Considering a move to Exposure or Naim

[admin_exported]

Hi all,

I currently run a Rega Saturn and YBA YA201 integrated amp. I find this combination to be a little too un-involving. Almost like the music is too smooth, too weighed down. Some songs sound great, but I listen to a lot of rock and it just isn't rocking enough.

So I'm considering a move to an Exposure 2010s amp and CDP, or a Naim Nait 5i amp and CD5i CDP. If anyone has any insight into these it would be much appreciated. I do wonder about cables for the 2010s, as I've read that it may be very particular about which cables are used due to it's design.

The Rega Saturn is a great player and I'd be a bit disappointed to give it up, but I believe some of the edge I'm missing is due to the Saturn. I am pretty interested in using only one brand as well, as I perceive that would yield more synergy than I am getting currently. I'm not all that excited about getting a Mira3 to pair with the Saturn, although it is an option and something I can listen to. My dealer carries Naim, Exposure, Rega, and Cambridge Audio.

I guess it'll come down to listening and determining which combination I prefer, but I'd still love to hear some feedback from you all. I'll be demoing the gear tomorrow, and will probably make a decision the following day.

Cheers

 

[Anonymous]

In my opinion, your amp is the weak link. I would keep the Rega Saturn, which is a splendid cd player and partner it with a Roksan Caspian M Series-1 amplifier.

The Caspian produces a fast, muscular and agile sound with a greater sense of authority and refinement than either the Exposure or Naim.

The Saturn has a highly involving and enticing presentation with excellent dynamics and timing and works well with a variety of material, be it rock, jazz or classical.

This combination (higher-end) will be far superior to the Exposure/Naim combination (mid-range) you are thinking about.

 

[Anonymous]

Well it turns out I'll be going to another dealer who is just starting to carry Exposure gear. This came as a pleasant surprise to me as I'd much prefer dealing with him than with most other dealers. He will have the 2010s2 (new version) that I should be able to listen to.

Naim is out given the difficulty in connecting a subwoofer to the Nait 5i.

I may also get to hear the Creek Evo2.

Thanks ValianTX for suggesting the Roksan. To be honest I don't know of any Roksan dealers in my area. They are one of those companies that just doesn't seem to have much distribution where I live. To be honest the Caspian is likely outside my price range anyhow.

 

[Anonymous]

you have a £1290 plus amp and a £900 cd player going into £150 speakers

the imbalance is definitely with your speakers so id change them look at something like monitor audio or creek both of which are lively

changing a great amp for another one isnt going to do much

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry, I probably should have mentioned that at this moment I've got a pair of Wharfedale Evo2-10 speakers. But those, along with the Tannoys, are on the way out. Coming in is a pair of Monitor Audio RS5. They are actually here now, but I can't set them up just yet, waiting till I can properly terminate my speaker cables. The current cables are too short and can really only accommodate bookshelf speakers.

 

[plastic penguin]

I think you're selling yourself short here - even with RS5's on a £1200 amp, albeit the RS5's are very good for the price, you should be looking at minimum IMO MA RX6 up to and including Spendor A5's.

 

[Anonymous]

I suggest you could look in to Moon kit - as it will give you that rhythm and stuff that you may be missing. The thing I have alway loved is the way they allow the emotion of the music to come through, even rock, which I have a fair amount of.....

Not sure where you live - but it would be worth traveling if need be. I know a dealer in Norwich and my local dealer is in Surrey, so if either of those are possible to get to let me know and I'll give you details.....

Nig

 

[Anonymous]

plastic penguin:I think you're selling yourself short here - even with RS5's on a £1200 amp, albeit the RS5's are very good for the price, you should be looking at minimum IMO MA RX6 up to and including Spendor A5's.couldnt agree more

as it stands your going to replace a brilliant amp whereas you should be looking at spending at least the same on the speakers as you did on the amp

edit removed references to another amp

 

[Anonymous]

I admit that I am a little confused. The amp I am using is not £1250, which would equate to about Cdn$2,500 (I am in Canada). Here the amp sells normally for about $1,700, or £850. I was able to buy it for $1,000. The YBA is a great amp, I totally agree. But I think it has introduced a little too much smoothness into the sound for my liking. Rock just isn't as involving as it should be. Now it is possible that there is something else in the chain that is responsible for that but for the time being I am leaning to the amp and perhaps the amp/CDP combo. I don't think it's the room because I had an old amp/CDP that did rock better than this system, and it also used the Tannoy speakers. Granted the Tannoys are way outclassed against the Rega/YBA, but should they not sound even better when fed through better electronics? I may not be getting the most out of the Rega and YBA, but I should be getting the most from the Tannoys; and if this system could rock then I think the Tannoys would let that out the way they did before.

The Rega is the most expensive piece, about Cdn$3,000, or £1500. It too I was able to get at a reduced price. The RS5 are $1,000 speakers over here, or about £500. I also got it on sale, thanks to the old RS line discounts, and the RS5 is earmarked long term for HT duty. The price was too good for me to pass up, an economical upgrade for my stereo now and HT later.

Going to Exposure or Creek would bring everything into line price-wise, more or less. The Creek gear being about $1,000 each, and the Exposure I believe $1,350 each.

Sim Audio is pretty easy to find over here, but very expensive. More than I'd want to spend. To tell you the truth the Exposure is about my high point in terms of price. I'll look into Sim though, to see what kind of deals are out there. Just about everyone seems to rave about their gear and I'd be silly not to at least look into it.

 

[Anonymous]

basically the tannoys are a budget speaker and theres a limit to how good theyll sound and id suggest youve reached that limit

the regas are better but even then theyre below the standard of the rest of your gear

by the way the yba retails at £1250 currently or 1350 euros so you got an exceptional deal

your best bet is to listen to some speakers about the $3000 mark with your current amp and since your in canada id suggest paradigm and totem then compare them with the tannoys or regas and youll hopefully see what i mean

basically at the moment you have a ferrari engine and gearbox driving a fiat 500 if you know what i mean and you simply wont get the best from them

 

[Anonymous]

That's interesting. Here in North America the YBA just isn't that expensive, but the Rega sure is.

I'm afraid that speakers that expensive aren't in the cards. Maybe one day (I've had my eye on PMC for a while, but can't justify the expense now). Perhaps a downgrade of electronics isn't such a bad idea then. I'd feel silly giving up the YBA and Rega, but it's not about the individual pieces per se, it's about how they sound together when playing music that I am trying to focus on.

I will be comparing the sound of a Creek based system and an Exposure based system against each other, and against the YBA/Saturn. I will do this at a dealer who typically uses Tannoy Prestige speakers, definitely much nicer than what I use. Now there are a lot of variables but hopefully this will highlight the differences in sound between the three systems in a way that will enable me to make a decision. I guess I know going in that if I am to better match the gear in terms of it's class level then moving to Creek or Exposure should accomplish this. The alternative is moving drastically up the speaker ladder and is something I can't swing right now.

 

[Anonymous]

i wasn't happy with these at all. i had hoped that with the amount i spent they would work better.