Naim CD5i + Naim Nait 5i + B&W 683

[admin_exported]

Hi all,

I am new to the forum, and pretty new to the world of Hi-Fi to be honest.

I was looking for some advice from some experienced hands on a new set-up for my front room.

The room in question is 5.3m by 3.2m square. The system will mostly be used for listening to music (cd's and via ipod/iphone/laptop mostly, although the option to include a phono input for a turntable at a later stage would be a bonus).

I listen to a large variety of music including indie, rock, singer/songwriter, electronic and the odd bit of classical stuff.

I would also like to be able to use the system in conjunction with the tv/dvd player/xbox 360 for watching films and maybe the odd sporting event/games session when friends are over.

I have seen that B&W offer the 683's as part of a surround sound system which is reasonably well regarded - if I bought just the speakers for now, I would assume that I could buy the other parts of the system later?

I've been offered a deal on some (new) gear from my local Hi-fi shop. I auditioned the Cd player and amp with a number of differenet speakers including a pair of B&W 684's (they had no 683's in at the time). Of the speakers I tried, I felt the B&W's sounded the best, with the only critisism that they lacked a bit of low/mid-range punch.

The guy in the shop advised me that the 683's would provide this, but other than that would sound similar to the 684's.

Having looked at some of the posts on this and other forums, I am a bit worried that the amp in question is not man enough to drive these speakers.

Also, the audition room was of a different size and shape to my room - do you think that this system would be too much for my room? - (my house is detached and the neighbours are not nearby, so this is not an issue).

Any advice would be appreciated.

Cheers,

Neil

 

[Andrew Everard]

For that money I'd be thinking CD5i/Nait 5i/Neat Motive 2s, which I think would give you a much more involving listen.

 

[Frank Harvey]

The 5i will drive the 683's, but I wouldn't necessarily say it's a match made in heaven. As Andrew states, the Neats marry up to the Naim stuff far better - and don't be put off by their size! They may be small, but they don't lack anything! If you really need a big floorstander, try Monitor Audio's RX8.

 

[Anonymous]

I currently have the 684's on home demo and i'm loving them. The Naim is more than powerful enough for them as it is amp i demoed in store with. I have also heard the 683's and Although it is a better sound at louder volumes, I prefer the 684's at lower ones. I currently have the 684's set up in a room 4x5 meters and it's more than loud enough, so maybe the 683's would be over kill.

As Andrew says if you really like the Naim system try the Neat speakers. I listened to it last weekend and it's great, just doesn't really suit my taste in music, but it might be perfect for yours. If possible try as many different amps and speakers as you can, I would have never have considered the Roksan amp I bought last week until I listened to it and found it to be a great match for my music.

 

[d_a_n1979]

I demo'd the above Naim gear with the B&W 683's and the CM7's and IMO it sounded awful.

Very light and wooly in the bass department with no depth to it at all!

I think better amps/CDP's would be suited to the B&W 683's OR look at the likes of the Neat Motive 2's as mentioned above or possibly the Rega RS5's etc...

If you like the bass of the B&W's then take a look at amps in the Arcam, NAD, Rotel and Roksan range

 

[JamesOK]

I have that CD player and amp with an older pair of B&W DM603 S3. Theyre OK, but as some others have said, theyre not a match made in heaven. Needless to say, when budget, time, house move allows I will ditch my B&W and probably go for some Neats (which are fantastic).

 

[Anonymous]

Gents,

Thanks for each of your responses.

It looks like another audition might be the way forward.

I have been doing some reading up on the Neats and they seem to have lots of good things said about them both on this board and elsewhere.

Do Neat manufacture any other speakers which could complement them for use as a surround sound system for watching films?

Cheers, Neil

 

[Frank Harvey]

Nothing dedicated - you'd be looking at the Motive 1's for surround sound use.