I've decided to sell the lot
Posted by: Rockingdoc on 24 December 2007
Finally, after more than twenty years faithful membership of the Naim club, I've given up. My system has just become too shouty for me in the upper mid-range.
It's a an olive active system with CDS2,NAT101,52,SNAXO/HiCap,250s, SBLs fed mainly by a prefixed LP12. I've had it ALL serviced and re-capped (at great cost, I might add). For the past week I've tried everything I know to make it sound better; cleaned all the contacts, fitted new mains sockets, replaced fuses, dressed cables, tried all FOUR walls for the speakers.
The main effect was to give me a strained back, many areas of the sound did improve, but it still sounds shouty and a bit tiring to listen to.
I think the problem is that I now spend about two hours each work-day listening to my headphone system comprising a decent CDP into a Tim de Paravicini EAR HP4 valve headphone amp using Senn HD650s or Grado RS1s to taste. To me this sounds brilliant and I think this has made me a better listener, and now I'm bothered by the shouty nature of the Naim in a way that didn't bother me before.
The other possibility is that my hearing is changing with age. I'm definitely a bit more deaf than 20 years ago, so the volume is set higher, but I wonder if taste in sound changes with maturity? I certainly seem to drawn to the warmer round-earth camp these days.
Why not uprade? Well where would I go? A 552 is way beyond my resources and I can't see what else could help.
I suppose this is a Hi-Fi entry really, but I've never seen a thread bumped in that direction.
It's a an olive active system with CDS2,NAT101,52,SNAXO/HiCap,250s, SBLs fed mainly by a prefixed LP12. I've had it ALL serviced and re-capped (at great cost, I might add). For the past week I've tried everything I know to make it sound better; cleaned all the contacts, fitted new mains sockets, replaced fuses, dressed cables, tried all FOUR walls for the speakers.
The main effect was to give me a strained back, many areas of the sound did improve, but it still sounds shouty and a bit tiring to listen to.
I think the problem is that I now spend about two hours each work-day listening to my headphone system comprising a decent CDP into a Tim de Paravicini EAR HP4 valve headphone amp using Senn HD650s or Grado RS1s to taste. To me this sounds brilliant and I think this has made me a better listener, and now I'm bothered by the shouty nature of the Naim in a way that didn't bother me before.
The other possibility is that my hearing is changing with age. I'm definitely a bit more deaf than 20 years ago, so the volume is set higher, but I wonder if taste in sound changes with maturity? I certainly seem to drawn to the warmer round-earth camp these days.
Why not uprade? Well where would I go? A 552 is way beyond my resources and I can't see what else could help.
I suppose this is a Hi-Fi entry really, but I've never seen a thread bumped in that direction.
Happy New year chums.
Running in passive mode to reduce complications. All of the above gear is mine already; the Sugden system supplies our large open-plan downstairs where there is are a lot of glass walls and doors. Hi-Fi is never going to sound good there (dealer threw his hands up in horror), so this is a party system (pretty bloody impressive this New years Eve) which also feeds the garden in summer.
Listening room is small and upstairs, and has the Naim system.
The Supercap is freshly serviced. I'm sure Naim don't make Friday afternoon "wrong-uns"
. In fact, Paul Stephenson told me that every NAC52 sounds exactly the same.
Having had a chance to cool down, I wonder if a lot of the problem is the Prefix/52 thing. I hated the 52's internal phono boards from the outset, and went for the Prefix as the best Naim had to offer. I have never done a direct phono stage comparison in the Naim system before.
The Sugden Masterclass phono stage (cost about 1K GBP), simply blows the Prefix away. This begs the question, why have Naim risked losing customers by having a top of the tree phono/pre combination that really is pretty crap. I know the new phono stage is nearly here, but did it really take 30 years to get right, and how much is it going to be, and will it need a dedicated Supercap?
Anyhoo, next plan is to not throw all my toys out of the pram just yet, and audition a 252 using my Sugden phono stage and Ortophon cart.
Running in passive mode to reduce complications. All of the above gear is mine already; the Sugden system supplies our large open-plan downstairs where there is are a lot of glass walls and doors. Hi-Fi is never going to sound good there (dealer threw his hands up in horror), so this is a party system (pretty bloody impressive this New years Eve) which also feeds the garden in summer.
Listening room is small and upstairs, and has the Naim system.
The Supercap is freshly serviced. I'm sure Naim don't make Friday afternoon "wrong-uns"
. In fact, Paul Stephenson told me that every NAC52 sounds exactly the same.Having had a chance to cool down, I wonder if a lot of the problem is the Prefix/52 thing. I hated the 52's internal phono boards from the outset, and went for the Prefix as the best Naim had to offer. I have never done a direct phono stage comparison in the Naim system before.
The Sugden Masterclass phono stage (cost about 1K GBP), simply blows the Prefix away. This begs the question, why have Naim risked losing customers by having a top of the tree phono/pre combination that really is pretty crap. I know the new phono stage is nearly here, but did it really take 30 years to get right, and how much is it going to be, and will it need a dedicated Supercap?
Anyhoo, next plan is to not throw all my toys out of the pram just yet, and audition a 252 using my Sugden phono stage and Ortophon cart.