The journey is over

This sort of thread is an equal mix of trolling and human nature.

i'm off down my local golf club to tell everyone i've taken up casual non-competitive tiddly winks instead.  Its just as good guys. Please agree with me, and if you don't then just agree that golf is a money pit.  I need validation and there isn"t a casual non-competitive tiddly winks  community interested enough to discuss my decision.  It's true, see, no discussion forum @ tiddlywinks.org.

grahambateman posted:

hello.

after 10 long years i think it's time to say goodbye to naim.

about 3 years ago I started on the sonos journey , and now use this setup all of the time. It's reliable and so easy to use and switch between songs. My naim system has sat gathering dust for the last few years with little or no use. I  find the naim sound  and quality has dismissed over the last 5 years. I was one of the people that wanted to champion the sepertaes system with upgrades but find that convenience and form are now here to stay. Also it's hard to continue to justify at the naim price point , when them even announcing a price increase in April!

i have supported my local independent hi fi shop , but when I speak to them they too confirm that the older naim sepertaes are not keeping pace with the likes of the sonos , which they also sell in there shop.

sonos  items are small and discreet and so easy to link for multi room. Streaming the likes of tidal , the sound is as good as the sepertaes , at least to my ears.

so is the independent hi fi on the way out. With the departure of Paul Stephenson  at naim , has he also seen the future of sepertaes.

What a load of "b.....s"! 

Briz Vegas posted:

This sort of thread is an equal mix of trolling and human nature.

i'm off down my local golf club to tell everyone i've taken up casual non-competitive tiddly winks instead.  Its just as good guys. Please agree with me, and if you don't then just agree that golf is a money pit.  I need validation and there isn"t a casual non-competitive tiddly winks  community interested enough to discuss my decision.  It's true, see, no discussion forum @ tiddlywinks.org.

You must share the same dealer as the OP.

The strange thing is even with all the questioning of these type of goodbye posts is the amount of replies they muster.

I'd recommend the OP try Roon, nearly everything Sonos can give with excellent sound quality............. the best of both worlds.

SJB

I think that is a heck of a lot of conflation. I would guess Paul Stephenson's departure has a lot more to do with him being in his mid-sixtys and wanting to enjoy the good life after years of hard work, rather than a retreat in defeat. Yes streaming is here to stay, yes sono's makes a very usable mid-level streaming system that is easy to use and pretty easy on the ears. Naim has also embraced these technologies and while starting at a bit higher end of the market with the QB and landing in the stratosphere with the NDS I fail to see how they don't have a very viable streaming system. Just because you love Chevrolet's and they make good cars does not mean that BMW and Audi no longer have a market. They are apples and oranges, I can also say that nothing Sono's offers performs at the level of the QB or MuSo much less the new Uniti's. I think it is great you found a system that allows you to enjoy music, but disagree with your premise that it's lights out for any other maker of systems. I will concede analog only pre-amps and CD players are probably going the way of the Edsel.

I think he just wanted a bit of lite ready and a cuddle, unfortunately the forum fell for it,  what a piss take. Funny though. Everybody is so mature and supportive. Ha ha go the sonos!  To boot the Naim dealer agrees, better not let them know who that is.... to Batman get a perception and hearing test. Zero sympathy but respect as a human being.

Hungryhalibut posted:

I never understand the motivation behind these 'goodbye to Naim' posts, or more general 'goodbye' posts, come to that. If someone isn't using their stereo any more then all they need to do is sell it. What's the big deal? Why make a song and dance about it? Do they want everyone to say 'don't do it', or 'well done, you are quite right'? Do they want us to start wailing about the terrible loss to the Forum? 

Everyone likes reading suicide notes.

No?

Just me?

Bananahead posted:

Hungryhalibut posted:

I never understand the motivation behind these 'goodbye to Naim' posts, or more general 'goodbye' posts, come to that. If someone isn't using their stereo any more then all they need to do is sell it. What's the big deal? Why make a song and dance about it? Do they want everyone to say 'don't do it', or 'well done, you are quite right'? Do they want us to start wailing about the terrible loss to the Forum? 

Everyone likes reading suicide notes.

No?

Just me?

Yes yes that's it! Lol

DUPREE posted:

. I will concede analog only pre-amps and CD players are probably going the way of the Edsel.

What the same as bicycles, fountain pens, turntables and valve amps

Sounsfaber posted:

To boot the Naim dealer agrees, better not let them know who that is.... 

Something definitely amiss in the communication on that bit. 

Finally - from me - let's assume the OP was trolling because he anticipates a boring 2017 it would be wrong of us to deny him the recognition he seeks.   

It's just a bit of grandstanding. One can ignore it, smile and be nice about it or be shitty and disingenuous. 

Our choice.

Graham seems to be once a year poster. Past couple of years it has been about Qobuz and now this. Let's see what next Christmas will bring…

The OP is in my view having a dig at hi-fi and hi-fi users in general rather than Naim and Naim users in general. Obviously he is absolutely entitled to his view and opinion, even if it is one that most of us who contribute to this forum would not agree with, whether we be Naim users or not. As a non Naim user, it is pretty obvious to me that the sound quality of the lowest rung Naim components is very much better than that of the best Sonus set-ups, although this is not a particularly important consideration for most music listeners who simply want convenience and decent background quality music.

Hi-fi has always been a minority 'hobby'. Back in my younger days, the portable cassette player and AM radio was deemed to be a good enough source for most people, and was predicted by many to sound the death knell for high end hi-fi and high quality recorded music. This did not happen, and I suspect will not happen in the near future either.

Sure, many young people are happy to listen to YouTube on their laptops through headphones  as their primary, or even sole, source of music. To them, a Sonus system would probably be considered a luxury, and something to which to aspire. However, there will always be people who are able to afford to enter the bottom rung of 'decent' high fidelity as long as music continues to be recorded in decent fidelity, and progress further up the hi-fi ladder as finances permit.

it's just horses for courses, and there is no need to feel offended at the position taken by the OP. I am happy to spend an inordinate amount (most would argue) of money on hi-fi equipment and recorded music. Many wouldn't be. On the other hand, I am not prepared to spend money on a Rolex watch, Armani clothes, very expensive cars or expensive bottles of wine, which many Sonus users might be prepared to do. I consider them to be ridiculously bad 'value for money'. Just my opinion, and one that reflects my personal priorities.

Sonus has become a status symbol to some, simply an easy way to obtain OK background music for others and that is fine. Most of the users who Sonus and similar products know that they could get better, but it is simply a matter of priorities. No big deal.

John Willmott posted:

 .. sepertaes .. 

Latin?

Such posts...it's all part of a  Russian plan to undermine Western culture and civilization. Tit for tat diplomats? Nah. Discombobulate the senses with remote controlled digital hash via disinformation.  Swap your British made HIFi for hidden provenance imports sold only on convenience and lifestyle. Only CB and bolt down, made in the cold war era, (and olive thence conceived) have the capacity to resist a direct hit. I'm hunkering down in the bunker with my vinyl. Analogue Rules Okay?!!! One room, one system, one nirvana in Valhalla before and after audio Armageddon. This is only the Prefix. 

Loki,

A clear Russian deviation from official policy, Dmitry Medvedev's loading his Naim player:

and sharing the musical bliss with the top guy:

Hmack posted:

The OP is in my view having a dig at hi-fi and hi-fi users in general rather than Naim and Naim users in general. Obviously he is absolutely entitled to his view and opinion, even if it is one that most of us who contribute to this forum would not agree with, whether we be Naim users or not. As a non Naim user, it is pretty obvious to me that the sound quality of the lowest rung Naim components is very much better than that of the best Sonus set-ups, although this is not a particularly important consideration for most music listeners who simply want convenience and decent background quality music.

Hi-fi has always been a minority 'hobby'. Back in my younger days, the portable cassette player and AM radio was deemed to be a good enough source for most people, and was predicted by many to sound the death knell for high end hi-fi and high quality recorded music. This did not happen, and I suspect will not happen in the near future either.

Sure, many young people are happy to listen to YouTube on their laptops through headphones  as their primary, or even sole, source of music. To them, a Sonus system would probably be considered a luxury, and something to which to aspire. However, there will always be people who are able to afford to enter the bottom rung of 'decent' high fidelity as long as music continues to be recorded in decent fidelity, and progress further up the hi-fi ladder as finances permit.

it's just horses for courses, and there is no need to feel offended at the position taken by the OP. I am happy to spend an inordinate amount (most would argue) of money on hi-fi equipment and recorded music. Many wouldn't be. On the other hand, I am not prepared to spend money on a Rolex watch, Armani clothes, very expensive cars or expensive bottles of wine, which many Sonus users might be prepared to do. I consider them to be ridiculously bad 'value for money'. Just my opinion, and one that reflects my personal priorities.

Sonus has become a status symbol to some, simply an easy way to obtain OK background music for others and that is fine. Most of the users who Sonus and similar products know that they could get better, but it is simply a matter of priorities. No big deal.

Nicely summarised +1

i think that sonos is a all another way to enjoy music, just background music which can be enough for most of the people, which is fare.....

but what if the good bye post's hero was not sonos but another brand, a serious contender with a better SQ and a lower price...

would we intrigued to listen that brand? or are we a sort of devoted cult of upgrades, mix and matches and power supplies ? 

Hugo / LP12 /Rega also permitted to use by cult members