Heard the Naim mu-so at the weekend

[NSA_watch_my_toilet]

"but was hoping for some Naim magic in there"

And that was exactly an error. There is no magic stuff in Hifi. Just rational causes and consquences.

 

[Happy_Listner]

Compared to a HI-FI system like most of us have these portable ipod docks/music streamers just sound like (c)rap. It's really hard to listen to music through them. They are made for the mass market general population that think Apple iTunes downlaods are awesome.

 

[chebby]

Compared to a HI-FI system like most of us have these portable ipod docks/music streamers just sound like (c)rap. It's really hard to listen to music through them. They are made for the mass market general population that think Apple iTunes downlaods are awesome.

I'll reserve such judgements until i've actually heard one in a normally sized and domestcally furnished environment like the listening rooms in my local Naim dealer's shop.

I don't happen to think iTunes downloads are 'awesome'. So much so that I buy the CDs - regardless of whether they cost more - and rip them to iTunes myself either in Lossless (for music) or 320K AAC VBR (for drama/comedy/documentary/audiobook and other voice recordings).

 

[Al ears]

Compared to a HI-FI system like most of us have these portable ipod docks/music streamers just sound like (c)rap. It's really hard to listen to music through them. They are made for the mass market general population that think Apple iTunes downlaods are awesome.

I'll reserve such judgements until i've actually heard one in a normally sized and domestcally furnished environment like the listening rooms in my local Naim dealer's shop.

I don't happen to think iTunes downloads are 'awesome'. So much so that I buy the CDs - regardless of whether they cost more - and rip them to iTunes myself either in Lossless (for music) or 320K AAC VBR (for drama/comedy/documentary/audiobook and other voice recordings).

+1

I wouldn't spout forth on items I've never heard (if I do, and it is just a general opinion, then I certainly make a point of stating that fact).

I'm going to auditionthe Muso and the Quad Vena as I believe they are pretty much ideal for a situation I have.

Neither of these devices pretends to be a 'hifi system' replacement. However, used as they are intended, I'm sure they will be perfectly adequate. (I'm looking for a decent sound system that I can move from kitchen / bedroom to caravan as and when required), the current home set-up stays.

PS. I don't download anything from iTunes either.

 

[plastic penguin]

+ 2

It's a big faux pas to make snap judgements with this hobby. It tends to have a nasty habit of coming back and biting you on the a##e.

 

[Al ears]

+ 2

It's a big faux pas to make snap judgements with this hobby. It tends to have a nasty habit of coming back and biting you on the a##e.

Yes, "a##e bitten, twice shy" is very well known.

 

[andyrich_2000]

Compared to a HI-FI system like most of us have these portable ipod docks/music streamers just sound like (c)rap. It's really hard to listen to music through them. They are made for the mass market general population that think Apple iTunes downlaods are awesome.

I'll reserve such judgements until i've actually heard one in a normally sized and domestcally furnished environment like the listening rooms in my local Naim dealer's shop.

I don't happen to think iTunes downloads are 'awesome'. So much so that I buy the CDs - regardless of whether they cost more - and rip them to iTunes myself either in Lossless (for music) or 320K AAC VBR (for drama/comedy/documentary/audiobook and other voice recordings).

+1

I wouldn't spout forth on items I've never heard (if I do, and it is just a general opinion, then I certainly make a point of stating that fact).

I'm going to auditionthe Muso and the Quad Vena as I believe they are pretty much ideal for a situation I have.

Neither of these devices pretends to be a 'hifi system' replacement. However, used as they are intended, I'm sure they will be perfectly adequate. (I'm looking for a decent sound system that I can move from kitchen / bedroom to caravan as and when required), the current home set-up stays.

PS. I don't download anything from iTunes either.

i'd be interested to know how you get on with those 2 as interested myself.

 

[Frank Harvey]

It'd be interesting for those who have heard it to state what format they've auditioned it with. My comments have been based on FLAC (16 and 24 bit) files streamed to it.

 

[ellisdj]

Its interesting products like this were made 7 years ago - not sure how populer they was then. This one is no longer in manufacture even given the recent surge in these style of products

I wonder if they are more populer today than then / or if the views have changed on small being hifi in general I mean?

 

[Happy_Listner]

Sanp judgements? What are you guys all talking about? If the Muso sounds as good as any of our Hi-Fi systems I'll eat my shorts. Like one of you said, the Muso is not inteded to be a true Hi-Fi system. It is what it is.

 

[Philim]

It'd be interesting for those who have heard it to state what format they've auditioned it with. My comments have been based on FLAC (16 and 24 bit) files streamed to it. 

Mine was FLAC via BT as it was not connected in JL.
I like the look and feel but didn't feel it offered great value for money. Not compared to separates but against similar units. I have a UE piece which I picked up for £79 new but even at original rrp of 299 I would be hard pushed to justify the difference. I understand why people would pay the difference because of the look and feel and that is their choice. I myself have spent a small fortune on naim separates which you could also argue don't offer good vfm lol.

 

[plastic penguin]

Sanp judgements? What are you guys all talking about? If the Muso sounds as good as any of our Hi-Fi systems I'll eat my shorts. Like one of you said, the Muso is not inteded to be a true Hi-Fi system. It is what it is.

By that I mean condemning the product before you heard it or making an assessment based on a couple of people's comments. That's a snap judgement.

Whereas I only dismiss certain stuff for practical reasons.

Listen to one first and then comment on the sound.

 

[Happy_Listner]

I never said it was a horrible product for what it is, did I? For what it is the Muso could be the best one in its class. What I did say is that it will never be as good as our true HI-FI systems. How could it be for the price and the concept? It would be a miracle.

 

[chebby]

I never said it was a horrible product for what it is, did I?

Well, in a thread - whose only subject is the Naim mu-so - you claimed that ...

Compared to a HI-FI system like most of us have these portable ipod docks/music streamers just sound like (c)rap. It's really hard to listen to music through them.

... so we can only conclude that you have decided it sounds like "(c)rap" through association with your feelings about portable iPod docks/streamers. (The mu-so isn't portable but that doesn't seem to matter.)

I have concluded that I should compare it with a separates system of speakers, amp, DAC and network streamer totalling the same amount (£895), or similar, before going on to consider the other pros and cons of one configuration vs the other and balancing them.

I think that's fair.

(Fairer than someone - who will never consider buying one - making a judgement based on never hearing one.)

 

[steve_1979]

I never said it was a horrible product for what it is, did I? For what it is the Muso could be the best one in its class. What I did say is that it will never be as good as our true HI-FI systems. How could it be for the price and the concept? It would be a miracle.

Being a single 'box' it couldn't possibly have the same stereo image as two separate speakers and the bass will be limited by the size of the smallish enclosure but there's no reason why it couldn't have the same level of clarity as a similarly priced regular hifi system.

 

[Happy_Listner]

Chebby, you're just picking at nits now. You know exactly what I meant. I think maybe your making a big deal out of nothing to make up some imaginary point just to prove you are right?

Fact is most of our HI-FI systems, the people on this Forum, have systems that cost in excess of 895. After hearing a nice HI-FI system, like many of us have, Lifestyle products like Muso or Bose are a let down in sound quality.

All I did was a make a passing comment that these Lifestyle type systems do not sound as good as true HI-FI systems and that's all. So calm down and put your fists down.

If you want to go the 895 limit angle then I can further argue that I am confident I could put together a separates system that sounds better than the Muso does for the same price, although it may not have the same features count. Ummm..... are those fighting words?

Now get those gloves back on! lol *aggressive*

Relax and have a tea, I just did, Ahhhh.....

 

[chebby]

Chebby, you're just picking at nits now. You know exactly what I meant. I think maybe your making a big deal out of nothing to make up some imaginary point just to prove you are right?

Fact is most of our HI-FI systems, the people on this Forum, have systems that cost in excess of 895. After hearing a nice HI-FI system, like many of us have, Lifestyle products like Muso or Bose are a let down in sound quality.

All I did was a make a passing comment that these Lifestyle type systems do not sound as good as true HI-FI systems and that's all. So calm down and put your fists down.

If you want to go the 895 limit angle then I can further argue that I am confident I could put together a separates system that sounds better than the Muso does for the same price, although it may not have the same features count. Ummm..... are those fighting words?

I've been down the same road as you a couple (or more) times over the years. In 1996 I had a new Rega separates system (amp, tuner and turntable) and enjoyed it for the next 11 years. In 2009 I bought a Naim separates system (Nait 5i, CD5i, NAT05 and nSat speakers with a Rega P2 turntable and phono stage and a separate DAC) but I was beginning to reach the end of my tether with the space it all took up (and the racks and the stands and the cables etc.) and the BS surrounding it all. No matter how good it all sounded I still ended up sitting there looking at a big, light-sucking collection of ugly black boxes and wishing I could make most of it go away!

So I made that happen. I sold the lot and have been extremely happy since March 2011 with a pair of small Rega floorstanders (R3s) and a Marantz M-CR603. (Totally integrated into my preferences of iTunes, AirPlay, iPhone, iPad, Mac Mini and FM and Internet radio.) There was suprisingly (shockingly at first) little difference in overall sound quality and a huge amount of extra useable space.

I thought that might wear off but here, now, three and a half years later, I am still happier than when I owned separates. I'm not saying it's outright 'audiophile' credentials are quite up there with the old Naim stuff, but i've had (and still have) tremendous fun with this system and i've lost any snobbery that I might have felt once about so-called 'lesser' systems (and have no envy for people with 'better' hi-fi). It took a while but the BS was replaced with Book Shelves and I now buy far more CDs (to rip) than I ever did.

I am still considering an upgrade (or change) one day, but only maybe. That upgrade might be the mu-so if I like it (firstly and most importantly), or it might be based around the Naim UnitiQute, or something like the new Quad Vena with an Apple TV for the AirPlay.

So long as it's compact (and not separates again) and good and provides the right functionality/connectivity for eveything I want.

One thing I won't be doing in a hurry is writing off any option - except separates - (including just keeping what I have now as a very real option) just because of other people's prejuduces against the 'idea' of certain kinds of product.

 

[Happy_Listner]

Chebby, I am glad you are happy with a smaller system. Small systems can sound really good. Like a Naim Uniti Lite and a pair of good small speakers. But mass market Lifestyle systems usually don't have nice speakers that come with the set. I would be interested in trying out a more upscale Linn Kiko or a McIntosh MXA70.

When I first got into Audio when I was 16 or so I was really interested in small half width components for years. Denon and Kenwood made quite a few back then. I owned a Sony one but with horrible Sony speakers that came with it. There was even a really nice Proton all-in-one system that I dreamed about owning and hooking up to pair of Kef speakers, but it was out of my price range.

You're right I haven't heard the Muso but so many of these Lifestyle systems, like many Bose ones I have listened to, just don't sound good to me anymore. I have had some nice equipment come through my system over the years from Cary, VTL, to YBA, and I can notice a difference in the sound quality. It's hard for me to go back.

But as you said these audiophile systems take up space and cost a lot. Sometimes all the fiddling around can take away from the fun of just listening to music for many people. The ease, feature set, and use of Lifestyle products are appealing to many.

With all that said I still like it though, the searching, the fiddling, and I guess I am almost as much into equipment as I am into music.

BTW, how do you like your Rega R3's? I'm thinking of getting a pair of RS3's to match up with my Elex-R. Going for an all Rega system I think.

OK, sorry guys for the quick detour, back to Naim Muso!

 

[chebby]

I heard the mu-so for about 90 minutes this morning.

Almost bought it there and then! (I will wait to hear other options first though it was very, very tempting.)

Coincidentally another forum member was there to listen to it as well. He has made his mind up to buy one.

Very impressive.

 

[nopiano]

I heard the mu-so for about 90 minutes this morning.

Almost bought it there and then! (I will wait to hear other options first though it was very, very tempting.)

Coincidentally another forum member was there to listen to it as well. He has made his mind up to buy one.

Very impressive.

Was that in a proper hifi shop, Chebby? And was it in a room rather than an open store?

 

[True Blue]

Well, I heard the MUSO today at my dealers and as Chebby said we met in there. The Muso was on a glass shelf and I did question this as in my experince NAIM gear never sounds great on glass. It was not in a dedicated listening room, so there were no acoustic panels etc etc.

It was firing across the store. First thing I noticed that, no matter where you stood in relation to the MUSO the sound was incredible. Room filling detailed sound and that was from internet radio...........

Chebby tried to get aiplay working but there were some issues with the shops network / other equipment intefereing (i dont know) but it was dropping out after about 15 seconds. However in that short space of time the sound was beautiful.

I then decided to stream via bluetooth from my Samsung phone, Spotify was in order and every track I threw at it was delivered with a real sense of passion, a good level of detail and more importantly had the NAIM PRaT that gets the toes tapping.

Once I had checked my wallet was secured in my pocket I then picked up the extremely well made unit (and boy is it heavy). It is a class act. Plenty of nice touches. The contour on the grille reflecting the Statement design, that volume control, the intricasy and the engineering of the bass port / bass tube section, show just how much thought and passion has gone into designing this, not only to sound great but to have an impact on the visuals of a space.

No it is not a soundbar, its too good for that. Niether is it as good as a Nait XS with CDP and speakers, but its not supposed to do that (and its significantly cheaper).

So given how good it sounded in the not exactly optimised listening conditions and the fact the shops WIFI wasnt working great so no access to a high quality source such as the Unitiserve, I am going to buy at least one when I next return home.

Its priced to introduce the vast majority of people who would like a good quality wireless speaker to the Naim sound, and that it has done very very well.

Correctly priced and correctly voiced.

 

[super]

I've had the mu-so for about a couple of weeks now and i am very pleased with the sound and it seems to be getting better as it's running in. I went on the naim forum where there was a feed back column and asked if there was going to be a shuffle control on their app, so if you have many albums on a USB stick you could vary them in listening to them. They said an update was coming out soon but the shuffle would only be on the actual album, no shuffling of all albums.

 

[chebby]

What he said 🙂

It was a bit irritating that the unit wasn't ethernet connected to the shop's router (at least get a long cable chaps) and they were having grief with their wi-fi ("You should have come yesterday, the wi-fi was excellent then")

Anyway, we set our phasers to Bluetooth and took it in turns (me to Trevor Nelson's soul programme on iPlayer Radio and 'True Blue' to Spotify Premium.)

We both enjoyed some very nice sounds. The mu-so actually looks better in the flesh than most of it's online promo photos.

I thought it had an excellent 'tone' and True Blue reckoned it had been 'voiced' really well. (I am pretty sure we meant the same thing.)

I am definitely up for a booked demo in a few weeks (in a room with an ethernet connection next time).

They've already sold four units and have lots of orders pending more deliveries.

The manager (Nick) is hoping to get 50 in stock and is very confident of shifting all of them!

 

[nopiano]

Thanks for the very helpful write ups!

 

[BigH]

the NAIM PRaT that gets the toes tapping.

Sorry could not resist.