Naim Intro
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James
Lord of the Erg\o/s
If all the wiring looks right, the next thing to look at is the crossover network - specifically to see if it's been modified or "fixed" by a previous owner.
The Intros I tried briefly decades ago sounded coarse and slightly brash, but not thin. It's probably good enough to wear the hifi moniker, but not by much. SL2s are so much better.
The Intros I tried briefly decades ago sounded coarse and slightly brash, but not thin. It's probably good enough to wear the hifi moniker, but not by much. SL2s are so much better.
Tony Lockhart
Avoiding Stress, at Every Opportunity
I used Intros, with the outboard crossovers, from about 1997 to 2016, with CDX, 102, HiCap and 180. No, they weren’t fantastic, but in small rooms with the spikes going into a solid floor, the cabinet above any carpet, and as close as possible to the rear wall with no toe-in, I found them very entertaining.
What I will say is that after about 12-15 years they didn’t sound as good. I still have them in my non-existent second system.
What I will say is that after about 12-15 years they didn’t sound as good. I still have them in my non-existent second system.
say it as it is
pfm Member
ok will try removing the spike and using rubber feet see if that helps
Craig B
Re:trophile
I recall reading on the Naim forum that the Intro II crossover was little more than a cap plus resistor on the tweeter, with the bass/mid allowed to roll-off on its own.
IME, there have been very few loudspeakers that could pull this off without sounding somewhat shouty and aggressive in the upper mids through lower highs.
Epos ES14 managed to do a great job of it, but that bass/mid driver was a bit special.
I'd be looking to try a pair of PAXO/1 crossovers, such as came with Intro I, IBL, and SBL.
IME, there have been very few loudspeakers that could pull this off without sounding somewhat shouty and aggressive in the upper mids through lower highs.
Epos ES14 managed to do a great job of it, but that bass/mid driver was a bit special.
I'd be looking to try a pair of PAXO/1 crossovers, such as came with Intro I, IBL, and SBL.
I'd be looking to try a pair of OTHER SPEAKERS!! ;0)
It's mystifying the way the Naim badge on any piece of equipment prompts buyers to assume it must be a good product worthy of effort and expense to reveal its true greatness. What the heck? Look at them! Are the boxes brilliant quality? Are the drivers? They're wrapped in plastic FFS.
I'm not saying everything Naim build is crap, far from it, but they made speakers for a long time and if truth be told, they only ever were mediocre at it. Their speakers were given much more time than they really deserved simply because they were from Naim. Some were good, some were terrible and some were just ok but if another, less established, brand had put out the same speakers we would not still be taking about them today.
You can buy much better speakers than the Intro for similar money. Ones that don't need dedication and Herculean effort to get working properly. Buy some of those.
say it as it is
pfm Member
Easier said than done and these have no grills might knock a pair up
Craig B
Re:trophile
OP mentioned having a pair of SBLs with PAXO/1 crossovers out on service. It would take very little effort for him to try these crossovers on these Intro II when the SBLs come back. He may still find them unsatisfactory, but at least he will have given them every opportunity to shine (less?) at no cost.
Fair enough but if he has the SBLs back, why bother?
say it as it is
pfm Member
SBLs were a project to bring back to life, the Intros were meant to be short term and ready to go, but been far from it.
ps these are mk1 intros with the scanspeak tweeter.
what is involved to use external XOs I see the drivers have blanks to fit the flying leads. not had a good look but the XO must be connected to the HF inputs
ps these are mk1 intros with the scanspeak tweeter.
what is involved to use external XOs I see the drivers have blanks to fit the flying leads. not had a good look but the XO must be connected to the HF inputs
Vauxhall
pfm Member
15 ish years ago I was in the position to spend £5,000 on a new system and I decided on a Naim CD/Amp front end quite quickly, but choosing speakers took several months of listening to all the usual suspects that the mags/dealers were pushing then. Finding a dealer to demo Naim speakers was a challenge, but once I did it was clear very quickly that the Intro II's were what I was looking for. For the £880 price tag there were much more impressive looking options on the market, and many more options that were held in higher regard by those that voice strong opinions, but non matched the value of the Intro's in my system, in my home. I lived very happily with them for years and through source and amp upgrades, even if they were wrapped in plastic, although I'm not sure mine were.
Hear hear! I've had Intro 2s since 2001 or so, and have used them in a variety of rooms in four very different properties. At their best fantastic at conveying musical scale, drama and excitement, with clean treble and bass that can communicate the slam of a big bass drum. I auditioned them against Rega Ela, Royd RR1 and Linn Ninkas, using the Linn amplification I already had, along with Ikemi CDP. (All courtesy of Audio T in Brighton.) None of the others sounded so real with large-scale orchestral stuff like Strauss's Alpine Symphony. In a small room bass can be overblown, and flimsy partition walling behind does them no favours. But not a purchase I regret.
Intro 2s are certainly not wrapped in plastic, if you're referring to the cabinets. Rather, exquisitely made wooden jobs.
I remember the Credos being veneer but I thought the early Intros were vinyl wrap. Maybe I was wrong.
say it as it is
pfm Member
I think MK1 are vinyl MK2 got real wood but lost the scanspeak tweeters most gained external XO tho
Tigerjones
Bagpuss
Buy another pair of speakers and use the Intros as firewood.
Bas V
pfm Member
Had that same system, although the CDX was a CDI in mine. Very entertaining and I still have fond memories of it. I really liked the Intro's, but I couldn't really deal with the looks...