I have a few more,CDX/XPS2, 252/SC then Linto/Lingo, all adds up. I do like the original shoe box naim pre’s though.I think of them as art. Though I have never had many boxes by Naim standards, just 32.5/HiCap/250.
Tim
I have a few more,CDX/XPS2, 252/SC then Linto/Lingo, all adds up. I do like the original shoe box naim pre’s though.I think of them as art. Though I have never had many boxes by Naim standards, just 32.5/HiCap/250.
Tim
What do you have now?
To be honest the multi boxes have less appeal than they did. Not sure why?
Yep & at the same time you could get that top level olive system that was out of reach back in the day. A bit like buying a car from your youth.
I find the whole thing with hifi rather odd. I have spent fortunes in the past, I have a really nice system but as I’ve got older & have a bit more perspective I find it hard to credit my past behaviour. I no longer envy other people’s systems though, I am happy with my choices & know I could ultimately change things if I wanted to for ‘level money’.
I find it amusing that individuals go on about having one thing & then change to another as if they have re-invented the wheel. Ultimately all they have done is spent some money.
I like Naim. It’s well made, reliable, sounds good and can be fixed easily in the unlikely event of a problem.
I went to 252/Supercap/300 level. Enjoyed it immensely. Then I realised how much space it took up and how much money was sunk into it. I don’t regret it for a second but there are other options which offer great performance for a fraction of the cost and space requirements.
It wouldn’t be butchery but you may not like the change? Since I have active ATCs I am toying with trying some alternatives, maybe a Bryson pre or ATC but my system does sound really good at the moment.I’m at a bit of a transition point. I’m using a 112X / 150X, which has really surprised me in a very positive way considering the tiny cost relative to the bigger Naim amps. It’s highlighted to me what a huge law of diminishing returns Naim is. It’s for sale though because I’m going Linn DSM and it doesn’t really fit into this architecture. Cymbiosis sent me a Linn promotion where you spend £3K on Linn and get a free Karousel upgrade. Not sure if I want to start butchering my original 1974 Sondek but it’s worth considering I think.
Brand is really important, when I was spending on naim JV was still alive for most of the upgrade cycle & the company only really changed where it went VC owned. I used to like naim speakers. Ultimately it is reliable, fixable & saleable. Not all hifi brands share this.I think that makes perfect sense, but it also misses part of the equation - as much as most here would probably want to resist the idea that it motivated them, as well as buying something made by a brand, people often buy into a brand.
With Naim there's significant (at least potential) pride of ownership - it's often well-regarded in the magazines, arguably looks stylish, has certain brand values around individuality (see: JV, PRAT mythology, DIN plugs, power supply idiosyncrasies etc.), is reassuringly expensive, perceptions of quality of engineering, legacy support, re-sale value etc etc etc. Other brands have their baggage too, of course, but Naim's one of the more prominent examples in hifi.
All of that's separate from how it actually sounds, but I definitely think it's involved in the perceptions of the brand. And rolling all of that stuff into ownership can make it seem a bigger deal than it otherwise might be, even if the customer isn't consciously aware of it.
And weirdly, although I've just moved on to very different gear which I think sounds better (a Primaluna valve integrated), and did so because I think it sounds better, I think it was disaffection with the current perceived Naim brand values that made me finally act on my niggling sense that the sound wasn't quite right for me. I've tweaked and replaced and upgraded, but only after they announced the collaboration with a yacht company (which I find distasteful, though make no judgement about others if they don't) did I finally think that maybe the sound - as fine as it is - just wasn't right for me. In the end, SQ and happiness ruled, but some of that other stuff was probably involved in the psychology of it all. Or maybe I'm just shallow! (Albeit also sonically happier now).
I wonder why it is that people who've moved on - from anything, I suppose, but it's noticeable with Naim - always seem semi-reluctant to say what it is they've found that's so much better. Don't mean to single you out, this post was just an example. And I'm guessing SJB had it in mind when he explicitly asked why in the OP.
It wouldn’t be butchery but you may not like the change? Since I have active ATCs I am toying with trying some alternatives, maybe a Bryson pre or ATC but my system does sound really good at the moment.
Well keep it untouched thenI’d just like to keep it original rather than create triggers broom! It sounds great as it is.
I can never get past the Vitus PR
“The elegant curves are a reminder of the hull of a yacht. The class and luxury is that of spacious, exclusive cabins. Sailing on the vast water gives you a sense of infinity, similar to the endless musical story that starts with the Vitus Audio Signature Series.”
That sort of shite just gives me cabin fever. You just know Rega could never come out with something like this.
.sjb
On the other hand, I did recently re-acquire a Nait 1 and some black Kans! Couldn’t resist.
I wonder why it is that people who've moved on - from anything, I suppose, but it's noticeable with Naim - always seem semi-reluctant to say what it is they've found that's so much better.
I wonder why it is that people who've moved on - from anything, I suppose, but it's noticeable with Naim - always seem semi-reluctant to say what it is they've found that's so much better. Don't mean to single you out, this post was just an example. And I'm guessing SJB had it in mind when he explicitly asked why in the OP.