Each to their own
What's going on at Naim?
- Thread starter matfff
- Start date
Barkiss
pfm Member
Tom60300
The truth hurts.
No need to blame the French, unless you're unhappy that Focal and subsequently Vervent saved Naim from the impending economic doom they brought upon themselves. If you're alluding to the immutable truth that Naim literally lost the entire plot, they single-handedly achieved this performance all by themselves.Blame the French
rontoolsie
pfm Member
That's what I thought in 1983 when I bought a 42/110. The 42 was out of stock and the dealer graciously lent me an ancient NAC12 until they received my 42.
The 12/110 was magical...liquid , dynamic and authoritative. I could barely wait until the superior 42 arrived.
And when it did I brought it home after returning the 12 to the dealer. I couldn't wait to play LZ1 on it as the first track.
And when I did...I was crestfallen...the 42 was leagues behind the 12 and I could barely stand listening to it after my experience with the 12.
Added a SNAPS... better but still not as good as the Snapless 12.
All replacements are not necessarily upgrades.
Miss Ariel
pfm Member
Ron exactly what I found with my Naim journey and why I left Naim for Bryston in 1990 your post so resonated with me .
I had a 42 - Hicap - 250 and the 5 mods had just come out and my 42 went back to Naim for 42.5 upgrade.
My dealer lent me a 12 while it was away for a couple of months and I like you thought it was superb and had a real airy sparkling treble and had a real rightness about the sound.I was really looking forward to my 42.5 coming back thinking quite rightly if this 12 sounds amazing and the 42.5 will sound even better .
I was so underwhelmed the 42.5 it sounded really dull rolled off with HF 's and I put it down to needing running in but after 3 months it still sounded the same.Bryston were just being imported to the UK and I borrowed a, 0.5 @ 2 B poweramp and the 0.5 was just like that 12 airy and fast.
So sold all the Naim and kept the Bryston for 20 years.Still have them BTW but have gone down to some Rega with an Aethos and Aria phono stage.
So the reason I left Naim was I trusted my ears and pleased I did as I could have gone down the upgrade rabbit hole with all the supercaps mono blocks - fraim etc.
I like Naim as a company and they have their own take on how they approach their amp architecture.
And all the Naim events I have been too in the past the Naim people hosting where a lovely friendly bunch
Don't get the Naim hate here their just a hifi company that have a 50 year heritage... that you don't have to buy.
If Naim users like the sound of their Naim stuff job done ...just enjoy your system ...I couldn't care less ..but would never make digs of what the haters amps were if I asked ? ..says alot about them and this school yard tribalism of Naim bashing and how it really rankles them...whats that expression get a life.
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Too true!
What a pity you were never able to try a 12s with a SNAPS or equivalent.
My 12s (which I bought in about 1979, together with a NAP140 and an LP12!) is still going strong in my '2nd system' ... albeit heavily modded. I made up a dual (+27v?) linear PS for it about 15 years ago (one PS per channel - so it's really a 12s-5) and, a few years ago, replaced the Naim daughter boards with their equivalent from that US guy.
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Nothing more than a light-hearted joke. I like Naim: good products and excellent service. Why people get so vexed over Naim remains a mystery.
Alex S
carbon based lifeform
I don’t think it’s a mystery, on Pink Fish in particular: most early members are refugees from the Naim forum; nostalgia for the company Julian started and is now run very differently, by the French godammit; an upgrade treadmill; big price increases which lead to either envy or smugness at having found something cheaper that gives more pleasure. I’m primarily smug with a hint of envy.
Curiously though, some pfm members are still hungover from the Linn / Naim party they were at over twenty years ago.
Plenty are still there, of course. Looking at the first page of the audio room today, there’s three Naim threads [edit: now four!], three Linn threads, a tune dem thread…
I can understand those early customers being disappointed with recent developments at Naim HQ (expensive power leads no doubt were a real shock to the system) but a lot 'discussions' seem to ignite non-Naimees as much as Naimees. Naim seems to invite its own unique level of (heated) debate.
Prey tell, what is cheeper that gives more pleasure than Naim?
Hario.ca
Active Member
well said.
paulbysea
pfm Member
I moved from Quad to Naim because of the improvement of SQ to my ears. Nearly 45 years on I have never regretted my move from Quad to Naim.
I have heard Quad kit now and again since then and whilst I recognise it is good at the price point, it doesn't allow me to enjoy music as much as a Naim system does. Others have differing views, which is fine because we all like/want different things from a system.
The core problem with a good proportion of the Naim haters is that they fall into the category of ex-owners who somehow feel they were conned by Naim or its dealers back in the day. They also blame the marketing and the magazines who lauded their products. This just makes me laugh as everyone who buys hi-fi has a set of ears (I assume ) and the beauty of hi-fi shops and home dems is you can actually listen before you buy. If these people bought Naim despite their ears telling them something else suited them better then they either have to admit they are pretty stupid or find someone else to blame. They do the latter of course despite the former being the real truth.
Outside of that, hi-fi like so many things is subjective, one person's nirvana is another's hell. There are plenty of products I think are pretty awful, but I just stay away from threads praising them and let others enjoy. Why anyone feels the need to pile in and slag off others choices or make repeated snide comments about a certain brand is beyond me. Live and let live and just be thankful we don't all like the same things as life would be very boring if we did.
) and the beauty of hi-fi shops and home dems is you can actually listen before you buy. If these people bought Naim despite their ears telling them something else suited them better then they either have to admit they are pretty stupid or find someone else to blame. They do the latter of course despite the former being the real truth.Outside of that, hi-fi like so many things is subjective, one person's nirvana is another's hell. There are plenty of products I think are pretty awful, but I just stay away from threads praising them and let others enjoy. Why anyone feels the need to pile in and slag off others choices or make repeated snide comments about a certain brand is beyond me. Live and let live and just be thankful we don't all like the same things as life would be very boring if we did.
Alex S
carbon based lifeform
Everything I’ve had since: Dynavector, Densen, Sugden, Temple Audio, Amptastic, Leak ST20.
The Dynavectors were a straight swap, the rest a dawning that if you have efficient speakers you don’t need big expensive amps.
I had a classic 32.5/HC/250 for 25 years, joined the Naim forum and went downhill from there, but the only Naim boxes I’d have back are the 110 and CDS1.
herb
brain's right hemisphere
1974 401/33/303/ESL57 soon LP12
1988 demo Naim/Linn/Exposure amps. Exposure sounded like very more dynamic Quad my opinion seemed to upset the salesman. Exposure 6/7/8 bought
2009 ATC integrated with Naim CDX2 into Harbeths. Very happy throughout, thanks
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Thanks. Always wanted to try Dynavectors but never got around to it. Densen were top flight (and very well designed). One of the most enjoyable systems I've heard was early Naim + Epos. Should have bought it there and then.
rontoolsie
pfm Member
Naim used to have a .5ed version of the NAC12 fired by a Supercap in their Service Dept, to audition the serviced gear. I'm not sure if they still use it though. I DID use a 42.5/SC for a few weeks and it was an order of magnitude better than the 42.5/Hicap (into active DBLs).Too true!
What a pity you were never able to try a 12s with a SNAPS or equivalent.
My 12s (which I bought in about 1979, together with a NAP140 and an LP12!) is still going strong in my '2nd system' ... albeit heavily modded. I made up a dual (+27v?) linear PS for it about 15 years ago (one PS per channel - so it's really a 12s-5) and, a few years ago, replaced the Naim daughter boards with their equivalent from that US guy.
rontoolsie
pfm Member
You had to wait two MONTHS to get the 42 back from a 30 minute job to convert it to the 0.5 spec???