- Aug 10, 2019
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I have been wanting to upgrade my current Hi-Fi setup (see my sig below) for some time now and Naim kit has caught my eye. I am a sucker for aesthetics but at that price point, it needs to sound bloody good to justify the outlay! Last weekend, I went to Lintone Audio in Gateshead to have a look at some higher end kit than is available in any shops in Newcastle, which is my usual hunting ground. I must say, it's nice to finally see kit in the flesh after having seen umpteen pictures and reviews online and in the mag.
Before the visit, I already had a couple of setups in mind:
Option 1) Naim Uniti partnered with suitable speakers
Option 2) Naim NDX, NAP200, NAC202, DAC, again partnered with suitable speakers
For the speakers, I would love a pair of B&W 804D's, but from peoples reviews on here of partnering speakers with Naim kit, I understand that I may get a better match with a pair of PMC or Neat speakers.
Onto the visit... Something that was pointed out very early on was the difference in finish on the different Naim models. The "brushed and black anodised" finish is much nicer than the "powder coated" finish on the front panel and is one factor that makes me inclined to go for option 2. My visit was not a pre-booked one, so I didn't know if I would actually get to listen to anything, but was happy when the offer was made to try the NDX which they already had set up in their demo room. It was partnered with a Cyrus pre-amp and Cyrus mono blocks and a pair of PMC IB2i's. What a sound! This is what I am missing from my Hi-Fi!
I will be the first to admit that my ears are perhaps not the best at picking up subtle differences with music, part of this I believe being down to a short term memory when it comes to recognising differences. I think what I really need is a side by side comparison to make a proper comparisson. One thing I did notice however is that the volume was up much higher than I would normally have my system and I thought that maybe I would get much more excited about music on my system if I was less conservative with the volume... I would love to turn it up, but being that I live in an end terraced house, I can't really crank it up as much as I would like. After listening to a couple of tracks on the System in Lintone Audio, the volume was turned down so we could talk, and the system then really didn't sound like anything special. You certainly wouldn't know that it was £20K worth of kit from listening at a low volume!
So where do I go from here??? I had already decided before my visit that the Uniti isn't for me. I like having lots of boxes with lots of inputs and the ability to change/upgrade one component rather than the whole system. Option 2 is about £6K more than option 1 and brings me to the subject of the post. I cannot afford £8.5K of Naim kit plus the cost of speakers all in one go, so based on current earnings, it would take me about 10 years to gradually build the system, with 1 component every couple of years. This should also satisfy my upgraditis for far longer than if I bought the Uniti.
I will at some point be booking a proper demo at Lintone Audio as suggested by David (the guy who served me), and when I do, I'll take my speakers, CDP & amp so that I can make a more informed decision as to whether the upgrade really is worth the outlay, and also the order in which to upgrade my components. I have little interest in CDs so my CDP will be quite high on the list of components to change (for the NDX). I am hoping that my speakers will hold out for a few years to come as they may well be the last thing I change. I do need to decide fairly early on though if I am going to change the speakers as I have 4 floorstanders and a centre speaker, 3 of these are in the loft, unused, so if I am going to sell them, I can use them towards funding of new speakers, or the NDX, whichever I decide to buy first...
Here come the questions...
1) What would people suggest I upgrade first: CDP, amp or speakers?
2) Is there anything else I should consider instead of the kit mentioned in option 2?
3) Am I correct in thinking that (generally speaking) £3500 spent on a pre/power amp combo will be better than the equivalent price on an integrated amp?
4) What speakers would people advise I buy?
I would also be wanting to have an AV system that has similar sound quality as my Hi-Fi setup. The NAP V175 seems Ideal as it would power 3 of the 5 channels of an AV setup and the NAP 200 would power the front L+R. I would need a suitable "AV pre-amp" for this setup. What should I consider as a pre-amp to partner with the Naim kit?
Thanks to all who have continued reading through this rather long post, and thanks in advance to any who reply with comments or suggestions.
Before the visit, I already had a couple of setups in mind:
Option 1) Naim Uniti partnered with suitable speakers
Option 2) Naim NDX, NAP200, NAC202, DAC, again partnered with suitable speakers
For the speakers, I would love a pair of B&W 804D's, but from peoples reviews on here of partnering speakers with Naim kit, I understand that I may get a better match with a pair of PMC or Neat speakers.
Onto the visit... Something that was pointed out very early on was the difference in finish on the different Naim models. The "brushed and black anodised" finish is much nicer than the "powder coated" finish on the front panel and is one factor that makes me inclined to go for option 2. My visit was not a pre-booked one, so I didn't know if I would actually get to listen to anything, but was happy when the offer was made to try the NDX which they already had set up in their demo room. It was partnered with a Cyrus pre-amp and Cyrus mono blocks and a pair of PMC IB2i's. What a sound! This is what I am missing from my Hi-Fi!
I will be the first to admit that my ears are perhaps not the best at picking up subtle differences with music, part of this I believe being down to a short term memory when it comes to recognising differences. I think what I really need is a side by side comparison to make a proper comparisson. One thing I did notice however is that the volume was up much higher than I would normally have my system and I thought that maybe I would get much more excited about music on my system if I was less conservative with the volume... I would love to turn it up, but being that I live in an end terraced house, I can't really crank it up as much as I would like. After listening to a couple of tracks on the System in Lintone Audio, the volume was turned down so we could talk, and the system then really didn't sound like anything special. You certainly wouldn't know that it was £20K worth of kit from listening at a low volume!
So where do I go from here??? I had already decided before my visit that the Uniti isn't for me. I like having lots of boxes with lots of inputs and the ability to change/upgrade one component rather than the whole system. Option 2 is about £6K more than option 1 and brings me to the subject of the post. I cannot afford £8.5K of Naim kit plus the cost of speakers all in one go, so based on current earnings, it would take me about 10 years to gradually build the system, with 1 component every couple of years. This should also satisfy my upgraditis for far longer than if I bought the Uniti.
I will at some point be booking a proper demo at Lintone Audio as suggested by David (the guy who served me), and when I do, I'll take my speakers, CDP & amp so that I can make a more informed decision as to whether the upgrade really is worth the outlay, and also the order in which to upgrade my components. I have little interest in CDs so my CDP will be quite high on the list of components to change (for the NDX). I am hoping that my speakers will hold out for a few years to come as they may well be the last thing I change. I do need to decide fairly early on though if I am going to change the speakers as I have 4 floorstanders and a centre speaker, 3 of these are in the loft, unused, so if I am going to sell them, I can use them towards funding of new speakers, or the NDX, whichever I decide to buy first...
Here come the questions...
1) What would people suggest I upgrade first: CDP, amp or speakers?
2) Is there anything else I should consider instead of the kit mentioned in option 2?
3) Am I correct in thinking that (generally speaking) £3500 spent on a pre/power amp combo will be better than the equivalent price on an integrated amp?
4) What speakers would people advise I buy?
I would also be wanting to have an AV system that has similar sound quality as my Hi-Fi setup. The NAP V175 seems Ideal as it would power 3 of the 5 channels of an AV setup and the NAP 200 would power the front L+R. I would need a suitable "AV pre-amp" for this setup. What should I consider as a pre-amp to partner with the Naim kit?
Thanks to all who have continued reading through this rather long post, and thanks in advance to any who reply with comments or suggestions.