Worth the switch to Naim?

[empacher]

Curious if anyone has compared the Rega Brio-R with the lower end Naim amps or single boxes.

Pretty happy with my set up so don't know why I have the bug but anyway..... I am wondering if I would be gaining anything other than convenience by going for the UnitiLite? In terms of amp, would the Nait XS be a step up over the UnitiLite or Brio-R?

Just looking for some opinions before I try and actively coordinate some demos.

thanks

 

[BigH]

The only way is to go and hear them. If there is nothing wrong with your sound why bother, just enjoy the music. Generally I would say Naim are underpowered and I would be looking for more powerful amp to upgrade to. I may go and hear them next week, if I do I will let you know.

 

[CnoEvil]

I would agree that it has to be a personal decision.

FWIW. WHF thought the Arcam A19 was a step up, so if you like the Rega type sound, it maybe worth a listen.

 

[Frank Harvey]

I am wondering if I would be gaining anything other than convenience by going for the UnitiLite? In terms of amp, would the Nait XS be a step up over the UnitiLite or Brio-R?

To answer that question, yes, the XS would be a step up, but as mentioned, you really need to hear it to see if you like the sound of it, particularly with your speakers.

 

[stevebrock]

Curious if anyone has compared the Rega Brio-R with the lower end Naim amps or single boxes.

Pretty happy with my set up so don't know why I have the bug but anyway..... I am wondering if I would be gaining anything other than convenience by going for the UnitiLite? In terms of amp, would the Nait XS be a step up over the UnitiLite or Brio-R?

Just looking for some opinions before I try and actively coordinate some demos.

thanks

I had the same dilema, went to listen to a unitilite but i prefered the sound of my Rega system and I would of lost money swapping over to naim and i would of had to buy a phono stage too.

Stick with the Rega and enjoy it!

 

[empacher]

Generally I would say Naim are underpowered

Do you mean because many of their amps are in the 30-70 watt range or that they don't deliver the claimed output? I thought Naims were conservatively rated?

 

[empacher]

I had the same dilema, went to listen to a unitilite but i prefered the sound of my Rega system and I would of lost money swapping over to naim and i would of had to buy a phono stage too.

Stick with the Rega and enjoy it!

thanks Steve. Difficult to find those who have listened to both.

Irrational I know, because I like what I have, but I've heard Totem and Naim were a great combo and I've always dreamed of a Naim system for some reason.

I'll probably stick with what I have (and be perfectly happy -and more so after adding an Apollo-R) but might try and demo the Nait XS at some point. Maybe new Rega amp will be out in a few months to make things even more complicated.

 

[plastic penguin]

Curious if anyone has compared the Rega Brio-R with the lower end Naim amps or single boxes.

Pretty happy with my set up so don't know why I have the bug but anyway..... I am wondering if I would be gaining anything other than convenience by going for the UnitiLite? In terms of amp, would the Nait XS be a step up over the UnitiLite or Brio-R?

Just looking for some opinions before I try and actively coordinate some demos.

thanks

Concur with the others about comparing different amps and decide for yourself. However, I really do think those Totems deserve a higher quality amp, given they are over £2k. I would be looking at Naim XS as a minimum. I heard the XS last powering Dynaudio Contour S1.4 and it sounded awsome... up to a point.

Can't comment directly on the Rega Brio-R, but as the amp is sub-£500 in the UK, logic tells me that a better quality amp is preferable.

 

[BigH]

Generally I would say Naim are underpowered

Do you mean because many of their amps are in the 30-70 watt range or that they don't deliver the claimed output? I thought Naims were conservatively rated?

The rating given the price. Ive been told they lack headroom, so (clipping) distortion can be a problem. I have not heard those speakers but my dealer seems to stock them so maybe give them a go if time. From what I have read they need some careful matching.

 

[pete321]

Curious if anyone has compared the Rega Brio-R with the lower end Naim amps or single boxes.

I recently demoed the Rega Brio-R, Cyrus 6, Audiolab 8200a and Naim Nait XS. All connected to Monitor Audio RX6 speakers and a Rega DAC.

I found the Brio-R a real disappointment, not particularly exciting or articulate to my ears. Cyrus 6 was OK, although not an all rounder. The Audiolab was the surprise of the bunch bearing in mind you can pick it up for between £630-£650. I was mainly auditoning with rock music to give the amps and speakers a real work out. I preferred the Nait XS over the Audiolab, it had more control, however it's more than twice the price. For less money than a new XS, you could get an Audiolab 8200a + 8200p pairing which would possibly equal or exceed the XS for control? I should point out, given the WHF review, I didn't find the Audiolab treble at all bright, I actually found it quite smooth sounding. The Rega DAC would have played a part in that working it's magic.

You need to listen with your speakers, all the above amps sounded very different with B&W 684's connected, albeit the final result was the same for me.

I was captivated by the XS sound and picked one up secondhand.

 

[pete321]

Generally I would say Naim are underpowered

Do you mean because many of their amps are in the 30-70 watt range or that they don't deliver the claimed output? I thought Naims were conservatively rated?

The rating given the price. Ive been told they lack headroom, so (clipping) distortion can be a problem. I have not heard those speakers but my dealer seems to stock them so maybe give them a go if time. From what I have read they need some careful matching.

My listening room is 5m x 5m and I've never needed to go much past 11 o'clock on my XS volume, and that sounds very loud! Most of my listening is between 8 & 10 o'clock position on the volume control.

 

[tyranniux42]

Have a listen. I knew the moment I heard it that I loved the xs, compared to the arcam a38 it was leagues ahead with my old 683's IMHO. With my ovators it is a barnstormer. As for output, as long as the the speakers are of a sensible sensitivity then I can't disagree enough, it's plenty powerful enough. Big thumbs up here. I also have the unitilite which has a cracking amp in it, arguably the best part of the machine.

regards

 

[stevebrock]

I think the comparison between the Rega Brio R, DAC, Apollo R and the Unitilite is very valid - both lovely systems, of course the XS is better amplification but were are talking about £1600 systems here..... One is seperates the other all in one and both have lovely presentations!

 

[drummerman]

The XS is a lovely amplifier.

Is it to expensive? You have to decide that. Materially, a no-frills integrated of comparetively low power shouldn't cost that much imo but its a Naim. - Have I heard anything that sounds like it cheaper ... ? Not yet but I'd probably would check out some of Harman's products too.

I could happily live with one but would try and get one s/h and use sensitive speakers with a reasonably benign load though the amplifier has adequate current to be at least a little bit flexible in that respect.

regards

 

[stevebrock]

The XS is a lovely amplifier.

Is it to expensive? You have to decide that. Materially, a no-frills integrated of comparetively low power shouldn't cost that much imo but its a Naim. - Have I heard anything that sounds like it cheaper ... ? Not yet but I'd probably would check out some of Harman's products too.

I could happily live with one but would try and get one s/h and use sensitive speakers with a reasonably benign load though the amplifier has adequate current to be at least a little bit flexible in that respect.

regards

i bet it is, if I had more money I would be aspiring to one!

 

[busb]

Totems respond well to very good amplification - I'd recommend giving Primare's I22 a listen (£1250). I can also suggest their I32 for £2200 which I heard up against the XS - much better imaging, IMO, as good as the Naim was.

 

[drummerman]

Totems respond well to very good amplification - I'd recommend giving Primare's I22 a listen (£1250). I can also suggest their I32 for £2200 which I heard up against the XS - much better imaging, IMO, as good as the Naim was.

A Denon 355UK, a fraction of the price, imaged better than the Naim ...

Its not what the brand is about but I agree, technically it should be easy to get better both for less or more. That is the problem with Naim, they are, in some ways infuriatingly inferior yet expensive (though it has to be said that is relative and there are far worse examples out there). At the same time they are unique, both visually and sonically. The latest products, streamer/amps have addressed the needs of the life style conscious but they are still true to their design/technical philosophies as well as pricing!

I understand why people get hooked on the brand and I understand why others fail to see any value in it. It is also pointless to argue the point either way.

regards

 

[empacher]

Curious if anyone has compared the Rega Brio-R with the lower end Naim amps or single boxes.

I recently demoed the Rega Brio-R, Cyrus 6, Audiolab 8200a and Naim Nait XS. All connected to Monitor Audio RX6 speakers and a Rega DAC.

I found the Brio-R a real disappointment, not particularly exciting or articulate to my ears. Cyrus 6 was OK, although not an all rounder. The Audiolab was the surprise of the bunch bearing in mind you can pick it up for between £630-£650. I was mainly auditoning with rock music to give the amps and speakers a real work out. I preferred the Nait XS over the Audiolab, it had more control, however it's more than twice the price. For less money than a new XS, you could get an Audiolab 8200a + 8200p pairing which would possibly equal or exceed the XS for control? I should point out, given the WHF review, I didn't find the Audiolab treble at all bright, I actually found it quite smooth sounding. The Rega DAC would have played a part in that working it's magic.

You need to listen with your speakers, all the above amps sounded very different with B&W 684's connected, albeit the final result was the same for me.

I was captivated by the XS sound and picked one up secondhand.

interesting. Was that with the MA RX6s? I demoed the 8200P/CDQ with Neat Motives, which I quite liked (very detailed and crisp) but was concerned that raspiness might creep into the top end. Never did a side by side with my set up or tried different combinations to moderate certain attributes but ended up going for what i thought was the smoother sound of the rega.

And no, I would never drop big cash on the XS (even used which is what i would do as well) without trying it with the Totems. Even demoing individual components in different combinations in different shops is not a helpful substitute for a home audition.

thanks

 

[plastic penguin]

Clearly you are fairly content with your Brio-R, so is there a slight back-of-the-mind niggle or pure curiosity?

 

[pete321]

Was that with the MA RX6s? I demoed the 8200P/CDQ with Neat Motives, which I quite liked (very detailed and crisp) but was concerned that raspiness might creep into the top end.

Yes, the RX6's. The Audiolab 8200a was being fed from a Marantz player, but the decoding was via a Rega DAC. If it had been an Audiolab M-DAC or the a CDQ doing the decoding, I suspect the result from the RX6's would have been more clinical and maybe harsh. On the other hand, if an M-DAC had replaced the Rega DAC in the demo, the Brio-R would have probably come to life a bit more for my ears.

The Nait XS definately beat them all, as it should given it's price difference. As I said I picked one up secondhand, luckily with a 12 month warranty from a Naim dealer. I say that as I am in silence at the moment, the left channel gave up completely recently. It's with Naim at the moment.

 

[busb]

Totems respond well to very good amplification - I'd recommend giving Primare's I22 a listen (£1250). I can also suggest their I32 for £2200 which I heard up against the XS - much better imaging, IMO, as good as the Naim was.

A Denon 355UK, a fraction of the price, imaged better than the Naim ...

Its not what the brand is about but I agree, technically it should be easy to get better both for less or more. That is the problem with Naim, they are, in some ways infuriatingly inferior yet expensive (though it has to be said that is relative and there are far worse examples out there). At the same time they are unique, both visually and sonically. The latest products, streamer/amps have addressed the needs of the life style conscious but they are still true to their design/technical philosophies as well as pricing!

I understand why people get hooked on the brand and I understand why others fail to see any value in it. It is also pointless to argue the point either way.

regards

The problem I have with Naim kit is that nearly every shop, when asked about amps automatically mentions that brand first, often without many alternatives. I also mistrust the idea that various upgrades will improve the sound - I'm not doubting that is true but prefer to buy equipment that's designed from the start to sound as good as it can do for the price/objectives of the maker. Naim equipment seems to be designed to be nearly good enough but needs that extra box - at a price! One thing Naim do better than almost everyone else is marketing!

My experience has shown that there's nearly always better SQ for less - if one is willing to do some digging. I'd love to like the brand - they are assembled near Salisbury, if not entirely made in Blighty. The only bit of kit I own that's English is my M-DAC - but hell - it's made in China!

 

[empacher]

Clearly you are fairly content with your Brio-R, so is there a slight back-of-the-mind niggle or pure curiosity?

Good question PP. I am definitely happy with the Brio-R, but was speaking to a dealer (and have read some confirmation of this from others online including apparently Totem themselves) who said that Totem's and Naim's are particularly well suited. So yes it is more out of curiosity to see if I could get clearly noticeable improvements or if it will just be diminishing returns.

I also take your point (and busb's) that I could get more out of my speakers with a more powerful amp so that is in the back of my mind as well. I have to say that for my typical listening levels, I think the Brio-R is doing and fine job at driving my speaker. This wasn't the case with my previous speakers so i do know what it sounds like when the amp is struggling. Nonetheless, I am curious about this as well.

I blame this all on the forum effect, but fortunately I am still able to enjoy my music on my grail quest for kit perfection

 

[pete321]

:dance:

 

[pete321]

I think the Nait XS is a great sounding amp, but at £1500 it's overpriced. I wouldn't pay an £800 premium over the Audiolab 8200a for the increase in performance of the XS. Especially when you factor in additions and upgrades to the 8200a could improve it further and still not take the total cost past that of a new XS! I got my used XS for £925 with a 12 month warranty from a dealer, if you buy privately, you'll get it for as little as £800. At those prices, it was worth it over the Audiolab for me.

 

[pete321]

I blame this all on the forum effect, but fortunately I am still able to enjoy my music on my grail quest for kit perfection

It sure is an expensive business being an audio-snob!