Oh No, What have I Done?

Posted by: Ade Archer on 06 February 2001

Hi All,

I had recently been wondering what the best future (as in "not yet") upgrade should be, and as my mate works at a dealer I went in to see him and borrowed a 250 to try. I was'nt totally convinced after a few days that it was worthwhile, sounding a little warm with rock music and lacking some of the snap of my 140. I took it back today, and he suggested that I might prefer the 180.
I did'nt take the 180, but the opportunity to try an 82 was mentioned and I thought 'Why not, I'm only borrowing it'. I won't comment further than to say that I am now wondering how much I might get for my wife and kids, and I only borrowed it 5 hours ago.

Ade

(BTW What would be a fair ex-dem price for a 82?)

...Oh no, what am I saying???

Posted on: 06 February 2001 by Arye_Gur

Ade,

Apologise in advence if I don't understand you.
If you think about geting something for a wife, listen to me, if you are giving up your wife, it will cost so much that the 82 will be able to buy you instead of you buying it.

Arie

Posted on: 06 February 2001 by Ade Archer

quote:
First Law of Upgrading
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
'Never borrow/demo/try equipment that you can't afford (or don't want to waste money on it)!!'

Doing so does'nt seem very different to going and listening to someones top flight system at their house, even if you only own a modest system, but I'm sure plenty of people do it.
My dealer friend has a non-Naim system (he is a previous CDS2 owner) which cost considerably more than mine, and after listening to it the other day, although I was impressed, I could still go home and appreciate my system because he obviously prefers a different presentation to me, which is why he sold his Naim stuff.
I expected the 250 I borrowed this week to be a convincing demo, but I am happier overall with my 140, so if a second-hand one was offered at the right price I now know my money would be better spent elsewhere, whereas before I may have been tempted to buy it without a demo, convinced that because it costs nearly 3 times as much as my 140 it must be a lot better. So listening to expensive gear can actually make you appreciate that what you've got ain't so bad.
Now, to be honest I was expecting better things of the 82 and my expectations have been more than fulfilled, but at least I now know exactly what the next step is, and how much it will cost, and if a 2nd hand one was available at the right time and price I would buy it without hesitation.

Arie,
My wife and kids are'nt going anywhere yet (well, not until she finds out how much I want to spend yet again on my hifi. Then I think she'll be telling me where to go)

Cheers

Ade

Posted on: 07 February 2001 by Ade Archer

The 82 that I'm borrowing does'nt have phono boards fitted, and if I get one I'll need some. With the 72 and some others it's rcommended to remove them if possible to improve performance, and I am a little concerned that if these were installed in the 82 there would be a slight performance drop. Can anyone confirm whether they affect performance on an 82.

Also, exactly what boards would it need and how much are they?

Cheers

Ade

Posted on: 07 February 2001 by Ade Archer

I've been e-mailed about my opinion of the 250. Apparently there must be something seriously wrong with my system if I prefer a 140 to a 250. Now I was surprised and a little disappointed that the 250 didn't impress as much as I thought it would, and I'm sure plenty of people can't understand why. I remind you that I didn't say the 140 was better, just in my system, in my room, I preferred the 140.
Can anyone offer any explanations as to the characteristic sound of the different Naim power amps, and do they indeed differ in their presentation. In my room the 250 sounded like it wasn't really having to make an effort, possibly because of the size of the room, and sounded a little laid back. My 140 sounds 'snappier' and more 'foot-tapping'. Would the 250 sound like a big 140, which is what I'm looking for, after running-in thoroughly. I seem to remember reading that 135's sound like bigger 180's, rather than 250's, so what I'm really asking is 'Do 180's sound like more powerful 140's?'
I hope I've asked this question in a way that makes sense.

Cheers

Ade confused

Posted on: 07 February 2001 by Phil Barry

My 250 sounded like an entirely different animal than my 140, which turns out to have 140 boards w/'Santek' (?) transistors and a 110 transformer.

The 250 sounded effortless and totally in control. Congestion in mids and highs cleared up to a remarkable degree. Bass was faster, more tuneful. And it got better as it warmed up.

As Vuk loves to hear, my wife came out of her study and walked down a 20' hall to listen to music through the 250 - and (new info) she's unimpressed by the 52!

The 250 was a clear winner in my system.

The copy you tried may be in need of service.

Phil

Posted on: 07 February 2001 by Ade Archer

Thanks James,

I thought I was going to have to book myself in for an obviously long overdue service and re-cap, or swap all my stuff for a Matsui midi system, as it would all sound the same to me.

Cheers

Ade.