advertisement


Hifi News Review of Naim Statement

merlin said:
.....but this amplifier is not sold on sound quality or aimed at Naimees.
Click to expand...

Well it all depends what you think a 'Naimee' is but I can't see any evidence that this amp isn't being sold on its sound quality - if you look at the internal picture it is clear that Naim have gone to considerable effort to develop and build these amps.
 
I've heard it. It even managed to make those awful Focal Mega Giant Monoliths sound good, which is quite an achievement. If you get a chance have a listen, it is very, very fine indeed.
 
It's probably unrealistic to try and look at this product on normal hifi buying grounds.

If you can afford this amplification you can probably afford to have a different system in the other wing of the penthouse or mansion!

Just ownership itself might be the goal, who knows?

How often do we hear of people with vintage or classic car collections where the owner rarely drives the things.

On the plus side, it's allowed Naim to do some R&D paid for by a small clientele. The lessons learned may filter down into the cheaper product.
 
Suffolk Tony said:
I've heard it. It even managed to make those awful Focal Mega Giant Monoliths sound good, which is quite an achievement. If you get a chance have a listen, it is very, very fine indeed.
Click to expand...

I've heard the amps too and they are very good. I'd like to hear then back to back with 552/500 or PR1/MB100 though, as I am not sure there is much headroom for better performance above those products with the sort of speakers I would want to use.
 
I'd be interested in a blind test carried in comparing these with something like the NCores being built in the DIY section.
 
paskinn said:
''They are a British Company.'' I thought they were owned by French venture capitalists.
Click to expand...

If they are registered in GB, they pay taxes in GB, they employ British residents... I'd say they are a British company.
BTW, the only British products in our household are hi-fi - all of it, except cartridge - and ms. Howdy has Brooks saddle on her bike and buys Marmite every now and then.
 
I compared a pair of Ncores recently (not to at Naim amps) and the Ncores, though impressive, we're not without quite a strong character of their own.
 
Ncores are not really my cup of tea. The DIY Avondale Voyager I use in a second system is rather nicer to my ears. But it's a bit daft to compare these amps to the Statement. If I was in the position of dropping that sort of wonga on an amp I'd be listening to lots of alternatives. Whatever they are...
 
There's a lot of controversy about Naim bringing out amplification priced at some 2 to 3 times existing stuff (is that right?). Don't know why, as the 552 and 500 was not that far off the multiple of the 252 and 135s (or 250 for more direct comparison?)

Surely Naim aren't up there above a hundred grand alone. I can't think of any, but there must be esoteric amplification on a par, cost wise.
 
Precisely Mike - very much the same criticism were made when Naim introduced the Nac52, the Nap500 etc. - probably by the same people too. As you say, there are numerous manufacturers of even more expensive equipment.

Tony, you raise an interesting comparison; I've actually heard a pair of Voyagers and Ncores and would agree that they are very different things indeed.
 
The problem with this type of product is that the company throws massive amounts of cash at addressing non existent problem, purely to produce a shopping list of impressive claims on which to boast. Amplifiers don't need to be hewn form solid billet, have their circuit boards neatly stacked on 'floors' and mounted on mass loaded sprung platforms etc , etc. It's a complete nonsense for an amplifier and I'm very disappointed to see Naim doing this (not for the first time) - selling expensive solutions to fictitious ailments.

I've nothing against expensive hi-fi when real engineering solutions are being addressed, and the solutions are expensive to implement. I can see nothing in the Naim Statement to justify the cost, other than pure market positioning designed to appeal to a tiny handful of wealthy buyers, and I find that very distasteful.

Mike Reed said:
Surely Naim aren't up there above a hundred grand alone. I can't think of any, but there must be esoteric amplification on a par, cost wise.
Click to expand...

But it's not esoteric amplification - it's just 'plain old decent amplification' in very fancy clothing selling at stratospheric pricing.
Any £100k+ amplifier will fall into this category when a £1000 NAD can do the same job, just as well.
However I'd also wager that most super expensive amplifiers (and I mean stupidly priced) actually perform worse than said NAD. They just look mightily impressive.
 
YNWOAN said:
I compared a pair of Ncores recently (not to at Naim amps) and the Ncores, though impressive, we're not without quite a strong character of their own.
Click to expand...

Blind?

That's the important bit.

You can substitute any one of a number of competent amplifiers for the Ncores I mentioned. Show me that statistically people prefer top end Naim when unsighted and I'll be interested.
 
Robert said:
I can see nothing in the Naim Statement to justify the cost, other than pure market positioning designed to appeal to a tiny handful of wealthy buyers, and I find that very distasteful.
Click to expand...
It is designed to be sold into a certain market segment that heavily weights certain things and lightly weights others. Why do you find this distasteful? On what criteria do you think the cost should be justified?
 
Dynavector offer much better VFM, similar sound and presentation to Naim but oodles more power for much less money.
 
I'll just add there is expensive and there's f'kin ludicrously expensive.

£20k of top end Devialet brings some genuine innovation, performance, style, convenience and power. At least a reasonable proportion of audio enthusiasts could afford them with a bit of sacrifice or savings, or even a chunky personal loan from the bank.
 
It's audio jewelry for the super rich.

It's a market that Naim are not alone in exploiting.

I doubt there are people wealthy enough who are so stupid as to think it sounds better. People still covet Pateks despite their being left behind in terms of outright performance.

There's only so many supercars, watches and planes the super rich can buy after all. And lest we forget, British business would be unable to tap into such markets were it not for the forward thinking Tory Government being so obliging in providing tax avoidance options. These allow for such wealth to be pumped back into the economy rather than the treasury. Bravo.

article-1228573-073F161B000005DC-962_634x387.jpg
 
h.g. said:
It is designed to be sold into a certain market segment that heavily weights certain things and lightly weights others. Why do you find this distasteful? On what criteria do you think the cost should be justified?
Click to expand...

I find that market segment thoroughly distasteful, sorry but there you go.

It's an amplifier - not a fashion piece or marvel of engineering. The manufacturer isn't highlighting those aspects you state are 'heavily weighted' by a market segment.
It has a specification to perform a task. In performing that task it's no better than something costing 20X less.

The cost should be justified primarily on performance, secondly on build quality (and by extension reliability) - but relevant build quality/standards, i.e. something to make a genuinely superior amplifier.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.


advertisement


Back
Top