Bought Naim

Posted by: Omakase on 06 July 2003

Hi all,

I'm still here. Cool

Thanks to all who helped me w/ my previous queries, I'm happy to inform everyone that I indluged in my first Naim system: Nait 5/CD 5. Big Grin

Now I hv more questions:

The spkrs make a slight popping sound when I turn on the amp, after turning on the CD player, just wondering if this is normal? Confused

Vis a vis my prev amp (MF A1), I had to turn up the volume knob a lot more to achieve the same loudness. E.g. w/ the MF, 9 o'clock was mighty loud enough. W/ the Nait, I needed 11-12 o'clock to achieve similar impact. Is there anything wrong w/ the amp? W/ run-in, will this "improve"? Confused Confused

Does anyone hv experience w/ running Quad 11L's w/ Nait 5/CD 5? How would you describe the sound? Is the bass tight enough? Is the sound boxy? (My room is small, about 12' x 13', 10' ceiling)

I know it's been asked b4, but has anyone actually tried matching the Nait 5 w/ ATC SCM 7? Do you think the ATC's would sound absolutely crap w/ more complex pieces in this case? Eek

Thx for any help.
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by prowla
Yep - agree with Mark.
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by herm
Congratulations, Catherine.

Keep the amp and CD5 powered 24 / 7 please; it's much better that way. You're not giving it a chance to warm up / burn in this way. The best way to run in the CD5 is put a disc in and play it on repeat for a week.

If you have to turn up the volume dial that high in a smallish room it may be an indication the Quads are a fairly heavy load to drive.

If you're curious about ATC speakers, try and get a home dem. Every speaker is different in a different room.

Herman
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by David Stewart
Definitely better to leave the gear powered up 24/7. It uses very little power in quiescent mode and will always be ready to give its best.
Also there is much evidence to suggest electronic equipment is fundamentally more reliable when NOT subjected to continual off/on, heating/cooling cycles.

Are you using the ubiquitous NACA5 or some other make of speaker wire??

David
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by Omakase
Thanks for all comments.

Nice to know that my gears are performing "normally". The system sounds a bit muffled now, I'm told that w/ run-in, it should open up eventually. Any confirmation on this?

Herm:
Interesting comment on the volume issue. Just asked the dealer and he told me that the design of the volume knob is a resistor that works in some linear fashion rather than a potentiometer, and it's "meant to sound best at 12 o'clock".

Indeed, as Patrick Dixon kindly pointed out, I can adjust the gain of the CD input but the dealer said it wasn't really necessary...

ATC...home dems ain't the norm w/ dealers here, I'll see what I can do. ATC SCM7's sensitivity is 84dB, so it could be a silly exercise. Wink
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by Omakase
Hi David,

NACA5 indeed. 3.5m each side. I've got some other spkr cables but I dare not try them w/ the Nait for fear of damaging the amp.
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by David Stewart
Best to continue with the A5 if you can, but not all speakers like it (mine definitely don't). Lots of people use non-Naim speaker cable with Naim equipment and there aren't too many documented cases of amps fragging themselves on the sitting-room carpet Wink

Allow yourself 4-6 weeks for it all to burn in before making any judgements, but if you're not happy with the way your speakers perform then, it could be worth trying different cables. Your dealer can recommend something that won't put your Nait at risk.

David
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by prowla
"meant to sound best at 12 o'clock"

Hmmm - sounds dubious to me.
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by bjorne
quote:
ATC SCM7's sensitivity is 84dB, so it could be a silly exercise. Wink


Hi. I suppose it will sound ok, Naim is wellknown for sounding more powerful than there rating suggests but it will not be an optimal match. These small speakers do like a lot of power. I suggest you look at other brands that are more compatible with the Nait.
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by quickie
Hi Catherine,
I have been using ATC SCM7's for about a month now,they are superb little speakers.
My room is 13x10 ft,and as a stop gap I am driving them with a nap 110 power amp.
They will not go very loud,the ATC's needs amps of between 50-300w per channel,but I do tend to like listening at high levels Wink
I would have thought quality wise the Nait will be fine....it all depend's on how loud you like your tunes.....

Cheers,
Paul.
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by Omakase
Playing music non-stop now w/ the new amp, cd player, spkr cables as I write, as per all useful suggestions. I think the sound is becoming punchier and more rhythmic. No fatigue yet, albeit at moderate volumes only! So the midnight burning continues...

As for spkrs, I really hv this love/hate thing w/ the SCM 7 now, which I auditioned extensively. Quality speaker at good price but seems like it craves expensive, powerful support. At which point one might wonder if more expensive spkrs are due given the amplification. And the SCM7's tend to perform best when played loud, but I don't ALWAYS listen loud.

Perhaps I could hv gone for 112/150 or higher so I wouldn't hv this dilemma, but isn't life more fun sometimes w/ self-inflicted challenges?

For now I think I will happily continue running-in my gear and worry about spkrs and other nitty gritty stuff later. Perhaps I'll update everyone later of my progress!
Posted on: 07 July 2003 by Linds
WHAT is muffled?

I borrowed a Nait 5 for a dem with my Credos, and it had been WELL run-in by the dealer.

I also found it to be muffled and with several tracks the vocals were difficult to make out from the rest of the instruments. Had this not been the case, I'd have a Nait 5 on my rack by now. Arcam Alpha 9 » Myryad Mi-120 » Chord Odyssey » Nait 5. Having borrowed NACA5 at time of Credo/Intro dem, I remember it "suppressed" the vocals slightly MORE than Odyssey.

!!! There's always money somewhere for the next upgrade... !!!