Wilson Sabrina w/ NAC N-274 & NAP 200DR

 Melco dedicated audio NAS drive? Ok, I'm on it, I'll check it out.

That puts me more in the 272/200DR camp than the SuperNait2 with the NDX (I think).

I really wouldn't bother with the 200. Go for the 250DR as a minimum. It's what I use with my SL2s, which are an easy load, and I wouldn't want a 200 driving them. If you can afford the speakers, you can afford the 272/250DR, surely?

That will be a tough one, @ 3K more US.  Surely the 272/200DR would as good or better than the Rega Elicit 105 watt integrated/DAC-R I heard?

I sure hope so, the Sebrina sounded great on the Rega set up. I expect the 272/200DR would even "go deeper"

http://www.rega.co.uk/elicit-r.html

I still can't get over the idea of using a 200 with a £14,500 speaker. It's not just about power - the 250DR is a damn sight better. 

It's all relative and it depends where you live. The Sabrina is $15,000 US. Few years ago I have heard a very convincing demo of the Wilson Sophia connected to a Nait 5i...

Perhaps my harping on about the 250 comes from the fact that owning the 272/XPSDR/250DR means I know how good it is and a feeling that anything less wouldn't do justice to such high end speakers. Anyway, I shall give up now and let the OP make a decision without further intervention from me. 

Sometimes statistics and measurements only tell you a part of the story. My wife and I have heard the Sabrina with a 252 and 300 and Audio Research Ref 5 SE/ref 75. It's a mighty fine speaker. Bass, body, depth, power, smoothness are all words that come to mind. It's image height is not in the class of an Isobarik or an Ovator S800 but a great speaker and one that works well with Naim (even a 200, which is a great amp).

Back in the day it was okay to run a SBL with a 52/140 as a super high end system on the cheap so a 200/Sabrina makes sense to me. 

Its a useful comment to note that Wilsons in the USA cost about the same number of $$ as they would ££ in the UK. In other words, they are relatively cheap.

Naim, on the other hand, costs a good bit more in the USA, I believe.

As for the fact that a 250DRsounds better than a 200, well.................yes. But where do you stop ? or should that be, where do you start ? $3k is $3k and if that means foregoing the Sabrinas, I would stick with the 200. In a couple of years it will be a darn sight easier to trade in the 200 for a 250DR than to upgrade whatever speaker is brought in now in place of the Sabrinas.

As I say, where do you start - or stop. MDS has just ordered a 300DR to replace his 250 because it is such a massive improvement over the 250...............

Agree, thank you. For me personally it's not worth forgoing the Sabrina for a higher performing amp or extending my gear budget beyond what i can handle.  As you say it will be much easier & less costly for me to make upgrades in amp or whatever over time.

If your thinking of undertaking a long term endeavour with 272,200 and Sabrina's as a "starter"option this looks ideal :  see what the 200 brings to the table for a while, later get a 250 then a 300 , maybe try another Nac. With the Sabrina telling you her account of whats going on with the Naim sound as it evolves. You might end up in Naim Nirvana, or you might not.   Good luck.

cheers

the cult of the speakers is a total waste of money to me.

Get the best source you can afford, then spend the money on the best Naim preamp, and a new DR amp, and whatever is left to be spent on the speakers.

That is what used to happen 30 + years ago according to Norman @ UHES, who has a PHD in loudspeaker design, and of all the people in the world, this gentleman would know best.

If you read the review of the dynaudio X12 on stereophile, they said that nowadays this $1000 speaker was so damn good, that there was little point in spending more. You can also google the the interview of Franco Serblin with stereophile, who designed the legendary Sonus Faber speakers, and said the minima was his favorite speaker and the one he was most proud of, his opinion was that at home, the 2 way bookshelf was all one needs, and the search for bass was never ending, and due to the room, almost impossible to get right with larger speakers.

Your money, but you might look back in a few years and see some logic in what Naim have always advised their customers since the last 40 years.

Spend your money wisely. Why not ask Steve Hopkins at Naim HQ, he can advise you accordingly.

Also consider speaking to Norman @ UHES, a most wonderful dealer, along with Paul @ Billy Vee, Alastair @ Signals and Peter @ Cymbiosis and of course the Frank Abela @ Audio-t. These gentlemen really know a LOT about Naim. I am sure  there are many wonderful dealers, but these are the ones I have spoken to.

I followed Steve Hopkins advice regarding speakers and am very happy today.

Also a 1ohm load is a punishing load. OUCH !

If you buy this combo, it will play music, and you will be happy, until you hear a Naim system with more compatible speakers, which might just sound a lot more musical, energetic, engaging, powerful (yes !), and coherent, and then you might just remember what everyone here tried to tell you.

How do I know?

From personal experience of buying speakers first, just you like are now.

I know you find it difficult to accept that electronics and sources come before speakers, but it is true, and speaker choice is much, much less important than the source and preamp.

...sorry to say this, but this IS the wrong approach... speakers have by far the most importance in sound... what you say it's like saying that a person's face isn't at all important...

as for the source first phylosophy, nowadays i am pretty sure, by experience, that differences between a good and relatively cheap digital source and a very expensive one, are not radical, and, sometimes, you actually struggle to hear any differences in common setups...

on the other hand, the personality of the speaker contributes the most on the final sound.

no wonder many keep changing Naim gear so often, in search of upgrade (better sound???). by choosing the better speaker actually avoids a lot of unuseful electronics upgrade, that's what i believe...

of course, there are some who make the upgrade just for fun and the sake of changing the gear...

...again, reading between the lines... someone wise said there is only one kind of speaker - the floorstands. the standmounts just weren't speakers as far as he was concerned...

sometimes, or most of the times, he was actually right... a small standmount, cannot deliver to the way a big floorstand does... there are a few exceptions... Focal diablos and Sonus Faber Guarneri included, but at their respective price points, shurely anyone can find a good or excellent floorstand that does an even better job...

of course, if you have a small listening room, most likely a floorstand of respectable size (let's say just like S400 and above) can be way too much... but then again, if you don't have a garage, don't buy a convertible!

I recently tried Sabrinas using a SN2, and must say this worked very well.  Just for kicks, I played Porcupine Tree's ' Strip the soul' quite loud. No issues. Lots of fun.

I am also starting to think along these lines.

A dealer demo coming up is 272/250DR with Sopra No1 and No2, a speaker at a price point well above the source. SL IC and SC being the cables, this is something that I am finding more and more appealing.

NAP 250 DR would be my minimum amp on a pair of Sabrinas - your mileage may vary....

That's great news. I'm looking to get blownaway. 

Thanks for your help.

The sopra is worth a listen. I liked them. I have not heard them on Naim gear yet. I bet it would impress.

I agree with you on this. It's a sharp contrast to what I felt 20 years ago when I followed the Linn "source is everything" montra.

Maybe because advancements with higher performance /lower cost  in digital electronics have developed faster than speaker design. 

The "source first" mantra got taken to extremes by a few fruit-cases.

I always countered it with the concept of a "second-hand pair of in-car Phillips" speakers on the end of a top-of-the-range Linn/Naim system.

Responses usually included....

"ah!, now you are being silly" ..errr no! You have just seen that a more "balanced system is sensible than a pure "source-first"!

or

"well, I only need them for a few weeks/months/years until I can afford to upgrade them".... errr, ok, if its a "few weeks" you are simply taking delivery of your final system in stages and the in-car speakers are not representative of the source-first mantra. Even a "few months" could be construed in the same light. As for a few years, well IMHO you'd be better off with a more balanced system.

Of course, I put my money where my mouth was, and bought Isobariks. Then about 20 years later Wilson's System V. Never looked back !

Believe your dealer, get the Sabrinas now and the best Naim kit the "loose change" will allow. Upgrade the Naim kit if you wish in a few year's time, as and when you can afford it - you'll get a decent price on the trade-ins.