Nac72 or Nap150 - which to service first?

Service the NAC 72 first.

Leave the NAP 150 until you're ready to sell on so you may buy the hicap & 250 you dream of.

And just my 2 cents more worth : )

i find a black box hicap performs better than olive or CB,

and if you can afford to it, buy 135s : )

I think it's generally more important to service power amps (and power supplies) than preamps. In your case, there are two possible reasons to service the preamp. First, I'm guessing it's older. Second, it's probably a keeper, whereas you're already thinking of replacing the 150.

Many thanks for the replies... sounds like the 72 service is the way to go. It did feel odd servicing the 150 given that I'm not as attached to it in the long run.

135's? Hmmm - would be nice but I suspect that space and budget may make this a very long term option lol. I'm thinking more along the lines of an early 250.2 - serviceable and potentially upgradeable to dr. One alternative would of course be a 200 allowing me to delay the purchase of a hicap... 

Thanks again,

Robert 

My two cents.

1) Service 72

2) get used, recently serviced, hi cap. The 150 is a great little amp. It just lacks in the power supply to preamp department.

3) get a used, recently serviced, Olive/Chrome Bumper 250. 

It seems to be capacitors that are the main items to "go off" over time. So logic says amps and PSUs would benefit  most as they rely on their large caps to perform at their best. 

My 250 sounds stunning after it's overhaul/service (thanks Darran) after a gap of 12 years since the previous one. I think it sounds better than when I got it 5  or so years ago. 52 pre is due this year and SC soon, not sure if I'll be able to get them done this year.

Michael Mccullough posted:

My two cents.

1) Service 72

2) get used, recently serviced, hi cap. The 150 is a great little amp. It just lacks in the power supply to preamp department.

3) get a used, recently serviced, Olive/Chrome Bumper 250. 

Sounds like a great plan and a good way to squeeze out a bit more life from the 150 whilst still seeing improvement. I do enjoy the sound that I get from my system but feel that the 150 runs out of steam beyond 9 o'clock on the volume hence the interest in the 250. Maybe a hicap will help a little with this taking some of the strain off the 150.

Cheers,

Robert

Frankly, I wouldn't pay good money to service a low voltage device like a pre-amp unless it is obviously having problems.  I'd put the money towards a good olive Hi-Cap/250.

From what I've heard, a recap doesn't do much for the Nac72 - it'll never sound as good as it did when new...

Often the replacement parts (capacitors) exceed the specs/performance of the originals, so there's some basis to assume a serviced unit may sound (subjectively) "better". Besides, who has ever had opportunity to directly compare a new 72 to one serviced?

sktn77a posted:

Frankly, I wouldn't pay good money to service a low voltage device like a pre-amp unless it is obviously having problems.  I'd put the money towards a good olive Hi-Cap/250.

Interesting - the 72/150 is still proving to be highly enjoyable so maybe saving the pennies for a hicap could be the way to go... would relieve some of the pressure on the 150 too.

Thanks,

Robert

A HiCap is always.... useful..... 

Your 72 deserves one.

Before you decide on a service for the 72, you should give Class A a call. My experience is that Darran will give you a straight answer about weather or not any item actually needs a service, and I don't think he would charge you for changing any components that didn't need it. 

ChrisSU posted:

Before you decide on a service for the 72, you should give Class A a call. My experience is that Darran will give you a straight answer about weather or not any item actually needs a service, and I don't think he would charge you for changing any components that didn't need it. 

My experience too. When I had the 180 he delayed the caps for another 2 years as they were still fine, which helped me budget.

From my experience the Nap and HiCap benefit most from servicing. However, that is not to say that the NAC won't benefit. It really will.

But, why bother servicing the NAP if you're going to get rid soon? You'll get the same for it whether it is serviced or no. Move on up to 180 or 200 if the HiCap is a real no-no.

HiCap say £350, 180 say £450, 200 say £900, early 250.2 say £1500. 

I bought my 250.2 using the same logic: serviceable (both senses) and upgradeable to DR. Darran can do both.

Loki posted:

 

I bought my 250.2 using the same logic: serviceable (both senses) and upgradeable to DR. Darran can do both.

I thought only Naim could do DR upgrades?

Honeyquince posted:

sktn77a posted:

Frankly, I wouldn't pay good money to service a low voltage device like a pre-amp unless it is obviously having problems.  I'd put the money towards a good olive Hi-Cap/250.

Interesting - the 72/150 is still proving to be highly enjoyable so maybe saving the pennies for a hicap could be the way to go... would relieve some of the pressure on the 150 too.

Thanks,

Robert

Being the possessor of an ancient 150, my advice is, unless it's obviously sounding poorly, leave it alone. The caps in mine are fine. The circuit in the 150 that powers your preamp isn't the best so a move to a HiCap would be a very good one.

Loki posted:

ChrisSU posted:

Before you decide on a service for the 72, you should give Class A a call. My experience is that Darran will give you a straight answer about weather or not any item actually needs a service, and I don't think he would charge you for changing any components that didn't need it. 

My experience too. When I had the 180 he delayed the caps for another 2 years as they were still fine, which helped me budget.

From my experience the Nap and HiCap benefit most from servicing. However, that is not to say that the NAC won't benefit. It really will.

But, why bother servicing the NAP if you're going to get rid soon? You'll get the same for it whether it is serviced or no. Move on up to 180 or 200 if the HiCap is a real no-no.

HiCap say £350, 180 say £450, 200 say £900, early 250.2 say £1500. 

I bought my 250.2 using the same logic: serviceable (both senses) and upgradeable to DR. Darran can do both.

'Soon' is a relative term and I suspect it might be closer to 'later' for a change of power amp. I agree though that servicing something that I'm not committed to in the long run seems counter intuitive.  It sounds like the hicap might be the way to go to get an immediate boost as well as an interim step on the path to a 250 though even this may take some time unless my finances improve. Of course a hicap in my price bracket will probably be due a service...

The HiCap is a good option and relatively cheap. Look around but even serviced it's unlikely to be more than £400 for an olive offering. Prices have come down since the DR incomers. Remember the NAP is only as good as what you put in. My 32.5 really jumped in quality with an HC: both unserviced, initially. I had to save. The coffers of Asgaard are not always overflowing!

Loki posted:

The HiCap is a good option and relatively cheap. Look around but even serviced it's unlikely to be more than £400 for an olive offering. Prices have come down since the DR incomers. Remember the NAP is only as good as what you put in. My 32.5 really jumped in quality with an HC: both unserviced, initially. I had to save. The coffers of Asgaard are not always overflowing!

 

It's reassuring that you heard an improvement even with an unserviced hicap. I'd better start saving!

Ring Darran. He isn't a money-grabber and will tell you if he thinks you're about to waste your money.

As you suspect, the 72 was never serviced (certainly not in my ownership) .

Hope you're well

Mick

madasafish posted:

Ring Darran. He isn't a money-grabber and will tell you if he thinks you're about to waste your money.

As you suspect, the 72 was never serviced (certainly not in my ownership) .

Hope you're well

Mick

Thanks Mick - it's good to hear another vote of confidence for Darran - do I remember correctly that he serviced your 135s?

All the best,

Robert

Honeyquince posted:

Loki posted:

The HiCap is a good option and relatively cheap. Look around but even serviced it's unlikely to be more than £400 for an olive offering. Prices have come down since the DR incomers. Remember the NAP is only as good as what you put in. My 32.5 really jumped in quality with an HC: both unserviced, initially. I had to save. The coffers of Asgaard are not always overflowing!

 

It's reassuring that you heard an improvement even with an unserviced hicap. I'd better start saving!

Definitely: huge step forward even with unserviced gear.

Honeyquince posted:

madasafish posted:

Ring Darran. He isn't a money-grabber and will tell you if he thinks you're about to waste your money.

As you suspect, the 72 was never serviced (certainly not in my ownership) .

Hope you're well

Mick

Thanks Mick - it's good to hear another vote of confidence for Darran - do I remember correctly that he serviced your 135s?

All the best,

Robert

Robert

yes he did. In fact he's done all my Naim work.

My first Naim amp was a 250 so I've never lived without a supply but I did borrow a Hicap while my then SNAPS was repaired. That experiences leads me to concur with many earlier contributors. A hicap is the way forward in your circs IMHO. Along with moving from a 62 to a 72, it was probably the biggest improvement I've ever experienced.

Good luck and enjoy

Mick

You can tell when your nap needs a service , and the caps are failing , you will start to hear noticeable distortion at all volumes , it will rear its head in the midrange department , sounds like a speaker drive unit gone bad , so put your money into the preamp as it sounds as if the nap is ok for the time being , the 10 year servicing assumes that the nap has been powered on constantly for the whole of the ten years , if it has been powered down when not in use I imagine this would extend the life of the caps , I had my 250 serviced by Naim , but only due to distortion , if I hadn't had a problem I wouldn't have bothered until there had been a problem , however I will be sending my hicap and 72 for service this year , just to know that I have full spec and performance for the forseeable , 

Hi Jamesie,

Many thanks for your description of what to listen out for in a nap that needs servicing... so far the midrange is one of the highlights of my set up so fingers crossed that will remain for the medium term.

I aspire to your naim system or at least one very similar!

Robert