Uniti Star vs Uniti Nova

Welcome to the forum and Naim family. I considered both the Star and Nova recently when upgrading from a UnitiCute2/NAP100/Totem Hawks. The “old” system is now enjoying life as my second system in the media room and I have a Nova with Totem Forest Signatures in the lounge, with a Core as an audio server. It’s pretty close to a much more expensive component system.

The Star will rip CDs with files stored on an attached usb drive and has 70W output. The Nova is a significant step up again in SQ and 80W output, but drops the CD ripper. Either would drive the Sky Towers, though I think the Hawks or Forests are a better sounding speaker and I suggest you try both as a comparison if you can. I did run my Hawks on the Nova for a while and they were very good, but the Forests are another level all together.

Ultimately, budget comes to play. Personally, I’d suggest the Nova with Totem Hawks or Forests to match your budget unless you need the CD ripper. The other consideration is whether you want to upgrade later on, in which case, size speakers accordingly. 

Have fun.

If you want an easy way to rip CDs, the Star may appeal to you, although you can do this on a computer too. Apart from that, the two streamers have the same functionality, but the Nova has better sound quality and more power.  The Nova would be my choice if you are prepared to spend the extra money. 

I demo'd the  bookshelf Skys, so assuming the Sky tower is just a larger enclosure built round the same crossover and drive units they should work very well indeed with the Nova . The Star wasn't available at the time so I can't comment on that (It's the first anniversary of my Nova arriving this week !), but as they worked well with the Atom I'd guess the Star won't have any problems.

As to sound - you do get better the more you spend with the Uniti range. If you don't need the ripping facility of the Star and can afford a Nova, I'd recommend going with the Nova.

I set out to buy a star but bought a Nova after listening to both for several hours.

I found the nova to be well worth the extra cost.

I also bought a zen mini mk II to rip my CDs. I spent more than I intended but am very happy with the results.