SuperUniti V Rega

Excuse the first line, I had to retype out twice as iPad has a habit of shutting down mid sentence.

Drive the 400 miles ... only you can hear it and say what is best ... I've heard the Rega pairing once and thought it excellent, but if it were my money I'd buy a Mac Mini + Naim DAC and play it through a Nait 5i (or better depending on budget). I only had to drive 200 miles to my dealer, but he's great and helped me choose the components that worked best for me. 

I know that is the only way, just trying to get some feedback, as if it had a forward voicing, I know that I would tire of it quickly. Spoke to Wayne at Cymbiosis today who was so helpful, and confirmed that it had a "fluid analogue sound" which is what I prefer. Sold my Naim DAC for that reason, loads of detail, and good soundstage, but I just found it too bright.

I know it might seem as though i expect a £3,250 all in one to compete against a £12,000 amp and cd combo, I don't, but if the difference wasn't that big, I would go for the SuperUniti! And keep the change. But from what I've heard people say, the Rega pairing are right up there. If that's the case I can live with the extra box and the somewhat unique ugly looks. Love the build quality,and the lifetime warranty, and the fact that they hold 2 spare lasers in stock, matched and assigned to each unit sold. There are alot of manufacturers that could learn alot from this approach, and also the fair pricing, that doesn't go up 5-10% each year.

Anyway as you say, the only way is to go and listen.

Thanks for your reply.

Justin

The Rega Isis plays above CDS3 level and you're looking at 252/250.2 or 252/300 for the Osiris. The SuperUniti would be way behind this pairing as you'd expect given the price difference. The Isis  can also play WAV files using it's USB DAC. 

A £12k pairing being offered for £5k is something of a bargain and well worth the 400 mile drive. The build quality alone is ahead of the Naim units and the Isis was way ahead of my then CDX2/XPS2/HiLine combo. 

Thanks Rackkit, it's helpful to get your feedback on where the level of performance falls within the Naim range. I would love to have a 555 with 252/300 system, but unfortunately don't have the sort of funds required. My thoughts of the Rega pairing is to give maximum performance for minimal outlay. I know it won't hold it's value as well as Naim products, but with 60% lost already, and with the lifetime warranty, it will be a good investment. It has just had a brand new laser mechanism fitted 2 days ago by Rega, and they then add another spare to the remaining one held at the factory, so there are always 2 allocated (until there are no more). 

I've never heard any Rega kit playing, hence my post to get some feedback before making the journey. I hope that is as musical as the Naim dac, but with a slightly smoother top end, if it is, they will be coming home with me. They won't do much for the fuel consumption, 60 kilograms of kit in the boot .

Thanks for your feedback.

I think you'll be impressed - looking forward to hearing what you think. 

There's a review on tech radar if you search for it - i can't remember if links to product reviews are allowed unless it's for Naim items.

Being curious to these 2 things I googled it.  

My comment is this:  For 12,000 pounds I hope they sound fine.  Because they are the ugliest pieces of audio equipment I have ever seen

My comment is this : Not as ugly as your dog Greg, only joking !!!!!

I know they are particularly ugly Greg, but I find that an attractive quality. I like things that do not pretend to be things they are not, I prefer well built and ugly more than fancy and delicate (i do not apply this rule to women ). Having owned a Ducati sportsbike and BMW GS Adventure, the BMW was as ugly as sin, but because it did everything so well, you forgave the appearance, and it became more of a pleasure to own and ride than the Ducati. 

I think that the SuperUniti would be easier to live with, ie less wires, less plug sockets, less room taken up, and i might well end up going that route, but i cant get these Rega pair out of my head.

Lets be honest that while looks are an important consideration, we buy hi fi generally more because of how it sounds than how it looks. If it sounds as good as i have read, then i could forgive it its looks, and probably love it more for it. It does only stream 16/44, but i have to say there isn't a great deal of hi res music out that i like.

Anyway got to go, i've come over a bit bilious from looking at the pictures of them!!!!

You might think you can live with 16/44 streaming now, but if you intend tokeep this kit a while, at least satisfy yourself that you can't hear the difference provided by higher resolutions. (You can, by the way.) in other words, don't assume because there's only limited high res stuff around now, there always will be. I'm an SU fan who hasn't heard your alternative kit so can't comment directly; but as an audiophile of over 30 years' standing, I can say the SU punches way above its price.

If you're thinking rega, go audition the Rega Dac + Brio-R. Extremely enjoyable, and you forget all about HiFi. :-)

Thanks Goon and Mango. I know what your saying regarding the difference in hi res sound quality. I previously had a Weiss DAC202, and the difference in sound quality between normal res and hi res was very noticable, deeper bass, more air, bigger soundstage etc.

Thanks for your input. By absolute coincidence the guy I sold the Weiss to phoned tonight and said he  was looking at selling it!!!!

I wouldn't rush to judge the looks until you see the pairing in person. The photographs really don't do them justice (Rega have a staff member who does the photographs rather than pay an ad agency many thousands to produce hi end product shots  - it helps keep the price of the goods down). The ability of the Isis to stream 16/44 shouldn't be the main reason for buying one - instead, think of it (like the CD555) as one of the best ways to hear CDs.

I'd consider a different approach if Hi Res streaming is your aim as this isn't what the Isis was built to do. I'm using mine to play CDs, the P9 for vinyl and i'll go for a decent streamer when the Hi Res download becomes the mainstream.

rackkit, I didn't realise you had one! Glad to hear you rate it so highly. Can I ask, have you ever had any problems reliability wise with it and how long have you had it? Do you listen to it with a hard drive plugged into the back, and how does the sound compare against via the cd?

Thanks for your feedback so far.

No problems so far. It was a used buy about 15 months ago and i guess you know that Rega keep back 2 spare transports for each Isis anyway should you have a failure. I've not tried the hard drive option on it as i'm not sure if it can read AIFF files ripped using iTunes. When is your demo planned?

Well a quick update, as things have moved on. I didn't get to hear the Rega pairing, or the SuperUniti! However I now have sitting in my lounge, my originol Weiss DAC202, bought back from the chap who I sold it to 6 months ago for a very good price, and a pair of Adam Audio Tensor Active speakers. I have my iMac firewired directly into the dac, and XLR to XLR interconnects to the speakers. Now I know that we generally think our systems sound great (I have owned some before that I didn't think sounded particularly good) but this system is just magical. The sound is so natural and non fatiguing with a big soundstage and lots of air around the mid and treble. I'm not saying it is any better than the Naim equivalent, but I have effectively 1 box (very small) in the shape of the Weiss DAC, and a hidden MacMIni (eventually) and a pair of fairly compact speakers. I don't need any boxes converting the output from the MacMini to the DAC before going to more boxes in the shape of a Pre/Power amp (of course with separate power supply). One very happy bunny. Thanks all for your input.

And that's what it's all about - glad to hear you're sorted out!

Just i wish i'd spotted that Rega pairing at that price 15 months ago - haha!

Thanks rackkit, nice to hear from someone on this forum who appreciates that there is life outside of Naim!

Wish you luck with your system, part of me will always wonder about the sound quality of the Isis.

Hope you enjoy.

Justin

Hi Justin,

I am planning to get Weiss Dac202. Do you still have same high regard for Weiss dac that you had few earlier?

Your comment will help me getting Weiss Dac.

Regards

I heard an Isis Osiris RS10 setup. But when I put my Cd of Claude Nougaro "dansez sur moi" what a deception on his voice ! Very strange medium ...

Hello SoundFreak, sorry for the delay in replying. Yes i do rate the Weiss highly, i guess it depends on the sound presentation you prefer, to me, it is very detailed, more analogue than digital (ie smooth and natural) and not fatiguing to listen to. I also think it offers fantastic value for money, the Naim equivilant would be Dac/Headline/Power supply/Pre amp. Some on here suggest XPS as well, although i cant vouch for that. So 1 box, compared with possibly 5! I owned the Naim DAC before, and found that too digital sounding for my tastes. I also like the FireWire interface for my iMac! Sounds good via the headphone amp as well. Both good, but you will prefer one to the other.

Good luck and i hope you enjoy it if you buy one.