CDS3

Q1. Had mine serviced in August last year, inc. replacement transport.

Q2. Don't see why not.

Why not email Naim to put your mind at ease.

Nice to hear. What was the cost?

Ok. Nice to know.

I did mail Naim earlier today but things get answered faster here.

*Edit: saw in your profile that you have a CD5 XS. Did you sell the CDS3?

It was fixed under warranty. It had actually had a replacement and service the year before. I think the cost was in the order of £350. I remember thinking that considering the quality of the machine this was very reasonable. It also made me feel valued as a customer in the sense that Naim were supporting those who continued to use their high value products despite the apearance of newer, shinier stuff.

I had an XPS on mine.

I do have a CD5XS now. I had my own reasons for down-sizing. The CDS3 was the hardest to let go of. It just made music so right.

Likewise mine was serviced last year including new mechanism.  But give Naim a call. 

Regards,

Lindsay

Heard back from Naim. It's still possible to service a CDS3. Later units were updated with a different mech which they still stock, so if a unit pre-dates this then they can replace the mech and transport board to keep the unit functioning perfectly.

My CDS3 was bought with an XPS which I never got round to replacing with 555PS.  I had the XPS dr'd when they went back to Salisbury for a health check.  Works fine but following a recent demonstration of other Naim kit, I suspect swapping over a 555PS would make for a significant upgrade.

Peter

Drikus posted:

Heard back from Naim. It's still possible to service a CDS3. Later units were updated with a different mech which they still stock, so if a unit pre-dates this then they can replace the mech and transport board to keep the unit functioning perfectly.

That’s exactly what they did to mine, and it significantly improves the sound.  

I won't be buying a CDS3 after all. Couldn't convince the seller to lower his price. Heard from Naim that the service cost will be £330. So adding it all up, I was looking at £2000+ including all the shipping costs. Simply too much money for a 14 year old player no matter how good it once was.

I thought of that too but Naim told me that later units were updated with a different mech which they still stock. Does this different mech still has the same specs today as it had at the time of introduction or has it evolved to modern specs over time? I don't think so, who would upgrade parts of a player who was discontinued in 2011. So, even with a different mech, it's still an old player not worthy of the asking price to me. Off course, if you already own a CDS3, it makes perfect sense to get it serviced for that price, it will be like a new player then.

One of the benefits of a Naim service is that they bring your kit to the most up to date version there is. You will in effect have a completely new machine built to themes up to date spec and guaranteed they will have improved the CDS3 even after it was discontinued in 2011. For the money you are talking I think its an absolute bargain and your new machine should last for at least another ten years easily.

You're right, that a whole different story then and certainly worth it's price. I'll look into it again. Thanks for pointing this out.

My CDS3 also had a service and mechanism swap from the old design to the later one.  As others have experienced, it sounded fantastically musical on its return from the factory. £2,000 for a machine of this calibre is almost unrivalled value for money in the world of Naim.

Best regards, FT

I mailed the seller that I had a rethink and decided to buy it after all. Do you need an appointment with Naim to get it serviced or can you just ship it to them at any time? Would be great if the seller can ship it to Naim directly with my return address.

It would need to go through your dealer back to Naim. They don’t have customers sending kit direct.

Great purchase BTW. You won’t regret it. CDS3 is a wonderful music maker.

All of my Naim kit is pre-loved and doesn't come from a Naim dealer. Does this mean I'll never be able to send anything in for service?

Hi Drikus,

Your nearest Naim dealerwill be delighted to send it to Salisbury for you. You do not need to have bought it from them.

Congratulations on buying such a great CD player. Which power supply do you plan to use with it?

Best regards, FT

I assume you have an email conversation with naim having the details in it. I would just forward that to a dealer and ask them to sort it out. It is always good to know a dealer.

I did such a thing in the past and it worked nicely since the dealer knows what you agreed on with Naim.

Or contact Latham. Your name suggest that you are from the lowlands.

Foot tapper posted:

Hi Drikus,

Your nearest Naim dealerwill be delighted to send it to Salisbury for you. You do not need to have bought it from them.

Congratulations on buying such a great CD player. Which power supply do you plan to use with it?

Best regards, FT

Nearest dealer is still 50 km away and I've never been there. From my experience, dealers overhere are only willing to help if you bought the kit from them, otherwise they do nothing for free. Thanks! Power supply will be an XPS DR.

It’s the dealer’s role to act as the interface between Naim and its end users. That is why Naim appointed the dealer. The dealer is Naim’s “feet on the street”. It doesn’t make any difference that you have not bought kit from the dealer previously. The dealer should be keen to do this and to establish a relationship with you for future business.

Let is know how it goes.

Ardbeg10y posted:

I assume you have an email conversation with naim having the details in it. I would just forward that to a dealer and ask them to sort it out. It is always good to know a dealer.

I did such a thing in the past and it worked nicely since the dealer knows what you agreed on with Naim.

Or contact Latham. Your name suggest that you are from the lowlands.

No, I haven't. Just asked if it was still possible to service a CDS3 and what the cost would be. Like I said, my kit is pre-loved and doesn't come from a shop so I don't know any Naim dealers personally. Like I said above, from my experience, dealers overhere are only willing to help if you bought your kit from them, otherwise they do nothing for free.

Contacting Latham is useless. Mailed them a few times in the past and never heard back from them.

It wouldn’t be for free. I’d expect the dealer to add a modest margin on the service cost that Naim charges it.

S3 posted:

It’s the dealer’s role to act as the interface between Naim and its end users. That is why Naim appointed the dealer. The dealer is Naim’s “feet on the street”. It doesn’t make any difference that you have not bought kit from the dealer previously. The dealer should be keen to do this and to establish a relationship with you for future business.

Let is know how it goes.

I think Latham, the distributor overhere appoints the dealers, not Naim them themselves. Again, it does make difference overhere if you didn't buy from them previously. They won't provide any service for free if you aren't a client.

S3 posted:

It wouldn’t be for free. I’d expect the dealer to add a modest margin on the service cost that Naim charges it.

That's what I'm saying the whole time...

Well it’s up to you. You are being given sensible advice here as to how to get your CDS3 serviced. If you’ve made your mind up that you won’t approach a Naim dealer to send it to Salisbury then I guess you’ll need to enjoy the player as is.

When my CDS3 started acting up a year ago, I had the mechanism replaced with the newer mechanism. According to the dealer, it wouldn't sound any different. I don't recall whether or not there was a separate labor charge, but if there isn't, it's built into the retail price of the parts. I doubt anyone is getting such service for free.