Barry williams
Banned
SJB,
No real point when a Chord HUGO /MacMini and WDD Thunderbolt sounds better than all the Naim boxes listed above.
Teddy Pardo - what's so special?
- Thread starter formbypc
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No real point when a Chord HUGO /MacMini and WDD Thunderbolt sounds better than all the Naim boxes listed above.
per flemming
Registered User
SJB,
No real point when a Chord HUGO /MacMini and WDD Thunderbolt sounds better than all the Naim boxes listed above.
bet this has a nice sound too
longtiger62
longtiger62
When pulling the trigger on the txps ask Teddy about his pre amp.Last year I was running a SuperUniti integrated and picked up a very lightly used 250.2 at firesale prices. That got me thinking about looking for a used 282 but the need to run an expensive Naim power supply really made the whole thing pretty daunting. Then I found a used 282 for sale and the owner agreed to "throw in" a teddy dual cap. Got the combo for less than half the price of a new 282. The combo sounded incredible. Quickly found a trade for my Superuniti for an NDX.
Now I'm seriously considering a Teddy XPS PSU for the NDX purchasing the unit new is about 1/5 the cost of the Naim PSU. I'll likely pull the trigger on it soon.
So yes the cost of the gear is a huge factor. As is the quality and the sound. And the fact when you send an email with questions to the Teddy Pardo website the owner and chief engineer is the guy who responds. That certainly doesn't hurt either
It outperforms the 282/Dual teddy cap by quite a margin.
It did for me,and the switch was cost effective too.
Teddy VS Naim Olive XPS no contest.. Teddy against 555 DS in 500 series systems... sadly also no contest the other way (not the way I wanted as I had to buy a 555 DR PS and already owned a teddy XPS).
I own avondale, naim and Teddy products... they are all good. The top end naim kit in a balanced system has the edge convincingly IMHO if you discount price recognising these things are exponentially on a curve.
What am I likely to buy for my office system? Either teddy amps or avondale kit as without the marketing cost, VAT? and dealer margin it's at a clear advantage in the value stakes. The man himself is a pleasure to deal with too - as is Les at avondale - who I think might be making some really super top (top) end amps very soon.
Old Valve Guy
pfm Member
I've had a CDX for years ( I've heard it with an Olive XPS ) but have only run it as a stand-alone unit .
Recently I was looking at Naim secondhand and couldn't believe the high prices the power supplies fetch compared to the older CD players .
Consequently , whilst researching I came across Teddy . Spent the day reading everything I could and ordered one last week . Currently
in transit . After burn-in ( I leave the non-valve stuff on permanently ) I'll report back .
Recently I was looking at Naim secondhand and couldn't believe the high prices the power supplies fetch compared to the older CD players .
Consequently , whilst researching I came across Teddy . Spent the day reading everything I could and ordered one last week . Currently
in transit . After burn-in ( I leave the non-valve stuff on permanently ) I'll report back .
Peter Stockwell
Back for more ...
Teddy is a straightforward guy, back in the day when I was a naim wannabee/wanna have, I had a 282/200 based system. Putting Teddycaps in it made it sound good, but somehow, and this is hard to qualify, it lost something, the "naimness" perhaps. Naim is horrifyingly expensive for what's on offer, although if you buy 2nd hard you'll rarely lose money. I'm glad I've been there, but I wouldn't want to live there now.
Teddy is a straightforward guy ...
Teddy is a straightforward guy ...
djftw
Heterodox Member
God this thread is another 'best and worst of PFM in a nut shell'... can we cool the passive aggressive gang warfare a bit guys? "Methadone for recovering Naim addicts" made me chuckle though, humorous condescension is fine but shouldn't it be Adikt?
To me it's very simple, Teddy is a nice, straightforward guy, and a small indy who offers a great alternative to some of the big boys; selling direct to the customer at a fraction of the price of the 'leading brands'. He also was, in the past, very active on this forum and genuinely helpful rather than just 'shilling' his wares or disparaging others'. He is hardly alone in that respect, 'recovering Naim adikts' can also find help from Mark at Witch Hat or Les at Avondale etc etc. Why does Teddy come up more often. I'd say, first and foremost because of the popularity of computer audio/streaming and his offering a very competent DAC.
but shouldn't it be Adikt?To me it's very simple, Teddy is a nice, straightforward guy, and a small indy who offers a great alternative to some of the big boys; selling direct to the customer at a fraction of the price of the 'leading brands'. He also was, in the past, very active on this forum and genuinely helpful rather than just 'shilling' his wares or disparaging others'. He is hardly alone in that respect, 'recovering Naim adikts' can also find help from Mark at Witch Hat or Les at Avondale etc etc. Why does Teddy come up more often. I'd say, first and foremost because of the popularity of computer audio/streaming and his offering a very competent DAC.
Stemcor
I should be listening to music
Sadly for me, I have had to sell my Teddy pre and monos as due to a hearing problem as I need an amp with either separate left/right volume or a balance control.
Having been a Naim owner before Teddy what I can say is that in my opinion Naim products are good but Teddys are better. My top Naim was a 52/250 and I was not prepared to upgrade from there. I often wonder about “upgrades”. Every new product from any manufacturer seems to be a wonderful upgrade. If this was true then extrapolate back and how poor must equipment be from the 60s and 70s ? Perhaps we are not being quite as clever as we think we are. After all, how does the vintage market do so well when by the above thinking it must be cr*p.
Having been a Naim owner before Teddy what I can say is that in my opinion Naim products are good but Teddys are better. My top Naim was a 52/250 and I was not prepared to upgrade from there. I often wonder about “upgrades”. Every new product from any manufacturer seems to be a wonderful upgrade. If this was true then extrapolate back and how poor must equipment be from the 60s and 70s ? Perhaps we are not being quite as clever as we think we are. After all, how does the vintage market do so well when by the above thinking it must be cr*p.
narabdela
who?
That pretty much hits the nail on the head. I don't own any of his products, but I've met him a couple of times and he is a genuinely nice guy who talks a lot of common sense.
On both occasions he's also had one of the best sounding and most laid-back rooms in the show.
Hi newly Tp owner here.
Dac 2*100mbs plus cables.
It was a case of upgrading from a naim full 5x series system to a used naim system further up the food chain, or a new Tp system including a return offer if not liking and also having a 3 year guarantee.
New won the day
2 months now i’m still smiling over the decision.
More of everything coming out of my speakers.
Dac 2*100mbs plus cables.
It was a case of upgrading from a naim full 5x series system to a used naim system further up the food chain, or a new Tp system including a return offer if not liking and also having a 3 year guarantee.
New won the day
2 months now i’m still smiling over the decision.
More of everything coming out of my speakers.
lencotweaker
Mostly dreaming of record players
I doubt many folks with full TP systems came to it independently of Naim. What I find curious is the apparent revelation that something can sound better than Naim and at a much lower price. This has always been the way of course (IMHO)! In those cases, these folks should probably not have been into Naim in the first place! I say this as someone who appreciates what Naim and their equipment does although I doubt I'd ever see any Naim boxes in my main system. Its just focussed in a very different direction to what I want from that system.
The other scenario of Naim users looking for more cost effective PSU upgrades is an entirely natural one although TP isn't the only place to go for VFM Naim upgrades (although again you have to accept this is moving away from the Naim sound). This interests me as I've got a few Naim boxes recently in 2nd and 3rd systems as a bit of an experiment and power supply upgrades is naturally arising already.
Finally TP may or may not stand its own ground against many other hifi components. I haven't heard it but am certainly curious and not because it's reputed to be better than Naim this or that (see point 1).
All approaches are quite valid in my view and its good that this kit exists and is making people happy.
The other scenario of Naim users looking for more cost effective PSU upgrades is an entirely natural one although TP isn't the only place to go for VFM Naim upgrades (although again you have to accept this is moving away from the Naim sound). This interests me as I've got a few Naim boxes recently in 2nd and 3rd systems as a bit of an experiment and power supply upgrades is naturally arising already.
Finally TP may or may not stand its own ground against many other hifi components. I haven't heard it but am certainly curious and not because it's reputed to be better than Naim this or that (see point 1).
All approaches are quite valid in my view and its good that this kit exists and is making people happy.
Peter Stockwell
Back for more ...
That would be north of the border, methinks..
Mullardman
Moderately extreme...
I have no opinion of TPs products. Good luck to him I say.
BUT, I'm always intrigued when folk describe PFM as a 'NAIM Based' forum. I have been posting here for almost as long as anyone and have never owned any NAIM kit whatever. There are many 'Naimees' on here and good luck to them too, but I really wouldn't call this place NAIM based.
BUT, I'm always intrigued when folk describe PFM as a 'NAIM Based' forum. I have been posting here for almost as long as anyone and have never owned any NAIM kit whatever. There are many 'Naimees' on here and good luck to them too, but I really wouldn't call this place NAIM based.
Naim won't suit everyone. That goes the same with Teddy Pardo as well. Having said that I now have both Naim and Teddy Pardo in the main system, specifically Naim power supply and Teddy power supply combined to power my NAC 282 as this configuration produces the best sound reproduction when compared to a single PSU either Naim or Teddy performing its duty.
Long story short, least preferred to most preferred with the NAC 282 :-
Dual Teddycap both outputs connected - Not so good result
Dual Teddycap one output connected - Good result
Hicap DR - Great result
Hicap DR + Dual Teddycap - Best result
In summary, from my experience the power supplies bring quite an appreciable or significant difference to Naim preamps, in my case the NAC 282. It's not only the type but configuration that will greatly affect the sound of the preamp. The 282 can be powered by 2 power supplies and in my experience the best result is to have both outputs connected, surprisingly by the Teddy and Naim combination. When both outputs are connected with the Teddy, the sound quality is the worst.
All impressions are my own, influenced by my personal preference on how good music should sound like to my ears.
Long story short, least preferred to most preferred with the NAC 282 :-
Dual Teddycap both outputs connected - Not so good result
Dual Teddycap one output connected - Good result
Hicap DR - Great result
Hicap DR + Dual Teddycap - Best result
In summary, from my experience the power supplies bring quite an appreciable or significant difference to Naim preamps, in my case the NAC 282. It's not only the type but configuration that will greatly affect the sound of the preamp. The 282 can be powered by 2 power supplies and in my experience the best result is to have both outputs connected, surprisingly by the Teddy and Naim combination. When both outputs are connected with the Teddy, the sound quality is the worst.
All impressions are my own, influenced by my personal preference on how good music should sound like to my ears.
G
Guest432
Guest
far too complicated, isn't the whole principle to keep things simple?
mr sneff
pfm Member
Didn't know there was a 'principle'.......if there is maybe it's 'whatever works for you'.
NaimClontarf
pfm Member
In my head I have constructed the ideal system to replace my current family room system of Aex, Schitt Modi USB, Nait 3, Dyn Audience 52s and FM 4 tuner and the core of it is Teddy Pardo Pr1, MB100s and Dyn Contours....am so looking forward to it....