CD5 XS discontinued?

But apparently available for a little while.  Shame - lovely player but sign of the times.   

Regards,

Lindsay

Is it going to be canceld or replaced. And what about the cdx2.

Rather odd to review a product that you know is being discontinued?

Gazza posted:

Rather odd to review a product that you know is being discontinued?

The article notes -  After this issue with this review had been sent to the printer but before it went out in the mail, Naim's PR rep informed us that the CD5 XS was no longer in production.

Oh thanks, bet they were pleased.

I suppose it's a bit of a pain. I doubt they sell that many now so stock should be around for a while. 

A bit sad as one of those and a Nait XS makes a lovely CD based system. 

So the XS series is now just the ND5XS, Nait XS and flatcap XS. I wonder how long these will last. With the Nova seeming to sell well, are the XS boxes viable at all?

I never 'got' the Naim "series" thing. Before I bought an ND5XS a bit over 4 years ago I read up everything on the Naim website about streamers, other than going into  background white papers or historical documents, and there was absolutely nothing at that time identifying or defining the ND5XS as part of a 'series' separate from the others I now understand as the 'classic' series: the only detail mentioned other than those identifying it as the entry level 'streamer' (network player) was that it it had a slimline case. The implication was although there was a specific recommendation for an upgrade path, it was compatible with other Naim models, and the front view appeared to match.

Hungryhalibut posted:

So the XS series is now just the ND5XS, Nait XS and flatcap XS. I wonder how long these will last. With the Nova seeming to sell well, are the XS boxes viable at all?

Well yes - the XS is popular with vinyl users but as to how many sales?

Innocent Bystander posted:

....there was absolutely nothing at that time identifying or defining the ND5XS as part of a 'series' separate from the others I now understand as the 'classic' series

The clue is in the name!

Well well well, another top product bites the dust, let's just hope all those who own, and intend to keep and cherish their cd5xs well into the future will be able to get them serviced and buy new parts, can Naim guarantee this?, at least for the next 10 years? Anyone like to comment, maybe Naim themselfs?.

The clock must be ticking for those sweet BB-1704K chips as well... I wonder how many have been stockpiled for CDX (next on the chopping board?) nDAC and NDS...

ChrisSU posted:

Innocent Bystander posted:

....there was absolutely nothing at that time identifying or defining the ND5XS as part of a 'series' separate from the others I now understand as the 'classic' series

The clue is in the name!

Only when you already know there is such a thing as an 'XS series'!

TOB posted:

Well well well, another top product bites the dust, let's just hope all those who own, and intend to keep and cherish their cd5xs well into the future will be able to get them serviced and buy new parts, can Naim guarantee this?, at least for the next 10 years? Anyone like to comment, maybe Naim themselfs?.

Tob, if you're worried then just mail Stephen Hopkins at the factory.  Naim usually try to ensure they have enough parts to service kit for a number of years hence.  CD players though present some unique problems - for example, the mechs don't like to be stored too long and the useable yield reduces from your stock the longer they're kept.

TOB posted:

Well well well, another top product bites the dust, let's just hope all those who own, and intend to keep and cherish their cd5xs well into the future will be able to get them serviced and buy new parts, can Naim guarantee this?, at least for the next 10 years? Anyone like to comment, maybe Naim themselfs?.

Naim's support for discontinued products is second to none, and only stops if parts become unavailable to them from their suppliers. Even then, they stockpile key components, notably CD mechs, to prolong their ability to service older units. 

Innocent Bystander posted:

I never 'got' the Naim "series" thing. Before I bought an ND5XS a bit over 4 years ago I read up everything on the Naim website about streamers, other than going into  background white papers or historical documents, and there was absolutely nothing at that time identifying or defining the ND5XS as part of a 'series' separate from the others I now understand as the 'classic' series: the only detail mentioned other than those identifying it as the entry level 'streamer' (network player) was that it it had a slimline case. The implication was although there was a specific recommendation for an upgrade path, it was compatible with other Naim models, and the front view appeared to match.

So you never typed XS series into a search engine to find Naim's glossy black brochure labelled "XS series"?  Not to mention reading references in the Connections Newsletter.  The series even had its own logo which I'm not clever enough to reproduce here.  Still sad to see how quickly it's been cut by half.

Roger

Here you go.  Courtesy of PJ Hifi...

Too bad - I really liked my CD5XS and sometimes wish I had kept it as a more than adequate backup for when streaming gets wonky. Even without a PS it did a very fine job.

Hungryhalibut posted:

So the XS series is now just the ND5XS, Nait XS and flatcap XS. I wonder how long these will last. With the Nova seeming to sell well, are the XS boxes viable at all?

Perhaps not if Naim no longer see the XS series as an entry route into classic (or whatever Marketing now calls them) boxes.  This is certainly the journey I took and I'm not sure I'd have got to where I am now if I'd started with an all-in-one-box.  However, I also wonder if  the discontinuation of the CD5XS may indicate that Naim is heading the way of the Scottish Company and will eventually get rid of CD players altogether.  How large is the market for expensive silver disc spinners amongst new customers?

Roger

Whilst it is a shame that the Naim product portfolio is getting thinner, I guess a mid-sized company like Naim has to focus on the most important products to remain "cutting-edge" in product development -- and the future is high-res streaming, not CDs... 

Whether getting rid of the XS series altogether is a good idea I am not so sure about -- it might be easier to get people into upgrading from the XS series as compared to the Uniti range.  There might be two different markets...

I've messaged Naim, for some definite answers, regarding cd5xs, service and parts well into the future. For those of us that have only just purchased one, the dealers said nothing, did they know?, and if they did why did they not tell me, or at least give me some bloody discount? Carnt trust anyone these days.

Writing as a very contented XS series owner, I'd be more worried if Naim weren't discontinuing product lines.

Ste Hopkins has messaged back, he's says the the Vam 1202 machinisam will run for a minimum of 7years, where as amplifiers will be 30years, I will but that to the test, I keep my gear for at least 10/12 years, I understand that things change, but going the Linn route I bloody hope not, or most of us will get priced out, without entry and mid entry level users these company's would be nowhere. See you next time, if iam still a naim user???.

The Strat (Fender) posted:

But apparently available for a little while.  Shame - lovely player but sign of the times.   

Regards,

Lindsay

Right you are, Lindsay!

Done a Seminar, last night!

Seminar A:

"McIntosh Group representatives will be in attendance:

Jeff Poggi, Co-CEO, McIntosh Group 
Dan Wakefield, Vice-President of Sales
Aldo Filippelli, Audio Research Director of Sales
Will Klein, Sonus faber Account Manager
Bart LoPiccolo, Regional Sales Director
Bob Staples, Regional Sales Manager, Mid-Atlantic & Eastern Midwest"

Sonas Fabar $70K Speakers

Audio Research Tube Amplifiers $66K

Nice, the Same company also purchased McIntosh. Seminar B. $30K Speakers.

Point being, McIntosh is catering to an integrated amp.

Tube pre amp with solid state amp!

Digital Streaming, all for $3.5K!

Sign of the times!

Allante93!

PS. Ovators, CD 555, Depleting XS line, CD5 XS!

Cdx 2.2???????

BTW Source for Seminar A was the Archaic CDP.

$70K Speakers & $66K tube mono Blocks

750 watts 8 ohms!

Peakman posted:

Innocent Bystander posted:

I never 'got' the Naim "series" thing. Before I bought an ND5XS a bit over 4 years ago I read up everything on the Naim website about streamers, other than going into  background white papers or historical documents, and there was absolutely nothing at that time identifying or defining the ND5XS as part of a 'series' separate from the others I now understand as the 'classic' series: the only detail mentioned other than those identifying it as the entry level 'streamer' (network player) was that it it had a slimline case. The implication was although there was a specific recommendation for an upgrade path, it was compatible with other Naim models, and the front view appeared to match.

So you never typed XS series into a search engine to find Naim's glossy black brochure labelled "XS series"?  Not to mention reading references in the Connections Newsletter.  The series even had its own logo which I'm not clever enough to reproduce here.  Still sad to see how quickly it's been cut by half.

Roger

No, and why would I, or any other prospective new purchaser? There was no suggestion that XS meant part of a particular family or level of unit, only that it had those letters at the end. Had I had any reason to notice that some other gear also ended XS (which other than noting the very similarly named XP5XS in the upgrade path I didn't, because it was a streamer I was looking for). Yes, I have since searched XS after some time later hearing people mention the XS series, and found the newsletter from 2011 that Richard has just extracted, but there was nothing in the body of yhe website giving any indication of it being a paricular 'series'.

It is completely unimportant, and although conceivably it might under different circimstances, it would not have made any difference to my decision to buy at the time that I did: I am simply noting my puzzlement that Naim didn't identify the existence of different families on the website (e.g by including against the ND5XS the paragraph Richard has just posted), yet I have since learnt it seems to be regarded by many as a distinctive series, rather than just individually being lower models in a continuous range.