Intro II on Nait 2 (anyone ?)

Posted by: Alco on 13 April 2002

Hi guys,

I visited a Naim dealer this afternoon. The same story where I got my CDX from.
I took my Nait-2 along with me and hooked it up to a (beech) pair of Naim Intro II's.

(Bas,if you're reading this...) imho, I'd like the looks of the Intro better if it would be al little slimmer and had some more rounded edges,but all this was soon forgotten when the music started to fill the room!

The room was small wih carpet on the floor,a rug hanging on one wall and some curtains hanging behind the system.
The speakers weren't even spiked and the CD-player was installed on the carpet floor.
(not an ideal situation ofcourse)
Also the CD-player used for this demo was a Rega Jupiter. The CDX had some problems.

The sound of the Intro's was very relaxed,open en just musical. After a few minutes I wasn't paying attention anymore to things like imaging,depth,soundstage,etc. The music just flowed into the room. Also I found out that I didn't feel any need to turn up the volume.
Already on modest listening levels the music came alive. The bass was a little (read: too) thin for most round-earthers I guess,but I liked it very much,it was very easy to follow the thight bass.
The mid/highs were a little forward but never harsh! (as mentioned in some magazine reviews)

The dealer suggested to give me a home-demo of the Intro II next wednesday. I'm sure it 'll sound different,since I have a laminate floor in my room.
If the Intro's will sound just as fine as they did in the shop,the dealer was prepared to take my SF's as a trade-in for 180,- euro/about 100,- UKP less then the price I payed for 'em.
Imho, that's a fair deal. That would leave me with only 250,- euro/145,- UKP to get me the Intro's.
He also suggested some (nice cherrywood!) Credo's.
If I would go for Credo's I'd get a 100% refund of the SF's price and a fair price for my Cyrus III.
I listened to the Credo's though, and IT IS a better speaker overall, but not that much over the Intro's that it's worth the extra cash,imho.

So Bas, I have to confess and apologies, you were absolutely right! (again )
The Intro II's are just 'my cup of tea'.
(the looks are less my cup of tea,though better than black Kan's on Kan stands.)

btw: the cable used today was (again) Kimber.
The allways used Kimber with Naim. hmmm...

Well, that's my story so far.
I'm very curious how the Intro performs in my own room!

Anyone of you lots ever heard/tried/owns Intro II's on a Nait-2 ? whatta ya think...

See Y'all,
Alco

[This message was edited by Alco on SUNDAY 14 April 2002 at 11:43.]

Posted on: 14 April 2002 by Alco

....Nobody ?

Isn't there anyone who owns/tried some Intro's in another Naim setup ?
I mean,too my ears they weren't as harsh as some people/reviews described.

or could it have been the (overly ?) damped listening room with the rug,carpet and curtains?

O,well.
I'll just have to wait till next wednesday to see if they perform just as well, in my livingroom.

greetings,
Alco

Posted on: 14 April 2002 by garyi

Alco sorry about the lack of responses.

FWIW Ihad credeos running from a 92/90 for 5 years so that combo obviously was doing something right.

But alas I can't comment specifically on your suggestion, as you asy though worth a try, especially as the intor is not to hard to set up, three PIPS and bit of leveling and off you go.

I think you will land up buying them!

Posted on: 14 April 2002 by Alco

Thanx, Gary

I sure hope so!
I'm getting pretty tired of searching for the ideal speaker in my room.

At first I found the Intro (or Credo) too big,massive to my liking and compared to Kan's or IBL's or even my Sonus Faber's, but the size would only be a matter if they had to stand far away from the back wall.

and the nice cherry veneer is also a nice bonus.

Well,we'll see

btw: nice setup you have!
(just saw the picture on your profile)

Regards,
Alco

Posted on: 14 April 2002 by Alco

quote:
wanted more control of low bass which is why I have recently converted the Nait to pre only and added a 180.

So the Nait-2 didn't have enough control over the Intro's, on its own ?
I told the salesman about my (lack of low-end control) problems concerning the SF speaker I currently have and some speakers before.
(with the Nait-2 that is)

he said:"If you like the sound of the Intro's on your Nait is a matter of taste,but I can garantee, you won't have any low-end problems."

o,well time will tell...

btw: I have a laminate floor and the speakers will be placed on some 2" thick marble slabs.
(preferably about 7" to 10" from the backwall)

regards,
Alco

Posted on: 14 April 2002 by garyi

Alco, trust me for a starter don't put them on the slabs, just put them on 2 pence peices if you want to protect the floor, or better still don't

The slab will rob you of the bass, I have them under the SBLs for just this reason, but i have to much bass.

For you first days listening don't have the slabs, the intros are easily moved around and played with so you can do this to start, deal?

Posted on: 14 April 2002 by Alco

Hi there Gary,

I wanted to use the marble slabs because the (click)floating laminate lays on top of my previous carpetfloor(!) I'm afraid putting the Intro's directly on the laminate might be a bit more wobbly (right word ?)
So the massive weight of the marble will make the floor underneath more even.
Also, I was always more afraid of having too much bass in my room then having a lack of bass.

Thanks for the info though,Gary
I definitely will try the difference with/without the marble slabs.

There's one sad thing... I could buy the demopair if I wanted but it's in beech,so if I want the cherry ones I'd have to wait another 2 weeks

But...I'll wait! I've searched and waited long enough, so a week more or less won't make that much difference anymore.

to be continued...

See y'all
Alco

Posted on: 14 April 2002 by Mike Sae

Hey Alco,

I don't want to complicate things, but Bas mentioned something about Neat now being available in Holland. Get a dem of the Critique or Mystique, perhaps?

quote:
I'm getting pretty tired of searching for the ideal speaker in my room.

The worst part of Naim ownership, yes?

Posted on: 14 April 2002 by Alco

Hey Mike,

Thanx, but the only Neat dealer in Holland is way too far from my town.
So,I could never arrange a homedemo of the Neats.

(must confess that Neat is looking Neater then a Naim Intro)

I'll just wait for the Intro demo first.

btw: I just did some chatting on a Dutch HiFi forum,where I complemented Naim and the Naim Intro. (also mentioned your site)
There was a guy who said he had some bad experience with Naim,especially the Nait-2.
He didn't like the sound of the Nait at all.

Ofcourse this is everybody's right and all a matter of taste,but his system was comprising Dynaudio 1.3 speakers and Van den Hul cable.
...No wonder 'the Nait' wasn't his cup o' tea!
(nothing wrong with these Dynaudio's and Van den Hull,but a bad combination with a Nait2!

well, I'm gonna get me some sleep now.
Have to get up early again.

bye Y'all,
Alco :

Posted on: 14 April 2002 by Craig B

ISTR, that much of your disatisfaction with the sound of your system (and your fiddling about with speaker wire, speaker and amp changes) came about when you installed the new flooring.

Could it be that the Click flooring over the old carpeting is partly to blame for all of the changes ie. brighter room sound combined with less firm system support = glaring highs and wooley bass.

Is it possible to take up the flooring, remove the carpet, replace the flooring (more solidly) and get a nice area rug to damp things a bit?

BTW, I have heard the Intro II sounding very good on two separate occasions in two different suspended wooden floored rooms with CD5/NAIT 5. The bass was taught and tunefull in both cases. I imagine that I would like them even better on the end of CDX/NAIT 2.

Looking forward to your report.

Craig