Ageing Nait 5i-2 Concerns

Posted by: eazyryder on 29 April 2016

I currently own a Naim Nait 5i-2 and absolutely love its excitement and energy but its a 2006 model.

Should I worry about its age?.

I purchased a couple of years ago EX DEMO and as far as I know it has never been serviced.

I was thinking of an nait xs2 but don’t want to loose the excitement of the nait 5i, so then I thought of the new nait 5si with an extra 10wpc.

Are there any major differences in sound between the nait 5i-2 and the new 5si?

I am leaning more towards the nait 5si than the xs2 which I have read has a smoother more laidback presentation.

Also would servicing my nait 5i-2 be a financially viable option?

Posted on: 29 April 2016 by gary yeowell

I wouldn't lose too much sleep over your current amp. If it still sounds great to you then keep using it. When and if it starts to sound off, bite the bullet and send it off for a service. Great amp for exactly the reasons you state, and not to be underestimated.

Posted on: 29 April 2016 by Alco

I had both the Nait 5i-2 and Nait 5si. The Nait 5si sounds a lot like the 5i-2 but it has slightly more body to voices and instruments (probably due to the larger PSU and extra power) and the most noticable improvement to me was the larger/deeper soundstage. (more 3D)

Compared to the Nait 5si the 5i-2 soundstage was as flat as a pancake. (may not be a big deal, but to me it was the most noticable difference
(the only reason I don't have the Nait 5si anymore, is that I tried 2 of 'em, and they both hummed like crazy in my room)

Still, 10 years is not an age to worry about. You could ask Naim how much a recap would cost and then decide if it's worth it for you...

kind regards,
Alco

Posted on: 30 April 2016 by Coolzero

I had both. 5si has much more refined and controlled sound representation. It exited me from the day one and never took away that excitement until I upgraded my system couple of months back. For me 5si was a definite improvement.

Posted on: 30 April 2016 by eazyryder

Coolzero posted:
I had both. 5si has much more refined and controlled sound representation. It exited me from the day one and never took away that excitement until I upgraded my system couple of months back. For me 5si was a definite improvement.

Just out of curiosity what replaced your 5si?

Posted on: 30 April 2016 by Coolzero

Devialet 120.