Moving on from Mu-so - newbie

OK. I guess there is no real consensus here, but nevertheless lots of useful advice. Anyone who has a flash of inspiration or can recommend a specific dealer here in Italy, please don't hesitate to post.

No advice on what to buy but I'd point out that it is not a big job to change the radiator behind the door to something taller and thinner - thereby making room for a speaker to the left of the table. I'm also a little unsure as to why you need 2 radiators in such as relatively small room? Could you not just have one underneath the window?

Penarth Blues posted:

No advice on what to buy but I'd point out that it is not a big job to change the radiator behind the door to something taller and thinner - thereby making room for a speaker to the left of the table. I'm also a little unsure as to why you need 2 radiators in such as relatively small room? Could you not just have one underneath the window?

Hi

Although the room is small, and even with two radiators the room is still cold-ish. This 16th-century stone-built tower has no virtually no thermal insulation, and although we have done what we can to improve the thermal performance, this room - believe it or not - needs the two radiators. Nevertheless, they could be changed/moved, and that might be a good way forward . I had not considered that possibility. Thanks.

I'd suggest a SuperUniti coupled with a pair of Neat Elite speakers which are not too critical of positioning due to their bottom firing port with their slate-base configuration would be good but, the Neats might be too large for your room size.

blag posted:

Penarth Blues posted:

No advice on what to buy but I'd point out that it is not a big job to change the radiator behind the door to something taller and thinner - thereby making room for a speaker to the left of the table. I'm also a little unsure as to why you need 2 radiators in such as relatively small room? Could you not just have one underneath the window?

Hi

Although the room is small, and even with two radiators the room is still cold-ish. This 16th-century stone-built tower has no virtually no thermal insulation, and although we have done what we can to improve the thermal performance, this room - believe it or not - needs the two radiators. Nevertheless, they could be changed/moved, and that might be a good way forward . I had not considered that possibility. Thanks.

I did wonder if it was a very old building - this makes sense now. If you can move the one radiator then a set of standmounted speakers should just about be possible to squeeze in by the window and by the door - which would give you a decent stereo image.

You've had lots of good advice on here but if you want to spend slightly less than your budget then I've got the Uniti 2 plus Focal 926's which were voiced to work with each other and I think would give you the 'Naim' sound you're looking for.

However the 926's are floorstanders and may not fit in your room, but I've heard their standmount siblings the 906's and they are an exceptional speaker at the price point and would then allow you to afford a new SuperUniti which I think would suit your constraints the best out of all the options.

Have fun playing - and I'd be tempted to rearrange your room first before doing anything else as you may find it opens up options you've not yet considered

blythe posted:

I'd suggest a SuperUniti coupled with a pair of Neat Elite speakers which are not too critical of positioning due to their bottom firing port with their slate-base configuration would be good but, the Neats might be too large for your room size.

Neat Petites and Motive SX3's or Momentum SX3i's would be well worth a listen. All small stand-mount speakers that will work well 150-200mm from a wall. Their Italian distributor is in Milan.

Penarth Blues posted:

blag posted:

Penarth Blues posted:

No advice on what to buy but I'd point out that it is not a big job to change the radiator behind the door to something taller and thinner - thereby making room for a speaker to the left of the table. I'm also a little unsure as to why you need 2 radiators in such as relatively small room? Could you not just have one underneath the window?

Hi

Although the room is small, and even with two radiators the room is still cold-ish. This 16th-century stone-built tower has no virtually no thermal insulation, and although we have done what we can to improve the thermal performance, this room - believe it or not - needs the two radiators. Nevertheless, they could be changed/moved, and that might be a good way forward . I had not considered that possibility. Thanks.

I did wonder if it was a very old building - this makes sense now. If you can move the one radiator then a set of standmounted speakers should just about be possible to squeeze in by the window and by the door - which would give you a decent stereo image.

You've had lots of good advice on here but if you want to spend slightly less than your budget then I've got the Uniti 2 plus Focal 926's which were voiced to work with each other and I think would give you the 'Naim' sound you're looking for.

However the 926's are floorstanders and may not fit in your room, but I've heard their standmount siblings the 906's and they are an exceptional speaker at the price point and would then allow you to afford a new SuperUniti which I think would suit your constraints the best out of all the options.

Have fun playing - and I'd be tempted to rearrange your room first before doing anything else as you may find it opens up options you've not yet considered

Thanks for the tips and advice. I don't need the CD player, though. Despite having a few CD's I very rarely listen to them (having ripped them to the NAS), and the Sony player that I have does well enough for me at present on the odd occasion.

Lanesra posted:

blythe posted:

I'd suggest a SuperUniti coupled with a pair of Neat Elite speakers which are not too critical of positioning due to their bottom firing port with their slate-base configuration would be good but, the Neats might be too large for your room size.

Neat Petites and Motive SX3's or Momentum SX3i's would be well worth a listen. All small stand-mount speakers that will work well 150-200mm from a wall. Their Italian distributor is in Milan.

Thanks: I'll look them up.

Nobody has mentioned the possibility of wall mounting  the speakers, if someone did, sorry! There are some great sounding speakers that can be wall mounted as opposed to stand mounting. That may be an option for you.

Also, don't limit your options. Along with the Naim UnitiQute 2  the Cyrus Streamline 2 sound quality is outstanding, should be well within your budget, if you have a Cyrus dealer near, it would be worth investigating.

badlands posted:

Nobody has mentioned the possibility of wall mounting  the speakers, if someone did, sorry! There are some great sounding speakers that can be wall mounted as opposed to stand mounting. That may be an option for you.

Also, don't limit your options. Along with the Naim UnitiQute 2  the Cyrus Streamline 2 sound quality is outstanding, should be well within your budget, if you have a Cyrus dealer near, it would be worth investigating.

Actually, I don't see a realistic way of wall-mounting - there isn't really enough vertical surface on the rh side.

I must admit, I was somewhat tempted by the UnitiQute 2, possibly plus NAP100. That would leave me some cash to pay for moving radiators etc. It's only a small room, and it may be that the solutions herein presented to date are somewhat overkill. I have no personal experience of Cyrus, and it's only my experience with naim kit that makes me favour them (although my first mu-so died - stone dead - after about a fortnight)

blag posted:

Penarth Blues posted:

blag posted:

Penarth Blues posted:

No advice on what to buy but I'd point out that it is not a big job to change the radiator behind the door to something taller and thinner - thereby making room for a speaker to the left of the table. I'm also a little unsure as to why you need 2 radiators in such as relatively small room? Could you not just have one underneath the window?

Hi

Although the room is small, and even with two radiators the room is still cold-ish. This 16th-century stone-built tower has no virtually no thermal insulation, and although we have done what we can to improve the thermal performance, this room - believe it or not - needs the two radiators. Nevertheless, they could be changed/moved, and that might be a good way forward . I had not considered that possibility. Thanks.

I did wonder if it was a very old building - this makes sense now. If you can move the one radiator then a set of standmounted speakers should just about be possible to squeeze in by the window and by the door - which would give you a decent stereo image.

You've had lots of good advice on here but if you want to spend slightly less than your budget then I've got the Uniti 2 plus Focal 926's which were voiced to work with each other and I think would give you the 'Naim' sound you're looking for.

However the 926's are floorstanders and may not fit in your room, but I've heard their standmount siblings the 906's and they are an exceptional speaker at the price point and would then allow you to afford a new SuperUniti which I think would suit your constraints the best out of all the options.

Have fun playing - and I'd be tempted to rearrange your room first before doing anything else as you may find it opens up options you've not yet considered

Thanks for the tips and advice. I don't need the CD player, though. Despite having a few CD's I very rarely listen to them (having ripped them to the NAS), and the Sony player that I have does well enough for me at present on the odd occasion.

The SuperUniti does not have a CD but is otherwise an all-in-one product that just needs your NAS and a pair of speakers. Don't worry that it will be overkill in terms of power - think more in terms of the control and clarity they will bring to whatever speakers you buy.

If I were to change my Uniti 2, which I'm not going to do, then I'd only consider doing so for a 272/250DR combo or better. I think the Uniti series will give you what you're looking for in terms of the compromises you are prepared to make, and you can afford the best version of this series within your budget.

I though I would let all of those who gave me the benefit of their advice the outcome of my quest.

I now have a SuperUniti, and after several auditions I have the SU hooked up to a pair of Audio Physic Classic 20's. The speakers are not paid for and are on appro for two months!!!

TSO far I'm loving the kit, and if things get better after a few days running-in, I shall be even more pleased.

I will be shuffling the radiators to keep them away from the speakers, and I hope that this will happen this w/e.

I kept the mu-so, too.

Thank you one and all!!

Well done, I'm sure you will love it. Make sure you switch off the digital output, and any unused inputs. It will sound a little better, and the app won't show all the inputs you don't use. 

Hungryhalibut posted:

Well done, I'm sure you will love it. Make sure you switch off the digital output, and any unused inputs. It will sound a little better, and the app won't show all the inputs you don't use. 

HH. Thanks.

How do I make these little tweaks that you suggest, please? (We all have to start somewhere in our quest for knowledge, and as they say, you don't know what you don't know!!)

Press the little spanner on the remote, and scroll down through the options. It's good to know what is where. You should also make sure the clock is not showing all time, as this can wear out the display. 

Hungryhalibut posted:

Press the little spanner on the remote, and scroll down through the options. It's good to know what is where. You should also make sure the clock is not showing all time, as this can wear out the display. 

HH. Done those things - thank you.

Great! You did well to be able to borrow the speakers for two months. The SU will take a few weeks to open up and become more relaxed, so try to play the system as much as possible, even when you are out. Radio is great for this. You'll find that even after a few days it will all sound much nicer. Did you get some nice speaker leads - Tellurium Q Black would be good. 

Hi Blag , what a great way to start your bigger Naim journey with a superuniti ! I've not owned one but heard one a few times , fantastic all in one system . Another shout for Tellurium Q black cables as well . 

Happy listening . 

Pete . 

Hungryhalibut posted:

Great! You did well to be able to borrow the speakers for two months. The SU will take a few weeks to open up and become more relaxed, so try to play the system as much as possible, even when you are out. Radio is great for this. You'll find that even after a few days it will all sound much nicer. Did you get some nice speaker leads - Tellurium Q Black would be good. 

HH. Ileft the SU running whilst I went down to the local weekly market - good idea.

The listening tests were done with Naim NACA5 cables, but the dealer wanted euros 550 for the pair, and bearing in mind that the list price SU is a whopping 1.755 more expensive here in Italy (compared to UK), my budget could not stretch that far. I did persuade him to supply some cables, FOC - which he insisted would be suitable, but of his choice. So I have QED Silever Anniversary cables. Let's see how I get on before I indulge myself further.

pete T15 posted:

Hi Blag , what a great way to start your bigger Naim journey with a superuniti ! I've not owned one but heard one a few times , fantastic all in one system . Another shout for Tellurium Q black cables as well . 

Happy listening . 

Pete . 

Hi. Thanks for your kind words. See my immediately previous response to HungryHalibut re: speaker cables.

From my recollection of what I've read on here (I think it was a post by Frank Abela), the QED is far from ideal. Have a look on some uk auction sites or on pink fish. You'll be able to pick up some Naim cables secondhand. The reason I mentioned TQB is that I found it a lot better than A5 when I used a SuperUniti with PMC speakers. What length do you need?

Hungryhalibut posted:

From my recollection of what I've read on here (I think it was a post by Frank Abela), the QED is far from ideal. Have a look on some uk auction sites or on pink fish. You'll be able to pick up some Naim cables secondhand. The reason I mentioned TQB is that I found it a lot better than A5 when I used a SuperUniti with PMC speakers. What length do you need?

HH. Worrying.

The QED's are 4.5M, one is way too long, the other is slightly over-long, but not by 0.5M. So, 4.5M.

Hungryhalibut posted:

From my recollection of what I've read on here (I think it was a post by Frank Abela), the QED is far from ideal. Have a look on some uk auction sites or on pink fish. You'll be able to pick up some Naim cables secondhand. The reason I mentioned TQB is that I found it a lot better than A5 when I used a SuperUniti with PMC speakers. What length do you need?

Goiodness knows why, but pink fish won't let me register. they think I'm a spammer. Tried 3/4 times.

My nait xs sounded awful with qed silver anniversary.you should be able to find some nac a4 (aka linn k20)for not too much money to tide you over until you decide which would suit you best for the longer term.some of these cables cost an arm and a leg when your into longer lengths.

Skinnypuppy71 posted:

My nait xs sounded awful with qed silver anniversary.you should be able to find some nac a4 (aka linn k20)for not too much money to tide you over until you decide which would suit you best for the longer term.some of these cables cost an arm and a leg when your into longer lengths.

You are echoing what HH said. I think I should take note, but I'm a bit stretched at the moment. I'll monitor auction sites yo see what comes up. I could probably stretch to the Tellurium Black, but don't know who would fit these with Naim terminals - happy to order from UK, of course. Suggestions/ideas all gratefully received.

BTW I would be intrigued to learn what is 'wrong' about the QED cables. What effects were unacceptable?