Who has given up on Userve and where did you go.

"Naim distributor here seems to think it is perfectly acceptable to have to pack up serve every 2 to 3 months and ship to him to be repaired. As long as he continues to repair it he feels he is providing a great service".

That is outrageous, and completely unacceptable! Call/email Stephen Hopkins (Naim Customer Services) on Monday!

I hope you manage to sort it out.

Regards

David

Can we please get some perspective on this thread, as a long time Naim retailer I do not usually post on the forum, but when the conversation swings to us not giving great customer service (and always have) I take exception!

I appreciate Fitzz55 server has had its issues, I would like to clarify that all these have been dealt with as promptly and as humanly possible. One of the initial faults was a failing server PSU, fine, it was replaced naturally. second fault was having the disc inserted too vigorously so a new loader required, third was when customer was rummaging around the rear of the unit and knocked the mains input into the serve, this upset the bios. Once again the unit was fixed and returned as quickly as possible. I appreciate there have been some more issues related to the unit that were passed directly on to Chris Murphy (NA Distributors). They were all fixed and the unit returned as quickly as possible..

What has compounded the problem is the customer has now moved to the central south island, and is relatively isolated and not represented well by a courier service. We have at all times given very good backup service and advise. Yes we appreciate that the server has had its issues, but a good portion have been related to poor handling and the POSSIBLE use of a TP PSU from what I understand, the TP is not at all certified by Naim. Could this have caused or somehow be related? Anyway, there are two sides to every story and in this instance the retailer and importer have been well slapped by folk on the forum that have lapped up only one side of the argument - shame on you.  

Please guys, lets not turn this into a flame the dealer/distributor discussion. There's always more to these things, and we're only getting one side of the story.

As a dealer, I've had nothing but excellent support and service over many years from Chris Murphy the NZ Naim distributor. Having someone with his technical knowledge and passion for all things Naim is hugely valueble here down under as I'm sure the Oz dealers are finding now that he is the distributor for that country as well. His biggest failing is his love of country & western music. 

Streaming based audio can, as we all know be at times a frustrating experience for all concerned..manufacturer, distributor, dealer and customer, and sometimes more patience may be needed to sort issues than in the 'good ole' days' when things were more straight forward. I hope this issue can be resolved for you soon.

Cheers

Ricky.

Good evening Sticky, although it is nearly 9.30am here in the UK! 

You are absolutely right, there is always two sides to any story. The forum is probably not the correct  place for parties to air this kind of issue. Fitz is clearly frustrated with the situation, and the forum allows him to vent his frustration. 

I myself had the same unit as Fitz! and It developed 3 faults over an 18 month period. In the end I got rid of it. I'm sure most of us can relate to a product that we've bought, where we've had nothing but grief! 

I have absolutely no idea what the consumer rights are in New Zealand. Here in the UK, I think Fitz would be entitled to a brand new unit, or a refund.

I hope everyone can resolve this issue, in a calm and civilized manner, and get back to what we all love. Music!

Absolutely agreed. I had problems with a number of UnitiServe units before being replaced by the NS01, which has been a most satisfactory solution. It has 2 x 2TB drives for internal back-up too. I know it's part of the NaimNet range, but I'm surprised that it doesn't feature in the 'normal' product range as it is such a well thought out server solution. 

Allen and Clive,

Did you notice any differences (positive or negative) in sound quality or engagement with the music after moving to the NS01?

Thanks,

Jan

Same for me. I've never used the NS01 as a music player. As a ripper and server it excels. As I said above, I'm surprised it doesn't feature in the normal product range, because it is such a well thought out solution. 

Cheap shot at the TP PSU and unnecessary!  It is far more robust than the PSU that comes with the US.  Two Naim PSU's failed with my US, before I got a TP PSU, which has been trouble free. 

On the bigger subject, I love my US, and get irritated when people like Tog snipe at it, but I have to admit it is by far the most (actually only) temperamental piece of Naim kit that I have.

I love mine as well Martin, that makes it all the more frustrating to be without it on a regular basis. Absolutely zero problems with any other naim kit. I removed the third party psu from my system as I was afraid it would be used to justify any problems with the Userve.

My problems pre-date my TP PSU.  But I do suspect a bit of self-inflicted woe.  The US runs quite hot, and needs space to breath which mine has not always had.  I messed up the upgrade process once too.  However, I think the US could be a bit more idiot-proof.  And the failure of the PSUs and problems with the disk eject were not the result of mistreatment.

But it is the best feed I have for my nDAC and does trouble-free rips.  I'd love a decent transport to feed my nDAC instead, then I could move the US to a quiet cool spot on the LAN and away from the rest of the hi-fi.

OK, thank you both.

Has anyone hear done the U/S vs NS01 comparison as an S/PDIF source into a DAC?

I think the NS01 has its own built in DAC; it certainly has a 5-pin DIN socket on the back. Hence, I imagine you could simply plug it into an amp and control it from a PC or maybe even an iPad.