Speakers for a Superuniti

I had both MA Gold 100 and Gold 200 on the end of my late SU. Sounded wonderful, the SU throws a big sound. If I were you, I'd choose 200, for AV duties.

The SU has a powerful amp and easily drove my large Monitor Audio GR60 floorstanders. They were great but I downsized and now have Naim N-Sats with a sub. I would expect the SU to cope with pretty much any speaker in your price range.

After a home audition I opted for the Kudos X3 with my SU. They're an excellent match and well worth a listen. They sounded very good from the start but required a few months run-in to really give of their best. I'm using the NACA5 cables after audtioning them against several others.

I'm actually having a dem set up for the X3 and whatever else the dealer thinks is appropriate. May as well do this properly, though the price the X3 is being offered at is quite nice so whether anything else will come close I know not.

I know that I went through this process of choosing a speaker pair a couple of years ago with a Unitilite and wound up with Linn 140s that had, on  reflection, way too much bass for the room I have. Also the high frequency resolution was a  it muted; the detail was there just not as obvious as other brands. Now I am thinking of the Superuniti maybe things will be different? I'm not actually sure why I went for the Linn speakers other than they appeared very well made and seemed to offer more value. Silly old me... 

On a cable front I currently use Supra ply 3.4. I actually bought some Linn K20 as it's fairly inexpensive and tried it on my Yamaha 3060. The Linn seems more together but the supra offers more high frequency presence. Odd as I've been most ambivalent on cables and the difference they make. 

I'm having a good time with my SU hooked up to ProAc Response D18s.

Fortunately, you have a Naim/ATC dealer in Newcastle.

There's a Naim/ATC dealer in Newcastle? Peter Tyson and Lintone I am sure don't do ATC - what dealer is it?

Russell

I have used Focal Arias, Naim Arivas and now Naim Allaes with my superuniti, the SU is capable of doing more expensive speakers justice have you thought of buying used?

The Allaes were about £2500 new and can be had for under £800 now and sound sublime.

Nick

I used PMC twenty.23s when I had a SuperUniti and they worked very well together. 

I did think of buying used but, as speakers are moving mechanical things, I have a predilection for buying new or at least with a warranty. Actually I note that Kudos only offer a one year whereas other marques are five... Interesting. In fact, I can't remember a time when I have bought second hand. I think I had a pair of Castle Harlech's that I bought but from a store, not a person. Still, it looks like the X3's are a nice reduction on retail, so kinda 2nd hand pricing. Not sure what others my fav dealer is offering but it'll be interesting to see. 

Saying all this, while I am hooked on the idea of a Superuniti, the 172/155 combo is also an option. From what I gather the latter is more 'glassy' and clinical whereas the SU is more full and robust. Seeing as I like rock/metal I am veering to the SU. I have had the SU on demo alongside a Linn Majik DSM. I prefer the Naim for most things (Linn for classical) but never considered that the Naim separates could be deliberately voiced differently. Actually as I recall, I bought the Lin 140's as I was sold on the eventual upgrade path of Exact that Linn offer, but I think I'd rather spend that outlay on fundamentally upgrading the kit that's in place, altogether. 

Have you tried the KEFs with the SU, just to see how you like the sound? I have a pair of the LS50s running on a SU and have to say they punch well above their weigh. I've listen to speakers costing double, which didn't sound as engaging. Some find that they need to add a sub. Personaly, I don't think they're bass light at all. Well unless you're into D&B.

Speakers depreciate really fast and you can get great bargains on used ones. I bought mine from a Naim dealer for about a quarter of the price they would cost new if they were still made today. 

DomTom's suggestion seems the best - try them with the SU first. Then if after a while you want to try something else you can do that, and will have a known entity to compare with. 

How would one add a sub to the SU? I did briefly toy with the idea of getting a REL S5 as that can use speaker and LFE at the same time. However, the speaker terminals on the SU are not given to accepting plugs and wire at the same time. Unless I solder the Neutrik cable to the Naim plugs...

I will be demoing the LS50's in the shop, so will get some appreciation of the difference in musicality. I've three hours, so ought to be enough time. 

Russell 

I ought to say that I have a Velodyne SPL1200 Ultra as a sub at the moment, too, and the REL would likely be a step back in sound quality terms. 

ProAc D20r teams up beautifully with the SuperUniti (mine were fed by Chord Epic Twin, but NACA5 also sounded good).

russraff posted:

How would one add a sub to the SU? I did briefly toy with the idea of getting a REL S5 as that can use speaker and LFE at the same time. However, the speaker terminals on the SU are not given to accepting plugs and wire at the same time. Unless I solder the Neutrik cable to the Naim plugs...

I will be demoing the LS50's in the shop, so will get some appreciation of the difference in musicality. I've three hours, so ought to be enough time. 

Russell 

 

You can either use the SU's sub out for line level, or connect to the back of the speakers (never the amp) for speaker level. 

You seem a bit confused as to what you want to do. Sort the electronics, then the speakers, only adding a sub if you need one. 

Domtomlondon,

Doing a bit of searching and it looks like you compared the LS50's to the Kudos X2's? What was the outcome - do you still have the LS50's? What were the relative strengths of the two speaker pairs?

Hungyhalibut

Not so much confused but exploring every avenue. I like the LS50's but I am not sure if they are good enough for a SU, hence the dem. Seeing as I can get the X3 for a good price, I thought I'd give them a shot, especially as Kudos and Naim appear to be a good match. If the Kudos (or whatever other brands the dealer can dem') fall short or aren't worth the expense, then the only thing that's missing from the LS50 is low end performance, seeing as it's a standmount (though the LS50 really do go deeper than they should with that driver) which is why I was considering the sub option. As regards electronics, £3.5k is a fair bit and I'd be keeping it for a while - quite unusual for me. I don't really want the temptation of adding power supplies and what not - just a really good system that can do it ll and let me enjoy my Qobuz sub.

russraff posted:

There's a Naim/ATC dealer in Newcastle? Peter Tyson and Lintone I am sure don't do ATC - what dealer is it?

Russell

Oops, sorry russraf, I got the wrong city. Naim ATC dealer, well worth traveling for IMO.

Be aware that the SU can't stream Qobuz without the addition of a Chromecast or by connecting a computer. If this is your main music source you may be better with something else, such as a computer and DAC, or waiting for the new Nova, which will have Google Cast integrated. And if you get an SU, get a used one for under £2,000, or an exdem that a dealer is desperate to get rid of. 

I'm going to use BubblePnP that will stream straight to the uPnP input of the SU. Kinda bypasses the need for more hardware, though i think that you get a 90 day trial of tidal, too?

russraff posted:

 

Any help will be appreciated. 

Russell

I would like to suggest you ATC SCM20. I'm in love with this monitor.

I have a Superuniti with Elac BS 314 which are fabulous, amazing small speakers but are out of stock now are no longer produced

Speakers are very personal (and of course room dependent) but I can assure you that a SuperUniti can make the most of considerably more expensive speakers than your KEFs. That's not to say you won't enjoy the SU with them. Personally I'd get the SU and enjoy it and get to know it well then decide what the shortcomings of the sound are and then consider a speaker upgrade.   

BTW my history goes like this

Had CD3.5/HC - NAC108/NAPSC/HC - NAP 180 driving Linn Majik Isobariks (£3500 speakers)

When I bought the speakers I was also thinking of upgrading to a CDX2 but the dealer also demoed a Majik DS against it. Many here will disagree but I just thought the DS was clearly better in that it shed a bit of "grit" at the high end. I hadn't been thinking of going down the streaming route but subsequently I bought a used Majik DS and sold my CD player.

Although I enjoyed the DS after a few months I concluded that the extra sweetness and airiness came at the expense of  some of the traditional Naim virtues (timing etc). Probably exacerbated by the speakers which I love (don't think anything else at the size and price can deliver bass so realistically) but are ever so slightly rolled-off at the top end.

So I bought a superuniti, sold the preamp and use it biamped with the 180. I did try it without the 180 and it still drove the speakers  well. I think the SU is an absolute bargain compared to the Linn DS range - a class above the Majik and significantly less expensive than the Akurate