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Naim Supernait

RoA

pfm Member
I have never owned a Naim amplifier but am currently considering a couple of amplifiers, including the Supernait 2. The 3 is out my range.

Most reviews praise the successor to the original, better in every way apparently.

Looking at the innards of the original and 2, it seems that the original had a more elaborate Power Supply including additional smoothing and heat sinking for the transistors? It also had a DAC section which was abandoned in the 2.

Simply looking at this as a layman I can't help but think Naim was perhaps cost cutting. Was the successor cheaper?

If you have owned both of the above please add to this. Thank you.

Screenshot-20220921-115535-Samsung-Internet.jpg
 
I have just been through an amplifier search myself recently. Admittedly I dropped Naim a while back as it was to me not great value for money and to my old ears the Teddy Pardo ST60 comfortable showed my NAP 200 a clean pair of heels. I think the newer amps close the gap a bit but you pay for it.
Due to new house and different needs I have gone to an integrated amp from Atoll the IN300 which is by far and away the best amp I have had in my system. Huge Soundstage, tight bass, PRAT, detail, unfatiguing. Its like the ST60's bigger brother. If you can, give it a try, I'm glad I did. Its a good deal cheaper than the Naim too, with an excellent onboard dac bit like the old SN1.
 
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I own a Supernait 1 so here is my two cents :
In terms of heat sink, I wouldn’t worry about it as Naim usually use the whole enclosure to dissipate the heat.
In terms of power supply, I have to agree with you but nowadays electrolytic capacitors get smaller and smaller for the same capacitance so it might be the situation here.
 
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The simple answer is that having heard the SN2 & the SN3 a fair bit, the 3 sounds significantly better. It has a phono stage that the 2 didn’t.
Whether there’s cost cutting/ fewer component, I couldn’t say. But whatever they did, the 3 is better than the 2.
 
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Naim was perhaps cost cutting
Naim don’t really do cost cutting. I’ve not heard either but I do know that the 1 was not well thought of and that the 2 hit the spot with most people. The 3 doesn’t appear to be significantly better than the 2 but you do get a decent MM phono stage built in. If I were looking to downsize my system a Supernait 2 would be the one. Bargain.
 
I've owned both SN1 and SN2 and actually prefer the original.

The SN1 has more of a 'boogie' factor to my ears with the SN2 having a more 'polite' sound that just didn't get my foot tapping to the music in the same way that the SN1 did.

In answer to your question - the SN2 wasn't cheaper than the SN1 so I wouldn't assume cost cutting by just looking at the photos. Many people like the SN2 and I doubt you would lose much money if you bought one 2nd hand and then resold it should it not be to your taste.
 
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OP as good as the SN2 is however I'd chose the NAIT XS3 over a SN2. As I write this we've currently got an AM-HiEnd D/A-1 DAC > NAIT XS 3 > Monitor Audio 5G Gold 200's which to put it mildly is sounding absolutely sublime.
 
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I’ve owned an original Nait XS for 13 years now and it’s just gone bang (hopefully just a cap gone and will be repaired). I’ve currently got an SN3 on loan. It’s everything it should be as a bigger brother. Sound signature is similar, it’s just got far more grip and control of my Dynaudio Evoke 50s. Details are also a noticeable improvement but again, directly comparing an amp which my have been on its way for a while.
The difference may well be smaller if you’re running less demanding speakers in a smaller room
 
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I had the Supernait 1 for many years and boy could it boogie! It had a darker, rounder presentation than my previous Nac202, Nap 200. I hardly used the internal dac but it was fine. Adding a HiCap DR just pushed it into another league……turned it into a really svelte performer, retained the ‘grunt’ but managed to make the bass even more tuneful. I was disappointed when I had the Supernait 2 and moved it on quite quickly…this I because the sound reminded me of my Naim separates mentioned above, which wasn’t my bag.
 
I’ve used an SN1 for years and still love it, but I was able to try out an SN2 when it came out. After a weekend of listening I slightly preferred the SN2 as I found it a little smoother and cleaner in the treble, but Mrs. B preferred the SN1 - she basically agreed with the above comments that she preferred its boogie factor.

Ultimately I didn’t think the improvements I found in the SN2 were huge enough to justify buying it, plus it got rid of the separate ‘record’ and ‘listen’ selectors which I found very useful, so I stuck with the SN1.

As an aside, I was told that a Hi-Cap transformed the sound of the SN1 and so I tried one of them, too. The advice was correct as it did transform the sound. Sadly, to my ears, it ruined it!
 
Hi,

I’ve got an SN2/Hi-Cap and it’s great. I’ve compared the SN2 & SN3 and it really was not worth the additional outlay to change. OK, so you get a Phono stage in the SN3, but wouldn’t you have one anyway if you had a deck?

My SN2 has had numerous different speakers hang out the back of it and it just seems that every upgrade I make regarding the source equipment, I get an improvement.

Regarding the SN1, well if you need a dac then I guess that’s a reason to get one though again, wouldn’t you have a dac already if you needed 1?
 
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OP as good as the SN2 is however I'd chose the NAIT XS3 over a SN2. As I write this we've currently got an AM-HiEnd D/A-1 DAC > NAIT XS 3 > Monitor Audio 5G Gold 200's which to put it mildly is sounding absolutely sublime.

I have to admit, the little Nait XS3 is quite a fine performer, have enjoyed mine for about two years now.
 
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I’ve owned both and agree with other posters about the sn1 sounding darker and a little easier on the top end than sn2. The guys in my dealers described it as un-naim like but it was fantastic with the speakers I had at the time and still open and engaging.

In short, I think it comes down to balance in your setup. The sn2 didn’t really do it for me and left me a bit cold but I’m sure would sound great in other situations.
 
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In short, I think it comes down to balance in your setup.

So right
I have had SN1 and heard it sounding quite awful, but managed in another setup to sound ok, I prefer SN2 but went from that to 202/HC/200 and later to Rega Aethos which is a peach.

Plenty of good second hand Naim buys if you accept not to buy new.
Both XS3 and SN3 are far too expensive IMO for what you can get s/h.
 
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….by the way, slightly off topic, but can anyone confirm that the Supernait 3 is substantially cheaper in the States than anywhere else?
I recently saw a review on YouTube from a dealer across the pond and he claimed it was a $1000 cheaper than the outgoing Supernait 2, which surprised me!….a mistake?
 
….by the way, slightly off topic, but can anyone confirm that the Supernait 3 is substantially cheaper in the States than anywhere else?
I recently saw a review on YouTube from a dealer across the pond and he claimed it was a $1000 cheaper than the outgoing Supernait 2, which surprised me!….a mistake?
I would say it’s a mistake, it’s now over £1k more then the SN2 in the UK at £3999
 


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