NAC 552 with PMC Fact 8

If it’s legitimate, that would be an incredibly cheap price, less than half what you’d normally pay for used items. If you go for it you should plan on a source at NDS level. Note that the 552 comes with its own 552PS, not a 555PS. 

It will deserve better source than NDS, I think toprate turntable or cd player

I too would check up the serials or proper reason for sale, and would not consider any prepayment before looking at the items in flesh.

As a dyed in the wool cynic my immediate thought is ‘if something appears to be too good to be true’ it generally is!! Why would any genuine seller of quality, problem free, goods be satisfied with 40% of their expected second hand value?

Caveat emptor

My initial thought as well (ie is it genuine) but then I checked with Naim and the 552’s went in for repair in 2017 whilst the 300dr went in for repair in 2016. I received lots of pics of both and look in good condition but yes could still be a scam. What would be a step down solution for Fact8’s? 

Ps apologies for mistake I meant a 552 PS. 

A friend of mine has Fact8's, which I think are very good speakers. They are certainly capable of revealing micro nuances between kit upgrades, and I would therefore suggest that you try to run them on the best kit you can afford? I would definitely consider a 552/300 the sweet spot for Fact8's. Anything less is probably compromising their ultimate performance?

My mate runs his with 4 x 135's. 

Perol posted:

It will deserve better source than NDS, I think toprate turntable or cd player

That’s a strange comment as currently, and until the ND555 ships, the NDS is the best streamer which has been produced by Naim Audio. Indeed it was used to demonstrate the Statement amplifiers. 

What a price, even I could be tempted! If you have established that they are not stolen the only thing left is to try and go and listen to them, then pay. Worth a bit of a journey IMHO. Worry about sources and speakers once you’ve snapped them up!

Clive, surely only a turntable would suffice 

Stu

I have that exact system (except my 552 is non dr),

If your Fact 8’s work now then I see no reason why they wouldn’t work wth 552. I think room acoustics are arguably just as important as matching amplification when it comes to speakers

The fact 8s are lovely for acoustic music and voices generally but with the 552 I find  them very revealing of the recording

The obvious advice is “give em a go “ after all they are a £6k speaker. 

I am contemplating changing my fact 8’s but a good home demo will be required first as my room isn’t very acoustically friendly - I loved the focal Kanta when I heard them and the kudos range get excellent reviews. 

A final piece of advice is that if the 552 is “cold” and unused for a while it can take a bit of time to come on song.

Gary

ps on the assumption it’s a safe transaction that’s a bargain price so do your due diligence 

LUDOVICO

i would be very concerned with the price 

a 552DR at the minimum is £10k, that’s pretty much what I paid and it was a good deal 

a 300DR has got to be at least £4K 

so why is the seller wanting to lose £6k ?

i would want to be sure the seller actually has the kit, phone him not emails, ask questions such as what he’s had before, his other kit etc

i had a near miss earlier this year with £6k for a 500, a genuine sellers account had been hijacked it took over a month to get the money back and loads of ag

Paypal customer service on a scale of 1-10 is heavily in the minus territory 

if these were on offer for say £14k and I wrinkled it down to around 13 I would be thinking a great deal 

may £8k all I’m hearing is alarm bells 

lyndon

Price seems low, but no doubt you will take great care. The Fact 8 would work well with the amps - they were on my last speaker shortlist. 

Let me know the seller and I will check him out for you. I understood you may also be interested in a 252. I can help you there as well..   

Chag -

Wow, for that price and assumingg all is in good condition, I’d always buy them. The Fact8 is very good and will immediately show the quality of the new amps. Let us know when you have taken a decision. Eager to hear your experiences

I hear you, the price is more of a concern than a surprise to be honest. It’s two separate sellers, one selling the 300DR at €3000 the other selling the 552 at €6000 which I got down to 5500. Naim confirms it’s genuine but the seller might be a scammer...I would probably have to organize a trip but it’s not exactly round the corner. I’ll keep you posted but yes it’s a little strange. 

€5,500 is less than £5,000, which is only 25% of the new price. If it’s real and not stolen then it would be an incredibly good deal. It really would be a case of seeing it, seeing evidence of ownership, and paying at the time of viewing. I sold some SL2s on eBay once, and the same auction was then used three times by scammers, and bids were received. People were alerting me on the Naim forum so that I could contact eBay. On the  other hand the seller simply might not realise the used value, but that would be very odd for a 552 owner. 

A 300 DR at €3000 is probably too good to be true

If real it could easy sell for much more

Something doesn't smell quite right at those prices. Given HH's experiences, it might be worth doing a google reverse image search just to see if images of the items for sale have been used before...

James

james n posted:

Something doesn't smell quite right at those prices. Given HH's experiences, it might be worth doing a google reverse image search just to see if images of the items for sale have been used before...

James

 

That's good advice by james

Easy to do and might throw up something

That's the thing with scammers ...they make it so tempting you throw caution to the wind in search of the "big prize"

If it's Euros..sounds like you would either have to go and collect in Europe / Ireland ( risky traveling with cash) or ...pay up front and wait for delivery...how worrying would that be!!!

I agree with all of you with concerns and  the highly potential scam they might be. I will show you the pics sellers sent me. 

I came across similar issues when looking for a pre loved NAP500. I had one guy claim he could not speak to me as his jaws were wired!!!! another had his address in Outer Hebrides with very strange shipping issues...   However, there are some good value buys out there -  I got my NAP500 for £5k imported from Italy... I found his add in a local Italian Hi Fi add - when I was doing innumerable trawls - all went ahead no issues. Avoid Craigs list. Good luck!!

Funny you mention that cause the seller of the 300DR is in Italy and seems he owns a hifi shop. The 552 is supposedly sold by a dentist in Germany. Will keep you posted. 

Yeah ... its a question of common sense - do your back ground checks ......... some you will find will back off, when you start asking...good luck.

Ludovico posted:

Funny you mention that cause the seller of the 300DR is in Italy and seems he owns a hifi shop. The 552 is supposedly sold by a dentist in Germany. Will keep you posted. 

Ask for their names and call them for their adress

Indeed a shop owner should be easy recognising on phone, match with his website.

Perhaps ask them to take pictures of serial along with this day newspaper, clearly dated

If they can't be suspicious

If they can book a flight or train

Probably somebody’s ex-wife, selling it for what he told her it was worth 

Yep I have been threatened with that......!!!!