252/SC/300 with Shahinians

The 300 is capable enough with either. I heard the 250DR doing a very good job with them at Audio-T Reading. There have been several significant cabinet and driver changes to both speakers in the past 20 years, so either will please you, but the Obelisk is in my opinion a big step up from the Arc, particularly for acoustic/classical music and piano.

The new Dynavector models are expected early next year.

Oh dear, I do hope listening to the SL2s hasn't triggered dissatisfaction on the speaker front. I've always thought the Obelisks look rather wonderful. 

252/SC/300 into 800 quid 20 years old speakers???!!!

are you kidding???!!!

if i were Naim forum admin, i would have erased the topic instantly!

is like saying i boght a Ferrari 458 and i use it for transporting veggies and meat to and from the market (on a non paved road!). and put it in weekends to race against... 1979 fiestas

i will never understand such a purchase!

better donate those money or that 252/SC/300 to someone who actually understands something out of it and puts this classical combo to work!

Oh Cat...  

I reckon if the Shahinians are in good fettle then it'll all work out just fine and dandy. Those electronics are about right to get them to really sing. £800 sounds like a good price.  What are Arcs new these days?  £5k? £6k? £10k?

 I should add that I rather like Shahinians Arcs...

Edit:  OK, according to Mike Manning the Arcs are currently £5k new.

What's wrong with a bargain Cat? Plenty folk here using SBLs and Bariks, not to mention CB amps, which are all technically antiques (over 25 yrs old)!

Thank you for the feedback.

HH - just food for thought.  Liked the SL2s very much, even if the bass was a bit light.  Interesting comparing the Linn recordings with higher res music from other labels.  The Linn was vastly more enjoyable.

Cat - I'm still old skool so ploughed my money into the LP12 then the amps before I do the speakers. I decided 252/SC/300 was a reasonable final destination for me, having upgraded over the last 4 years from 152/FCXS/155 then 202/HCDR/200.  The Arcs were an unexpected find, sounded better than my £2k PMCs and it was a chance to test the Shahinian presentation.

I think Obs 2s will be in place early next year, although we have a house move shortly so I ought to see how the current system fits in the new place before I splash the cash.

I have a 300/252/sc DR into shahinian obelisks mk1 however today I final received a second hand pair of obelisk mk2's.

both are amazing speakers but the mk2's just offer that extra control and sound a touch less boxy. my mk1's are superb speakers and so assuming everything is working as it should do it not be concerned with the age.

All shahinians like lots of current, so I think nap300 is a minimum. I actually have a Vitus ri-100 warming up as we speak for a home demo. Very interested to compare it against my existing setup.

So how did your Vitus audition Ho, Knipester? I would be very interested to hear how you found it (and any other amps you have tried).

Bartman,

If yours are the really early Arcs, then they would have been the MDF cabs in which case newer Arcs are (if memory serves) a bit more full-bodied.

Obelisks are quite a different kettle of fish with a MUCH grander scale. They need a bit more space than Arcs and so the castors come in handy.

Both have a reasonably easy load and can be driven by a 250, so something like a 252/300 is a real fillip for such a speaker.

I very much agree that you should wait until the house move before making any changes. See how you get on, and then you'll also understand the new room and its limitations. once there, you can consider changes if you wish.

You mentioned the Dynavector amp - a new version of their pre/power is due next year. Nothing available at the moment I believe.

Richard, Arcs SRP is £5899 I think, and Obelisks are just over £1k more than that I believe.

Regards,
Frank.
All opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of any organisations I work for, except where this is stated explicitly.

The home demo of a Vitus RI-100 has confirmed to me that the obelisks need plenty of current... More than Naim systems are designed to offer. My nap300 sounded great but the extra grip that the Vitus offers makes everything that bit deeper, clearer and more vivid. I still want to hear a dynavector HX100 before making my final decision but so far the Vitus is in the lead. 

Interesting, thanks.

There are new Dynavector amps coming out in the new year a which I hope to audition.

Decision made, it's a Vitus RI-100 for me, I tried to hear a dynavector hx100 but no shops stock them in the UK &  there are none for sale secondhand which concerns me that if this rather odd Australian company can't sort out their manufacturing/ supply chain what would they be like if you had a problem?

I'm extremely pleased with the Vitus RI-100 as it satisfies a number of concerns I had with using a nap300/300ps/252/sc to power my shahinian obelisk 2's. My main concern was that my naim amp just didn't have the grip/grunt to fully explore what the shahinians could do and low and behold the Vitus with its 300wpc and bags off current does brilliantly. The bass extension that I'm experiencing now is fabulous with my obs seeming to reach new depths previously not heard but at no point does the bass ever become bloated instead it's always in complete control. What the Vitus also does brilliantly is really drive the high frequencies producing a superb soundstage and I'm hearing new sounds/subities from all my favourite recordings some of which I've listened to for decades. Don't get me on to how good high Rez sounds, that's phenomenal.

Having returned to Intergrated amplification  after years of pre/power it has reminded me how nice it is that I don't have to stress about matching kit, cables, dressing and housing it all, that said the Vitus is a 42kg beast and should only be lifted with correct technique and stretchy trousers! 

Its definately a big improvement over my Nap300/252 & in many areas can match, if not beat a 500/552, especially when used with shahinians and their particular demands. 

Interesting Knipester,

i took the the vitus route too. I also heard the RI100, with a good TT into a pair of the smallest  Estellons and system has to rank as one of the most pleasant I've ever heard.

good luck with it and enjoy!

Very interesting comments. Sure I saw similar written previously; may have been in a previous Vitus audio thread that was on here.

That sounds very exciting. I will have to audition one of these in the New Year.

Did Richard fix you up with a home demo?

I'll want to get used to the Hawks or Diapasons with the 500 gear first before auditioning other stuff and will wait until the new Dynavectors are out. Dynavector are somewhat idiosyncratic: they stop selling their old gear before the new gear comes out and then won't release the latter until they are 100% sure it is as good as they can get it. That shows great commitment and integrity and means fewer buyers suffer from previous generation purchase remorse, but does cause frustration for people like us who are interested in the cusp between two generations of gear and can't get to hear or purchase anything.

Anyway, congratulations on finding an integrated that performs so well and clearly suits you and the new Obelisks to a T.

PS: What's your front end now, Knipester?