New revised power amps from Naim

I'd get in contact with your dealer and say you want the new DR version and you are willing to wait that bit longer for it.

I can't see it being a problem, after all it's your money.

You entered a contract to purchase a 500 as was. Unless the law in your country differs significantly from most others that is all you are entitled to. However since it hasn't yet been supplied it is at least possible that you can renegotiate through your dealer for a 500 DR.  Likely that would entail you paying the increase in price and waiting for it till at least August. It also depends on whether Naim have started building your unit. 

At the very least you are getting exactly what you purchased so you have no 'rights' as such. Speak to your dealer/importer. Their job to deal with Naim re any alterations to your order.

Andy

What country do you live in? I would call Naim directly, if your dealer / importer cannot sort it out for you.

I am mindful that this is possibly a contentious subject right now and one that is probably best dealt with between customer and dealer/distributor.  As it is somewhat outside of Naim's control (distribution and dealerships are entirely independent of Naim), and the dealers and distributors have a limited ability to reply here, the forum is not really the place to air such things, particularly at such an early stage.  

Without wishing to get embroiled in a protracted debate on this,  it's worthwhile remembering that this is just an announcement of what's on its way in the future.  It's likely just not possible or even reasonable to give extra early warning here (btw, Naim did really well here - even I didn't know until the announcement last week).  However, it is likely worth having a chat with your dealer if you are in any way aggrieved having just ordered the current amp - the sooner the better, I'd imagine.  After all, they're in the business of making you happy...

I am going to move this into the Padded Cell for now, but don't be surprised if it's locked in due course...

Thanks Richard for your answer but Currently i`m not happy with this deal after all i did not get the power yet and it`s like getting and old power, instead of a new one, when the deal was for a new one,  it does not look fair to me.

Its a tough one.

You ordered a product in April. At that time it was what you wanted and your dealer didn't know about the future product change so wasn't in a position to suggest you might like to consider the option of waiting.

Your dealer might have placed an order with the distributor and you will get one of the last samples of the current 500s in his stock room.

You and the dealer and the distributor now know that an updated version of the 500 should be available to order in about two months time. Who should "suffer" ?

On the "bright" side, it is clear that the current 500 series (ie the model that you might get) is capable of being fully upgradable to the new specification. So soundwise you shouldn't loose out. Its only down to the cost (and slight inconvenience of waiting until the end of the year) for the upgrade.

I would speak to the dealer to see if you/dealer/distributer/Naim could share any increase in cost over the price of a new-spec unit. This difference in cost might not be that massive in any case.

Fingers crossed !

The problem is, that i need to add money when i closed the deal a month ago without to get any new information from my dealer so I'm getting a bad feeling to make the purchase that i already did

Speak to your dealer.

There are always threads about Naim not sharing future plans about products.

Some people seem to prefer the sound of non-DR products as well. Would you really prefer a product that you haven't heard?

If I'm reading you correctly all involved acted in good faith. You need to check with your dealer to see if your 500 has been built yet. If not, your're likely in good shape if you just move your order and down payment to the new model. If the 500 has already been built and is awaiting delivery, ethical behavior would suggest you complete the purchase and upgrade later if you ever feel the need. Conversely, here in the U.S most dealers will let you change your mind for a 10-15% restocking fee. Very fair for a very low volume custom made piece. After all the original 500 is still brilliant.

With regard to the new 500, all I'm reading is saying it will not be available initially but at a later date. My experience with Naim announcements is that later is much later.

From my experience with naim, future products are always better

Not always, case in mind is 252 vs. 52.

500 is still brilliant?  Everything is relative 300 is also brilliant but i want the best through this circumstances that happened

i don`t get you, you mean 52  is better than 552 first time i heard this joke

Sure, you do not. It was a typo, I really meant 252.

Hi,

It's an unfortunate situation for sure but all is not lost if you quickly contact your dealer and see what they come up with, you never know...

You won't get the answers here that's for sure.

If it were me, I would continue with your purchase and try to secure a decent deal on the upgrade with your dealer as soon as it is available without having to send the amp off again. Try to get it done in one hit.

Good luck.

was

Okey i understant but i never though that 252 was better than 52 at that time it was because they changed the look of those products and not the Quality like 250 vs 250/2, on this issue the nap500 means upgrade and not different look

Have you spoken to your dealer about this ?

Meni, you bought a 500, that's what you should receive. If you want a 500dr try and get that sorted now but if it has to go back for the upgrade, such is life. If you get what you paid for you cannot be unhappy.

I kind of disagree. It's one thing if you bought a NAP500, or any of the other NAPs due the DR upgrade for that matter, from your dealer off the shelf and the DR upgrade were announced shortly afterwards. In that case the dealer didn't know about it and cannot be blamed for not knowing. If, however, you place an order for a to be build item, which is due an upgrade, Naim do know about what's coming and you could argue that they have an ethical duty to inform the customer of the pending upgrade and new product soon to be released. Press embargo or not, they don't need to go into specifics but should inform the dealer and customer of a pending change to allow for him/her to hold off his/her purchase until the news has been released into the public domain, if he/she so wishes. If it were important to Naim that their customers are happy, and I believe it is important to them, such action would be in their own interest. If, however, they just go ahead ahead and build / sell the item, aggravation is bound to come their way, leaving them with unhappy and indeed upset customers. I would be very surprised, if Naim did not want to find a solution to this problem. Whether the importer and dealer are equally accommodating probably very much depends on which dealer and importer we are talking about. Simply put, some are better than others...

Good luck!

It seems to be better to complain here.

Naim will have been developing the upgrades for quite some time. At what point do they notify dealers of this? 

Possibly Naim should do this the moment they take the first step on the upgrade/replacement path.

The moment they conceive the idea to improve something they should (effectively) stop selling the existing model. It is difficult not to see this as a win/win situation for everybody.

The customer would never know if a product they have auditioned would be available to buy and Naim would be able to sell, perhaps, a quarter of the units they do today. This would result in lowered sales income, reduced R&D and fewer new products - everyone happy.

Add to this a requirement to keep products at the factory while they run in and I'd think you were teaching Naim a lesson about how to run a business - into the ground.

This is an example of buggering up the general to address a relatively minor problem of specifics.

"Customers" here = the small number of those who buy around the date of change against 100% - that small number who do not.

Adam its a very good point you raise. Would you know what would happen in the following scenario.

I demo an item, amp say, at a dealer. I purchase the item and Naim get the order and it takes them 6 weeks to build it. No idea of the time scales. If in the mean time Naim bring out the upgrade before my amp is built but after the order is placed, would i get the upgrade or the unit that i demo'd.

Presumably the production line has to change and i would get the new amp. However to me this creates a potential problem that its not what i demo'd and may not be to my liking.

Would Naim give the opiton.

Graeme

Most companies have a continuous improvement policy.

How do you know if you receive an exact copy of the product that you auditioned? Maybe a different make of resistor is used somewhere. Where do you draw the line?

I bought a new GPS last month. Now there is a new model. I think I will go and have a cry.

The guy needs to talk to his dealer (or the importer if that's who he is dealing with) about this. Its not life v death.

The importer says the order was placed with Naim with an expected delivery in July. Sounds as if its not an "of-the-shelf" item from the dealer nor the importer. More likely its a supply from Naim.

If Naim have a few pre-built 500s on their shelf, then July seems a lonnnnnng delivery date. More likely its a custom (or new-batch) build. Either way, the SOONER the customer and Importer get in touch with Naim the sooner the customer can sort out his options.

Worst case scenario AFAICT is that the customer gets a current model 500 in July. He then has to decide whether to keep it as is or send it back with a cheque for a factory upgrade - assuming he has demoed the upgraded version and feels its worth it.

best outcome (and IMHO most likely outcome assuming he and the importer act quickly) is that Naim will allow him to choose. ie go ahead with a current 500 or pay the difference (if any) and wait for a new version.

Relax. Its not life or death.

 Adam, your sarcasm gets boring, it's always your same old, same old want to be witty replies. Illustrating the most extreme case possible might make it all sound funny and ludicrous but it doesn't really address the point. The guy ordered his NAP a month before the new versions were announced. Where you draw the line is of course not an easy decision but if the building process of the old product lasts well into the public announcement of its upgraded successor and more importantly availability of the upgraded versions at local dealers, then I do think this phasing out period of older products should be handled differently. And yes, I do think Naim have some sort of ethical responsibility to inform its customers in such cases (if made to order).

As an aside, you are somewhat contradicting yourself, if as you say the number of customers who buy around the date of change is so small, Naim have got nothing to worry about. It surely won't drive their business into the ground.