New Nap 250-2

Bob, that comes when you spend an additional £1200 and have the 250.2 DR'd 

Just sent my 8 year old 250 away. £1295 including the discounted service plus carriage. 

Bob the Builder posted:

I have finally taken the plunge and traded in my Nap 200 for a non DR Nap 250-2 (2014) what improvements can I look forward to?

A fuller bodied more textured sound, with notable increased resolution and space around instruments.. subject to the NAC being used.. I really found it a massive enhancement on my 200.. I am sure you will enjoy. I use ATC speakers.

You are very brave to trade the 200 for a 250.2 without listening to the latter at home. How do you know you'll like it? I much prefer the 200 over the 250.2, as do lots of others. The 250DR is something else altogether. 

Bob the Builder posted:

I have finally taken the plunge and traded in my Nap 200 for a non DR Nap 250-2 (2014) what improvements can I look forward to?

Depends on speakers and taste

I prefer my Nap 100 to the 250.2 

Even older 250 are better

The first gen 250.2 is just too heavy and thick overblown but very powerfull if this counts for you

Sorry but IMO

I agree with Suffolk based Simon - and the DR is a further step up - have fun  

As others have indicated, for £1,200 you can convert it to a 250DR, which is a wonderful, wonderful music maker. So don't worry even if you are not 100% happy with it today, the DR is a tremendous opportunity waiting in the wings for when you are ready.

b_lund posted:

Bob the Builder posted:

I have finally taken the plunge and traded in my Nap 200 for a non DR Nap 250-2 (2014) what improvements can I look forward to?

Depends on speakers and taste

I prefer my Nap 100 to the 250.2 

Even older 250 are better

The first gen 250.2 is just too heavy and thick overblown but very (powerfull) if this counts for you

(70 watts vs 80 watts)!

Sorry but IMO

No hands on experience, but assuming the OP got it at a reasonable price, what's not to like!

Lets say the OP, fires up his 2014 broken in Amp, and doesn't like the SQ, as compared to his 200. According to the rest of you mates, DR it, and you're in 7th Heaven. That's right, leaner, quicker, and to boot, quieter.

Reading all the accolades on the new 250 Dr, it MAY resemble the 200 more so than the 250.2!

Even though, the reviewers, constantly describe the improvements over it's predecessor, as leaner, quicker, and quieter, in the end, it's an improved version of the 250.2.

But what do they know, they don't spend hours on Naim Forums, nor do they spend thousands of dollars on upgrades, not detectable by the norm.

Going out on a limb here, with 99% of Amps on the market being unregulated, I would expect the OP's 2014 250.2, to Trump his 200.

After all, he has been blessed, with the opportunity to experience both, Naim's unregulated 200, and the Predecessor to the 250 DR!

I'm pretty sure, he will inform us! LOL....

JMHO!

Allante93!

When I first began listening to the 250.2 I wasn't over keen on the presentation compared to the older 250 or the newer 200.

But things have changed in my system regarding cd player and preamp. 

The point being it appears to have better command of my speakers and prefers a better preamp.

The CB 250 and NAP 200 I've now sold, and I'm quite happy with the 250.2

What pre are are you using Bob?

b_lund posted:

Bob the Builder posted:

I have finally taken the plunge and traded in my Nap 200 for a non DR Nap 250-2 (2014) what improvements can I look forward to?

Depends on speakers and taste

I prefer my Nap 100 to the 250.2 

Even older 250 are better

The first gen 250.2 is just too heavy and thick overblown but very powerfull if this counts for you

Sorry but IMO

Great amp is the 100, not mentioned much on the forum but what an amp especially for the money.

PS I use a 272/100 and love it.

A lot will depend on the characteristics of your front end and the speakers you asking the power amp to drive. 

I think of the power amplifter being like a pair of spectacles. Ultimately you just see through it to hear what is going on up front and it becomes transparent and then you sort of forget about it after a while  IME. 

ATEOTD (?) if you're happy with what you're hearing then you've got no worries. 

I was always happy with my 250.2. Of course I'm now happier with the 250DR but I had the 200 and replaced it with a 250.2 and didn't regret it at all at the time. I was a bit peeved when a few weeks after getting my 250.2 they announced the 250DR but hey ho. Just unlucky timing. That was with Naim IBLs which are a very fast  and lean speaker so that maybe why I was never of the opinion that the 250.2 was in any way thick, slow or heavy. IMO that description is only valid comparitively so in absolute term it will boil down to system and room synergy as per usual.

Hope you enjoy yours as much as I did mine. It certainly grabbed hold of my IBLs by the scruff of the neck. Better soundstage, punchier bass and I thought a more natural sound.

It may take a few days to settle in once you power it up. When I got an ex dem one a while ago it sounded good the day it was powered up but the second day it was dull and unengaging, the next it perked up again. Give it a couple of weeks and it should have settled in nicely.

I also traded a NAP 200 for a 250.2, then simply had the 250 checked and the bias regulated. It was from 2009 and needed nothing else. I decided to do so instead of adding a sub to my N-Sats, and it completely transformed the sound of the small speakers.

I know that HH is not a great fan of the 250 (he has called it bloated) and lets no occasion wasted to remind us of it, but I must say that – with a pair of N-Sats – moving from 202/200 to 282/SC/250.2 was a major change. The sound was more rich, meaty, edgy and in my face, but also structured, urgent, rhythmic.

It's not the amp you'd may choose if you limit your musical choices to Haydn Trios, but we must remember, like Richard Dane has done at least once, that Julian Vereker designed it for drive and fun, and he was largely a fan of pop and rock.

Hope it helps. M. 

282/Hi/250-2 was very good for Haydn trios, not with a CDX2 supplying them though but with a good vinyl source.....

Well, if you surf the Forum long enough, it's not unusual to find  a couple of Post that appear to intertwine. Point and Case, New Nap 250-2, and new and old.

With the Nap 250-2 being the Predecessor to the 250DR, and the Olive Series preceding the Black Box Era, brings about a sense of connectivity between the two Post.

Hence, the Question that begs to be answered, Why is Naim's Sound Evolving?

Even though the Naim Sound is Evolving, Esteemed Members have pointed out, Naim's Signature Character is still present, as it pertains to the [new and old] post.

Meanwhile, possible views that may answer the Why, as opposed to the obvious How!

[ leaner, quicker, and quieter ]

Max_B posted:

I know that HH is not a great fan of the 250 (he has called it bloated) and lets no occasion wasted to remind us of it, but I must say that – with a pair of N-Sats – moving from 202/200 to 282/SC/250.2 was a major change. [The sound was more rich, meaty, edgy and in my face, but also structured, urgent, rhythmic.]

It's not the amp you'd may choose if you limit your musical choices to Haydn Trios, but we must remember, like Richard Dane has done at least once, [that Julian Vereker designed it for drive and fun, and he was largely a fan of pop and rock.]

Marksnaim posted:

I was always happy with my 250.2. Of course I'm now happier with the 250DR but I had the 200 and replaced it with a 250.2 and didn't regret it at all at the time. 

Well considering the amp is only 3 years old and it will cost me 800 pounds plus my Nap 200 I considered it a 'risk' worth taking and as it will be driving 4ohm Dynaudio speakers I thought they could handle it. Of course it is a calculated risk but resale value is more than my total outlay so I will never be out of pocket so not really such a 'brave' thing to do without home audition.  I now await with bated breath the arrival of my 'over bloated' and substandard 3,000 pound Naim amp! 

Just to be clear, I've never called the 250.2 'bloated'. My description was, if I recall correctly, 'a bit of a bloater', which is entirely different. Perhaps. Some people like bloaters of course. 

"a bit of a bloater" - perhaps a herring aid would help cure it 

Chris Dolan posted:

"a bit of a bloater" - perhaps a herring aid would help cure it 

A amp with guts no less.

Bob the Builder posted:

Well considering the amp is only 3 years old and it will cost me 800 pounds plus my Nap 200 I considered it a 'risk' worth taking and as it will be driving 4ohm Dynaudio speakers I thought they could handle it. Of course it is a calculated risk but resale value is more than my total outlay so I will never be out of pocket so not really such a 'brave' thing to do without home audition.  I now await with bated breath the arrival of my 'over bloated' and substandard 3,000 pound Naim amp! 

Bob, no doubt  about, it's a win win for you.

Worst case scenario, get it Dred down the road.

But to HH's point, I recall entering into the Naim of World, way back in 2015! Abandoning my LK 280s, due to servicing issues.

The first two Adjectives that popped into my mind, when I fired up my Bi-Amped Briks were Rich & Thick!

Mind you, my Briks were on hiatus, due to the fact that Linn was no longer servicing their older gear. What did I like about the LK 280s, Everything, lean, and above all, absence of the Dreaded Hum!

Why am I posting on this Forum, the 282 brought about a sense of Clarity and, accuracy that wasn't present with my Karin.

Mind you, I'm leaving a full blown Aktiv System.

Ok, getting off point, but Rich & Thick, are the adjectives which applied to my situation.

Hopefully, Active Naim, will add some of that DR leanest that I hear so much about!

Cdx2>282>HCDR>3 x 250.2>Briks

Fraimlite, was also a pleasant welcome!

Allante93!

PS. Those LK 280s, fetched a pretty penney on the second hand market, and tanks they are! 

Bob the Builder posted:

Well considering the amp is only 3 years old and it will cost me 800 pounds plus my Nap 200 I considered it a 'risk' worth taking and as it will be driving 4ohm Dynaudio speakers I thought they could handle it. Of course it is a calculated risk but resale value is more than my total outlay so I will never be out of pocket so not really such a 'brave' thing to do without home audition.  I now await with bated breath the arrival of my 'over bloated' and substandard 3,000 pound Naim amp! 

No worries Bob,

I also went from a 200 to a 250.2 non DR, and it was a MAJOR upgrade, the 200 amp I purchased new, had it for over two years before I upgraded to a new 250.2.

I never really understood the description of bloated or slow to describe the 250.2, mine was the complete opposite of that description.

Congrats on the purchase, and by the way, the newer DR version and the non DR versions are very similar amps, this huge difference between the two amps sonically that is reported here by some owners is highly exaggerated and in reality the differences are smaller than some here would have you believe. More a case of wishful thinking that any real major difference.

I don't think "bloater" is a fair description either.

That impression comes from people who have switched from CBs, Olive NAPs or a 200. A 250.2 has a fuller sound signature by comparison.

When you settle down and live with the 250.2 the bloated comparison as suggested by others gets forgotten after a while.

Allante93 poste

Bob, no doubt  about, it's a win win for you.

Worst case scenario, get it Dred down the road.

But to HH's point, I recall entering into the Naim of World, way back in 2015! Abandoning my LK 280s, due to servicing issues.

The first two Adjectives that popped into my mind, when I fired up my Bi-Amped Briks were Rich & Thick!

Mind you, my Briks were on hiatus, due to the fact that Linn was no longer servicing their older gear. What did I like about the LK 280s, Everything, lean, and above all, absence of the Dreaded Hum!

Why am I posting on this Forum, the 282 brought about a sense of Clarity and, accuracy that wasn't present with my Karin.

Mind you, I'm leaving a full blown Aktiv System.

Ok, getting off point, but Rich & Thick, are the adjectives which applied to my situation.

Hopefully, Active Naim, will add some of that DR leanest that I hear so much about!

Cdx2>282>HCDR>3 x 250.2>Briks

Fraimlite, was also a pleasant welcome!

Allante93!

PS. Those LK 280s, fetched a pretty penney on the second hand market, and tanks they are! 

Allante,

I wouldn't mind betting that when you get your Snaxo and take out the passive crossover then you'll find that the 250.2s aren't the thing making your Briks Rich & Thick. Properly active briks are a totally different beast. I was running mine a bit wonky with 2x 250.2 and 1 DR, and then 2 x DR and now all DR. Even with 2 x 250.2 they were never slow or thick sounding. I wouldn't call the DR leaner sounding than the 250.2, I just found them more dynamic as well as giving more detail and separation.

rgds

Mark

cheeselet posted:

I don't think "bloater" is a fair description either.

That impression comes from people who have switched from CBs, Olive NAPs or a 200. A 250.2 has a fuller sound signature by comparison.

When you settle down and live with the 250.2 the bloated comparison as suggested by others gets forgotten after a while.

Absolutely  - the 250.2 is not bloated at all - with accurate infinite baffle speakers such as ATCs  its a fast tight amp with great detail, clarity, weighty dynamics and texture that is certainly quite insightful to listen to especially if you are used to a 200 or similar, the original discrete power regulation certainly does its stuff - its like a whole layer of music is discovered and presented from your recordings, a true Naim classic and after all the 250 is based on the first ever Naim power amp so I understand  ... however I found you needed at least a 282 or better to get it sound anywhere near its best, and I found the 202 quite frankly awful with the 250.2 .. but from what I have heard the 250DR sounds  more forgiving of front end sources.

S