getting rid of me Kan's...

I assume that your listening room exceeds 3m x 3m and if so, sell those horrid little Kans as soon as possible.

They have been well and truely over hyped in recent months and as such there are plenty of punters out there, gasping to buy them.

Ask about £450 if they are wood finish and have oringinal stands. Reduce by £50 if they are black.

Then buy yourself some Saras which sound twice as good for half the price. They also look nicer because of their size and the base is so much better.

You will get a good wood finished pair on original stands for about £225/250.

So you now have an opportunity to improve your system and make a bit of lolly at the same time.

Go for it whilst they are easy to shift.

Regards

Mick

Dave Dever

It's much easier changing the speakers than changing the room.......sell the horrid little things.

I have heard them and they look and sound wierd.

Regards

Mick

Mine was the Spica Tc-50's, which to my ears had an almost "quad-like" midrange. My proacs, and now sbl's better them in everyway except the midrange. This is a trivial issue to almost everybody else who has heard my system in its various guises (and my various speakers in comparison to each other) mostly because most everything else betters the spicas (substantially) in most other areas (bass, treble extension, dynamics, etc). AND SO, it isn't so much that the midrange on the spica was so good, or that it is so important (the sbl's and proacs are probably "good enough" in the midband, and god knows, substantially better in every other area) but because I was (and still am) so familiar with the way the spicas sounded in my system, I am niggled constantly by this one aspect of every other speaker.

SOOOO, I have owned the Kans and generally find them wanting compared to most. BUT, had I owned them for a long period and grown used to them, I know i'd be uncomfortable with almost everything else. Not because the Kans are "better" (they aren't) but because nothing else sounds like 'em.

Judd

quote:

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Originally posted by Mick Parry:
Alco

Then buy yourself some Saras which sound twice as good for half the price. They also look nicer because of their size and the base is so much better.

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And, strangely, Mick is selling a pair of Saras.

(Only kidding, Mick).

cheers, Martin

IMO worth persisting with. Or find some s/h Kabers, which are well under-rated and hence cheap, take up the same space as Kans but may take more than a Nait to make them go.

Saras are in a lesser league altogether.

Paul (Owner of Kan and Sara, anybody got some cheap Isobariks to complete the collection?)

Scott

I have had my mark 1 Kan's since I walked them new out of the dealers shop many moons ago ( mine are EARLY teak - they have the binding posts not sockets. )

I know exactly what you mean about their qualities. They can be very nasty, but you may find they are also very difficult to replace.
Over the years I have had many speakers at home for trial. In every case they have gone back, and the Kan's have stayed. Why ?? I don't really know. All I do know is that with the others there have been better in many areas, some did not work in the room, so were out automatically, others I did not have enough amp ( with the Nait 1 )but for the most part they did not better the Kan's in the musical integrity department, especially for the costs involved. Anything I did find that had potential shifted the system to the heavy end of mullet. ( not that it does need a trim in back currently )

In short I guess what I am trying to say is hold on to them, do your demo's, get something new but tuck the Kan's in the closet. For what you will get for them IMO its not worth selling. Replacing them can be a bit dodgy with the lack of driver availablity. (I know there are alternates but...)And if you do sell, I think you will have regrets.

As for repalcements, stand or floor ???? New or Used or doen't matter????

regards,

mykel

Mykel: I also considered keeping my Kan's, because I don't think they'll be worth much to 99% of the musiclovers/HiFistores outhere
because of their cheap looks.

I won't need a second system though. I never really understood why people have a $$$$ 2nd system. I also don't have the space for it.

My livingroom is about 4x5 meters.

I'll keep my eyes and ears open en pop in some HiFi stores for a while.
(thought about the new Castle "Pembroke")

..to be continued

regards,
Alco

You might want to have a listen to a pair of the Shahinian Compass
Unsure whether the N2 will drive 'em properly but they may be right up your alley
Shahinian make tasty speakers mate. Suck it and see

Fantastic speakers, Mystiques ended my speaker quest.
Every Naim owner goes on an epic quest for a speaker in their lifetime, enjoy yours!

Alex

PS Mike's not wrong about the quest!

Good luck
Steve

Regards
Steve

btw:Mike, Neat's are out of the question since there is hardly any dealer in Holland who's selling 'em.

Sara's and Shaninian too,besides the fact that my Nait-2 can't drive 'em, they are also even more ugly then my own Kan's. (and hard to find.)

When looks,ease of drive and ease of placement is considered,the following speakers came to my mind:

1. Castle "Pembroke"
2. KEF Q35.2

...too bad the Proac Tablette 50's no longer excists.

well, I guess I better bring along my Nait to some dealers and listen to some serious contenders.

I'll let ya know what's gonna happen.

Greeting and C U all next year

quote:

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Originally posted by Alco:

When looks,ease of drive and ease of placement is considered,the following speakers came to my mind:

1. Castle "Pembroke"
2. KEF Q35.2

...too bad the Proac Tablette 50's no longer excists.

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I saw some mint used Tablette 50's for sale at one of the dealers recently - I can't remember what the cost but I'll see if I can find them again.

What about something along the lines of ATC SCM7's? They're a closed box design and should be good in a small space. I'm trying to get a demo to see how they'd be in my room. Spendor also make some interesting (and pretty) small speakers.

Used there are always IBLs.

Regards
Steve

quote:

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btw:Mike, Neat's are out of the question since there is hardly any dealer in Holland who's selling 'em

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Damn.
What about Spendor? The 3/5 is worth a look.
Rega Ara takes a more fun approach and meet your criteria.
Anyways, let us know what happens. Interested in what you end up hearing and liking.

See you next year,

Mike

Now that's a coincidence... There is one dealer I spotted on the internet who was offering a (new!) pair of Spendor LS3/5's for a very acceptable price.

I've heard great things about the legendary Rogers
LS3/5a but... They are even more difficult to drive than Kan's,so I don't think it'll be a good matsch with a Nait-2 and second...they look just the same as my Kans.

well anyway,I'll bring out a full report,asap

regards,
Alco

quote:

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Originally posted by Alco:
well, I guess I better bring along my Nait to some dealers and listen to some serious contenders.

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Alco,

you said that your problems started when you put in wooden flooring.

I know from bitter experienc that you cannot fix one problem by upgrading something else.

All you will get by replacing your speakers with duller ones is a sound that is sometimes too bright (when the room dominates) and sometimes too dull (when your d-u-l-l speakers overcompensate for the room).

If you were getting a reasonable sound before then you need to find a way to remove all (or most of) the glare before you do anything else.

Once you get back to the sound you had before, then you can consider changing speakers.

If you really do insist on changing the Kans first, you need to take them to your dealer too. Listen to them with the Nait in the dealer's dem room. If they sound harsh & nasty like you're getting at home then the demo will tell you something useful.

Or, maybe hearing the Kans at the dealer will make you realise your mistake before it's too late.

It is my opinion that Kans should work well in most Naim systems if that system (and room) is performing well. They may not be to everyone's taste, but the sound should not be obviously broken. Once you've got Kans working well, then all the strengths of the Naims are shining through. This is the right time to consider swapping the Kans out, and the system should then work well with whatever you replace them with.

cheers, Martin

quote:

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He's probably at home listening to music from Kans driven by a nait with a big grin on his face.

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Indeed. My latest AB Sound order landed in my mailbox over the weekend, so I have been enjoying two Miles Davis albums ‘Milestones’ and ‘Miles Ahead’. Quality stuff.

As for the dumping of Kans, well I’ve been there and done that in the past (Isobariks then ProAc Tablette 50 Sigs). If I learnt one thing by doing it, it is that I should have kept my Kans as a reference point. If you are going to try others don’t sell the Kans to do it. I let my first pair go to the guy who was selling the Isobariks, and by the time I got round to replacing them with the ProAcs I had no reference point to compare them against until I got sick of the ProAcs and replaced them with another pair of Kans (yes the Kans are better!).

The idea of Saras is ridiculous unless you are Mick and can afford to buy a CDS2 / 52 / 135s to stick in front of them. If you have a more normal income forget about ‘em. The money that is needed to drive them is far better invested further upstream.

If you are happy with the Nait 2 I would try Intro 2s in your price range, they are bigger sounding and have a hell of a lot more bass, yet are easy to drive. Another option is second hand Tukans, they are flatter than “real” Kans and may be what you are after. Alternately a XPS would get a hell of a lot more bass and refinement out of your existing Kans!

The bottom line is that if you think the problem is the room then buying different speakers is almost certainly not the thing to do. I know the kind of acoustic issues a wooden floor brings as I have one. Definitely get a big rug in front of the speakers, it makes a hell of a difference.

Tony.

Kans are not necessarily a bad loudspeaker. However, if anything has a forward balance, then they will show it doing so. We have similar primary systems and I know what you're talking about.

What I have found out is that the Naim electronics plays music *AT* you, rather than *WITH* you in the way that Linn does. So, you have two options that I encourage you to try.

1) Use Naim louspeakers, as they are tend to alleviate the pushy character that the electronics exhibit through Linn loudspeakers.
2) Use Linn electronics, which take a more relaxed stance while maintaining foot-tapping, enjoyable, tuneful and involving characteristics.

Also bear in mind that tweeter technology has moved on, those in the Kan IIs are out-of-date and do give an acidic treble.

Alco, this is a mistake I made a while ago. At the stage you have reached, you MUST MUST MUST demo a separate Linn and separate Naim system at home for as long as your dealer will let you. A 2 hour demo in a dealer will tell you very little, even if one system sounds more convincing than another. What may strike as sounding good in the 2 hours at the dealer may become the very criteria you hate it for - such as with your Kans.

Andrew

P.S. Better decide quick before hyper-inflation sets in with the Euro

Andrew Randle
2B || !2B;
4 ^ = ?;

I tried some speakers in your range. The Sonus Faber Concertino is a fantastic little speaker, lively and engaging, real wood finish not veneer! Also the Dynaudio Contour 1.3, but the nait may not drive these. Proac Tablette 2000 are very good but a little high on price.

Another option is to try a floor stander that goes close to a wall (IIRC your speakers are close to the wall) like the Mission 782. These sound a little cold to me.

Maybe the SF will suit you as they are a very well finished speaker that also sounds great. I went for floor standers and have a similar size room to you, but that is down to preferences. My favourite out of thestand mounters was the Dynaudio Contour 1.3 but they are £800 second hand.

Enjoy the quest.

Milan

In rebalancing your system (after the CDX and refurnishing of your room)I think there are several options.

1. Try some absoring feet under the CDX. I like SSC. It gives a more spacious, smoother, laid back sound.

2. Carpets

3. Speakers. The following speakers come to my mind:
Diapason adamanates or prelude
Spendor 2/3
Reference 3a da Capo (problably the best)
PMC FB1
Furthermore there are spreakers of JM Reynaud, which are easy driven, but I never heard them.

Succes

Theo