What a surprise - Not !

I see what you've done! Clever? Not so sure

The only thing in your post that I disagree with Don, is your spelling of "damn"!

Ooops, damn it !!

Thanks Mark

Cheers

Don

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder as the cliche goes...

Get it out with Optrex.

(nicked off Spike Milligan)

I generally agree with you too Don, but in my many years of being a forum member I've yet to see a posting one could seriously regard as just bragging.

Whenever I post photos of my system I always do so to better illustrate changes I've made, and I like to think most folk find interest in what I've done & my reasons for doing so.

As Steve J. pointed out I've a thick skin but that doesn't mean I'm going to ignore petty snipes.

+1 x 100

Whatever the pictures contain from a simple 1 box to 3 stack Fraim systems the majority of readers do view them with genuine interest.

In many cases they give forunites ideas or generate sensible reply questions about how, what & why ... etc     

IMO if you have nothing to say other than post a "negative" non-contributory remark, just don't bother I say.

Well said Mike.

Didn't think that a bit of harmless banter between Ken and myself would have caused such a response.

It just seems that there has been a lot of 500 bashing going on just recently. 

I remember back in the day (about 2003?) people posted photos of systems with many levels of Mana supports to show how "over the top" they looked.

But of course it is the sound that matters, the looks can be hidden behind a screen if required.

Without intending to infer anything negative at all, even when I owned a high-end Naim system I always found the pictures of very simple systems, and the discussion of them, to be infinitely more interesting than pictures of other high-end set-ups. Again absolutely no offence intended to Tony or anybody else who posts pics of elaborate set-ups, but I always found the inginuity of those on very tight budgets to be rather more fascinating and very instructive.

Having said that I can also remember drooling over pictures of Tony's system which, especially in that gorgeous room, looks rather impressive. I would be fascinated to know why you decided to ditch the projector Tony in favour of a flat panel TV? Did you ever consider having both, as many people with serious cinema installations seem to do?

Peter

I'm genuinely touched and moved by your very kind offer James, but I wouldn't wish to burden you with the stress it might cause, knowing what a sensitive, delicate soul you are.

Anyway, as you know you're overdue a visit to mine. Maybe time for another of them there WNPS get-togethers.

Group hug!!! 

Osprey it all seemed to start with Peter's wonky thread.Some of the comments aimed at Peter were very nasty all because he was contemplating two 500's .

It seem ok to move from one or two 300's to a single 500 but contemplating two is just not on. 

And as for owning three.

Hi Tony,

I probably agree with you that there are very few posts, if any, that are "just" bragging.

I don't consider your system picture, or anybody else's "system picture" as bragging, although clearly there are some on this forum who do consider the system pictures a form of bragging.

However, (and here I think we probably differ) when it occurs and IMHO on this forum it does, bragging takes many forms and is very rarely "pure" bragging. Some of it is overt, but mainly it is far more subtle and quite often intertwined with "advice" or "guidance".  (and for the avoidance of doubt, I have no intention of trawling the forum to track down specific examples of bragging) 

More disturbingly, there have been a few recent posts where people have positively mocked those with lesser systems, and other posts where people with lesser systems have been told (in effect) to shut up and leave the forum. People expressing these attitudes are worthless, regardless of how hard they have had to work in order accumulate their legitimate wealth.

And like you, if people make petty snipes, I don't usually ignore them.

Overall, I think we are both on a similar wavelength.

Cheers

Don

I remember and understand what you are saying (and don't approve that either) but it still is not cool that a group of people corner one person and start kicking. As you can guess I am not a big believer of teaching a lesson culture, use of it very seldom solves any problems.

And about harmless banter that is just what the school boys say when caught when putting one's head in the toilet and flushing.

It seems though that I am quite alone with these thoughts here but at least I have tried to make my point of view known.

As stated on an earlier thread some weeks back, bullying of any member is absolutely not tolerated.  There was an unfortunate episode earlier in the year where I felt there was some evidence to support that this had occurred and all those members involved will know the outcome and what was said to them by the forum Admin. 

However, despite some possible evidence to the contrary on certain threads, I don't believe any of us are children here - I shall assume all are grown ups. The term bullying is one that should perhaps stay on the playground.  The previous incident just stopped short of something more serious in my eyes - and mainly because I feel that any serious malevolence was entirely absent.  It was jesting and jibing  that did indeed go just a little too far.  Those involved accepted that and we have since moved on.  So let's...

A few more related thoughts;

The river of discussion and of accepted wisdom here does tend to flow in a certain direction.  That's undeniable and also quite normal - it's the Naim forum, where Naim owners, Naim dealer, Naim distributors, Naim staff, and Naim admirers can get together and most discussion will centre around...  Naim.  If you go out of your way to swim against the flow, for whatever reason, whether it be just for kicks, to grandstand, or for some other agenda then you have to expect a negative response from some of the members.  Aside from the accepted, tried and tested Naim knowledge base, just posting the same thing over and over doesn't mean that it will eventually become any more right or wrong.  It just tends to begin to irritate and eventually inflame some sort of outburst.

What's the answer?  I don't know for sure, but perhaps a little more love and respect all round is called for.  All of the people I've met over the years with some sort of interest in Naim, whether owners, staff, or what have you, have all been, on the face of it, good people.  This forum attests to that - it is generally one of the most respectful and pleasant online forums I've witnessed.  Long may that continue.

The first law of Hi-Fi applies to a lot of consumer goods.

If one can afford it; it's good value, and possibly even an 'investment' - Ha!

If one cannot afford it; it's outrageous/ludicrous/OTT.

John.

Hi Osprey,

You're not alone with these thoughts.

Despite English (probably) not being your native language you have made your views clear. A few people have chosen to mis-interpret them.

Something similar happened about 10 years ago when "Private Posts" were available. A group started to target individuals. It was stopped.

Cheers

Don

Good to know Don, thanks. Since Richard has summarized once again the official policy (and he has the final call anyhow) this discussion at least concerning me is now over. 

The option of having a large display and a projector system was a possibilty but my wife, whose views are important to me, really wasn't keen and it's practically very difficult to implement anyway.

Projectors are great, but using them for watching TV isn't so easy for elderly relatives who get confused over switching on surround systems and having the blackout blinds down for daylight viewing. Projector bulbs don't take kindly to being switched on and off too much either.

Hi John,

Very true words.

Looking back at Page 24 of the "Pictures" thread, DrMark and Kevin posted pictures of "Jolly good" hi-fi systems. Non-Naim systems perhaps, but no doubt jolly good. (My words)

I haven't seen too many positive comments about any of these three systems in that thread !!

Hardly surprising I know. Especially on the Naim forum - but I bet Linn, Rega and other forums would respond in a similar way. And what is worse, is that the owners of these hifi sets are not here to defend thenselves!!

I refrained from making any comment since I don't know how these systems actually sound, and I wouldn't wish to offend anyone with my views on aesthetics.

Cheers

Don

Now, that might actually be the point. If I had a 20 box, £100k naim system, I doubt I would want its majesty to be in plain view simply because I think it would dominate a room and that would not be to my taste. The CD player and the pre-amp would obviously have to be in view but the rest I would want discreetly hidden. That is an issue of personal taste and showing it or not has no bearing on the "arrogance" or otherwise of the owner.

When Clearaudio commented that Tony's system was over the top, I had assumed the reference was to the aesthetics. As with the "nice photos" thread, I had presumed the order of the day was to only make nice, positive comments, if so moved and to refrain from comment otherwise.

I doubt if we would move in the direction Richard (and Naim) would like, if we all started posting our honest thoughts on the aesthetics of every system, regardless of "good" or "bad".

But I am happy to be corrected on this matter.

Cheers

Don