Resurrecting Old/Unused Olive Gear?

That is some really nice kit. And while things have certainly moved on in the Naim world in that time, you may find that hunting down a second hand NAP180 is the perfect partner to bring life back to this system. There is a lot of gushing over newer shinier things but that setup is excellent by today's standards.

18 years, used or not, will mean that almost everything in there will benefit from a full service and recapping. That is not super cheap and will take some time but it is worth it. Certainly, nice though a Nait2 is, you'll fall in love with the old system all over again once it is up and running.

The 180 is not required for headphone listening as long as the 102 is fully fed by the HC and NAPSC. In my opinion, I'd be inclined to not go to a 250 or a modern power amp and instead restore that system - adding a stand alone streamer if that is your thing these days. If you do want to go modern, maybe start from scratch and use this system in another room.

Whatever new designs Naim release and are pretty awesome, I still find the olive Naim range super sexy, maybe it's an OCD thing and that sound is that classic Naim.

With the CDX, it may just be a case of "puck slip" where the rubber grips on the CD clamp have flattened or hardened with age.  A new replacement clamp may well fix the problem.

If it’s like the early CDX2 puck flatned rubbers can be pulled round a bit, use a pin through the loop (I don’t mean pierce the rubber) and press against it to get a grip on them but after 18 years they just be hardened beyond use.

Thanks for the advice guys! I tried the spare puck that the CDX came with and it worked! Very clever of Naim to include a spare. Which is all good because AV Options cannot service the CDX. No more transports. Maybe I should hunt down a spare to extend it's life.

I'm tempted to do the ultimate restore on the Nait 2 but it's super expensive and I'm not sure it's up to driving my Epos 14's. This finds me considering a used SuperNait 2. Are all of these DR'd or is it just recent models?

I ran a Nait 2 with ES14 in a vinyl setup decades ago

Just a tiny small room so no power issues really

Normal amplication at that time was 72/HC/250 but my ears got used to the little amp, similar tonal balance but not as dynamic as the larger amp

The ES14 will need a new crossover by now, which is just one (dried up) component and easy to replace

e d o posted:

I'm tempted to do the ultimate restore on the Nait 2 but it's super expensive and I'm not sure it's up to driving my Epos 14's. This finds me considering a used SuperNait 2. Are all of these DR'd or is it just recent models?

All SN2's are DR.

Ardbeg10y posted:

e d o posted:

I'm tempted to do the ultimate restore on the Nait 2 but it's super expensive and I'm not sure it's up to driving my Epos 14's. This finds me considering a used SuperNait 2. Are all of these DR'd or is it just recent models?

All SN2's are DR.

In the preamp section.

G

Since you already have the quite capable 102/HC/Napsc I would certainly try to find an olive 250.
I would imagine that the price difference from 180 to 250 (given their age) will be somewhat marginal, and the 250 really is better than the 180. And you don't need the 180's power output to preamp when you have a HC. 

I really love the Nait2. Using one myself right now while waiting to get my 52/250 serviced. It's highly musical and enjoyable, and most of the time I really don't sense a lack of power or drive. 

However, as good as the Nait2 is, a 102/HC/250 will better it in most ways. Have the 102/HC serviced, find a serviced 250 and for a modest outlay you'll have a very fine system again, even better than the one you had before. 

Claus

PS: My Nait2 hasn't been serviced, still it sounds amazing . Has been left unused in a cupboard for 3/4 of it's life span though. 

Claus posted:

PS: My Nait2 hasn't been serviced, still it sounds amazing . Has been left unused in a cupboard for 3/4 of it's life span though. 

It'll still need a service - in general, electrolytic capacitors deteriorate about as fast when not being used as they do when left on all the time.  It'll probably sound even better after a service!

Up til last year I was running a similar-vintage 102-HC-NAPSC into* a brace of 250s driving SBLs. It sounded very fine. Con cojones grandes!

*via SNAXO-SC.

Claus posted:

Since you already have the quite capable 102/HC/Napsc I would certainly try to find an olive 250.
I would imagine that the price difference from 180 to 250 (given their age) will be somewhat marginal, and the 250 really is better than the 180. And you don't need the 180's power output to preamp when you have a HC. 

I really love the Nait2. Using one myself right now while waiting to get my 52/250 serviced. It's highly musical and enjoyable, and most of the time I really don't sense a lack of power or drive. 

However, as good as the Nait2 is, a 102/HC/250 will better it in most ways. Have the 102/HC serviced, find a serviced 250 and for a modest outlay you'll have a very fine system again, even better than the one you had before. 

Claus

I have a 180 and love it to bits. However, Claus is right  - the 250 is better and possibly wouldn't be much more than a second hand 180.

Huge, I know that due to it's age I ought to have it serviced, even if hasn't had much use. Two reasons why I won't do this, at least not for now:

1) I love the sound as it is. The service, apart from benefits, might at the same time change the character of the sound to something I would prefer less than what I have today.

2) The Nait is only in service while waiting to have my 52/SC/250 serviced (yep, all three at once). When that's done, the Nait will go back to being my reserve unit (keeping it most of all because I can't part with it!). Should I ever come to use it on a regular basis, a service will be considered at that time, but not now when it might be 4-5 years or more before I will use it again for anything more than a one evening trip down memory lane  . 

Claus