replace 52 with 552
Replace olive 250 with non dr 300
Add second non dr and snaxo with hicap to go active (into SL2s)
Get both 300s dr’d and replace hicap with supercap dr
Then trade the 300s, sc and snaxo in for a single 500dr
December 2022 trade the 552 in for S1
So now have S1/500dr
(Ignoring office system which in recent years has gone from uq via atom and nova to a 282 which I am contemplating matching with a 300 non dr)
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Murphy radiogram given to me
Bush music centre, first purchase
Sansui AU 101 courtesy of Dad.
Pioneer x2
Technics x2
Nait 2 never looked back
most Naim gear up to the 300DR
Alongside these various Yamaha, Onkyo and Denon av amps. Currently Denon.
Hi Richard, as I have said on a number of occasions, I certainly would be interested in hearing a Naim amp, though I doubt anything below the 300 would be a fair consideration, possibly 500. Three things inhibit me: firstly in terms of auditioning, there are no dealers near me so would require a special trip to do so at some cost - I did have plans to move back to England upon retiring, whereupon it would be a simple day out which I had loosely planned to do, but Covid prompted a major rethink, and a move does happen, it is unlikely to be for some years. The second, and significant, factor is that I presently don’t use a preamp, and advice on here (not least from yourself) is that Naim power amps should be used with a NAC. That links with the third factor, which is cost: just a power amp of the level I’m thinking does not rule itself out, being of the same order of cost magnitude as Bryston of the same level, but adding a suitable preamp makes the cost horrendous!
As it stands at the moment, I have no amp plans – though I still would like to hear a Naim amp sometime, and although resources are now finite, having retired, I do occasionally do the lottery, and in the event of a decent win, I have promised myself a major road trip auditioning, various things of which Naim amps will certainly feature!
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Sansui A80 in March '80
Driving this 3A Alto loudspeakers
Changed in '84 with Nac42/110, then
'87 Nap 140, 92 Nac 72
'94 Linn Majick
'96 Nait 3
'05 Arcam A60 and Cyrus 3
'08 Nait 5
'10 Nait XS
'14 Nac282/250-2
'16 Nac 552/500
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Think this is most of what I’ve owned over the years:
Akai “plastic amp” (with ditto tape deck, turntable etc.)
Small Yamaha integrated.
Various NADs (the classic 3020, 3130).
A couple of Denon integrateds.
Cyrus II/PSX.
Cambridge integrated.
NAD pre/power.
Naim integrateds (5i, XS2, SN2)
Nac 202/Nap 200DR/HicapDR/Napsc (current)
Simaudio Moon 600i V2 (current)
1972 to 2022
Trio KA 2000
Goodmans tuner amp
Cambridge ???
Sugden P51/C51
NAC12/160
NAC12/HC/250
NAC32-5/HC/250
NAC52/250x2
NAC52/300x2
552/300x2
552DR/500
552DR/250DR
NAC32.5/HC/250DR with NBLs and 12s dual rail/SNAPS dual rail/250 with IBLs in Spain and 32 dual rail/HC/250 with Mk2 SBLs in another country
In a happy place with no plans to change as every thing is recently serviced!!
FF
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1981 Akai AM2250 (did me through college)
1985 Naim Nait (red LED)
1988 - Naim 62/140
1989 Naim 72/140 (I found the 72 a good upgrade on the 62)
1989 Naim 72/HiCap/135s
1992 Naim 82/HiCap/135s
2017 Naim 82/Supercap/135s - An olive Supercap as a 25th birthday present for the 82.
2018 Naim 52/Supercap/135s
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Nac 42.5 Nap 140 CB
Nac72 Nap 140 olive HC
Nac 82 Nap 250 CB HC
Nac 52 Nap 250 CB active 3
Nac 52 Nap 250 olive active 3
Nac 52 Nap 250-2 active 3 sounds great today
3 Naits, Nap 180, Nap 200, Nac 72 in second systems over the years.
Lafayette ?? Threw my brother across the room and blew itself up.
Bang & Olufsen lifestyle thing. Hated it.
(The above were my fathers but I used them more than anyone).
Mine:
1981 Pioneer SA-730. (Came with cassette deck, tuner and turntable.
1997 Naim Nait 3.
1998 Naim NAC92R/90.
2003 Naim NAC102/180.
2019 Naim NAC 82/180, 250, with 1 and 2 Hi-Caps and also a Supercap.
2020 Naim NAC52/250, 135.
All purchases were purely as an upgrade.
Job done!
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Creek CAS4040 mk1 - Great sounding budget amp with a fantastic phono stage.
Audiolab 8000C/PX/Yamaha 3ch AVP - I loved this especially the aesthetics. This was the first time I spent over £100 on interconnects. Unfortunately I couldn’t listen at night (My music time is 10am-1pm) due to family and neighbours wanting to sleep so sold entire system and went to a Samsung AVR.
Onkyo AVR.
Denon AVR.
Then I built a log cabin in the garden and furnished it with…
Naim NAC92/FC/NAP90 - This was “Proper” hifi for me and I enjoyed it for about 6 years until I found lots of money in my savings account
NAC52/250 - What can I say. This was going to be it but I got a fairly big tax rebate. What can you do?
NAC52/135/135 - What more can I say?
Oh, I forgot my second system;
Nait 5si - Can’t think of a better amp for the living room. Does everything asked of it
Circa 1989 a kenwood amp, don’t recall any other detail, pretty sure it was about £150.
1994 the start of Cyrus. III, added psxr, etc ending with pre x & psxr, a pair of mono x
2013?Not sure. Nait xs
August 2017. Supernait 2. Added hicap 2019.
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Arcam Alpha 10
Classe CAP-100
YBA Integre DT
Krell KAV-300i
Sonic Frontiers Line 1 / Plinius SA-100 mk3
Audio Research LS-16 / Audio Research D130
Audio Research LS-16 / Plinius SA-100 mk3 *
Audio Research LS-16 / McIntosh MC275 mk4 *
LFD Zero LEIII *
Rega Elicit mk2 *
NVA AP70 *
Naim Nait XS mk1 *
Naim NAC 202 / NAP 200 / NAPSC *
Naim NAC 282 / NAP 250DR / Hicap DR / NAPSC
Sonneteer Orton
Luxman L-590AXII
Amps marked with * are swapped within 2 years to make the Harbeth SHL5 work. The Naim did it for me, with the Harbeth.
Late 1960’s Leak Stereo 30
1970’s Pioneer SX-650 (Still working at my son’s house).
1987 Naim NAC 32.5 / Nap 140 / Hi-Cap
1989 Naim 2 x NAP 135s
1993 Naim NAC 52 + 52PS
2003 Naim NAC 552 + 552PS (Upgraded to DR 2013) (To present day)
2004 Naim NAP 500 (Upgraded to DR 2013) (To present day)
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Sounds like the Harbeths were a but of a chalkenge!
1997 Arcam alpha something (maybe 7 or 8 I cant remember)
2000 72/140
Added Hicap - not sure when I got the hicap maybe 2004
2017 swapped out the 140 for a 250
2022 swapped the 72/hi for 52/Sc
Currently 52/Sc/250 all recently serviced.
Trio wooden cased 2/3 width thing Christ it was loud! First amp with an old Garrard TT.
Yamaha A300. Stayed with me for many years.
Yamaha AV amp. I went all multi channel with more speakers than a Labour Party Conference.
Sony Home Cinema… looked very slick.
Aura VA50…mirror black! Niiiice.
Pioneer SA450 receiver from late 70s. Recapped and serviced it myself…smooth as a cashmere codpiece.
Naim XS2
Naim XS3.
1974 Metrosound ST40
1977 Quad 33/405
1981 42/110 later added a power supply built by a friend
1997 or 8 32.5 with 72 boards/Hi-cap/140
2014 Unitilite had initially planned to go for a more up-to-date separates system but a life event prompted a change of plan and this seemed the best option then
2017 UnitiStar
2020 added 250 DR in anticipation of 272 replacement
2023 awaiting delivery of 222/300 (in the next 4 weeks hopefully)
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Yes, they were a challenge but it’s all good as they are gone already.
I started like many in the 1980’s with a NAD3020 a real step up from the music centre. Within a few years I upgraded to a Linn Intek… Several years after that I acquired an Audiolab 8000C/8000PX system which remained with me until I began my Naim amplification journey:
2017 - Naim 202/200 which blew the Audiolabs out of the water
2019 - Naim 282 followed shortly after by a HICAPDR, a game changer over the 202/200
2021 - Naim 300DR and a few months later a 552DR. A wonderful combination. Everything you have heard about the 552 on here is true. An amazing piece of kit! I strongly suspect that I will not be upgrading my amps again.
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