ATOM vs NOVA vs DAC+AMP

Posted by: Bobfa on 11 September 2018

I currently have an ATOM that I can "trade-up to"  ++ $$$$ for a NOVA if I want.  I had been using a YGGY into an Ayre AX-5 Twenty.  The ATOM is really amazing in comparison to the former system.  A/Bing this stuff is hard do implement so I have been just listening to the ATOM that is not even broken in yet.

 

  The simplicity of the system is just great.  None of the USB filtering and extra hardware in the system.  I have not heard the NOVA to compare it to the ATOM.  I am torn.  The change in system design is not as much about audio quality as it is about simplicity and the UNITY stuff just wins.

 

*** I am most listening to my library (70K tracks) using Roon + Tidal.  But now I have Soundcloud and more!

Posted on: 11 September 2018 by David Hendon

The Nova is several steps up from the Atom, but just as simple to use. If you can afford the $$$$ then your future route is clear.

best

David

Posted on: 11 September 2018 by hifi-dog

ive listened to all three unitis with my pmc gb1i speakers- I wanted the atom due to its small form, but it struggled when pushed slightly. Nice enough for background, but lacking for me for serious listening. The star was an obvious step up being more open with a fresh feel to its presentation and better resolution with enough power. The nova is a further step up again but with a slightly darker presentation i felt that was more relaxed and musical. It sounded effortless compared to the other two with plenty of drive, so i bought it....

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Mike Sullivan

I have a Unitcute2 (the earlier version of the Atom) and upgraded to the Nova. The Nova is quite a lift in SQ and output power, so will drive more out of the speakers if they are rated for then 80W output.

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Bobfa

It sounds like folks like the NOVA a lot.  I am REALLY impressed with the ATOM and I am fussing about a Nova.  I have a small system in my basement where the ATOM would be overkill but would really be nice.  So, May be,...  Move the ATOM down there and get a NOVA for the main system....  That is a lot to think about.

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Bobfa
hifi-dog posted:

ive listened to all three unitis with my pmc gb1i speakers- I wanted the atom due to its small form, but it struggled when pushed slightly. Nice enough for background, but lacking for me for serious listening. The star was an obvious step up being more open with a fresh feel to its presentation and better resolution with enough power. The nova is a further step up again but with a slightly darker presentation i felt that was more relaxed and musical. It sounded effortless compared to the other two with plenty of drive, so i bought it....

Thanks for the thoughtful reply.  I have a lot of thinking to do. I have not found the ATOM lacking in power for my B&W 804 Nautlius speakers.  I really need to go listen to a nova and an atom as the same time.

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by David Hendon
Bobfa posted:

It sounds like folks like the NOVA a lot.  I am REALLY impressed with the ATOM and I am fussing about a Nova.  I have a small system in my basement where the ATOM would be overkill but would really be nice.  So, May be,...  Move the ATOM down there and get a NOVA for the main system....  That is a lot to think about.

Go for it, would be my advice, if you can afford it. You can overthink these things.

best

David

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by David Hendon
Bobfa posted:
hifi-dog posted:

ive listened to all three unitis with my pmc gb1i speakers- I wanted the atom due to its small form, but it struggled when pushed slightly. Nice enough for background, but lacking for me for serious listening. The star was an obvious step up being more open with a fresh feel to its presentation and better resolution with enough power. The nova is a further step up again but with a slightly darker presentation i felt that was more relaxed and musical. It sounded effortless compared to the other two with plenty of drive, so i bought it....

Thanks for the thoughtful reply.  I have a lot of thinking to do. I have not found the ATOM lacking in power for my B&W 804 Nautlius speakers.  I really need to go listen to a nova and an atom as the same time.

It's not really about the extra power of the Nova. It's altogether a better unit and to my mind has that easy relaxed sound about it that very good music players have (and the Atom, good though it is, doesn't).

best

David

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Leon Wadsworth
Bobfa posted:
 I really need to go listen to a nova and an atom as the same time.

At which point it will be game over for the Atom.

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by hifi-dog

Fraid so!

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Obsydian

The Nova is allot better than the Atom, my Atom lasted less than 2 weeks, BUT you need to ask yourself can you resist the box upgrade syndrome?

If you can a Nova will keep you very happy.

However, if you always get the itch, I would suggest a second hand 272/250DR for possibly £4 to 5k. I personally think the Nova is allot better than this combo, but what it does give you is upgrade options ...

Actually a few 300 non DR come up lower priced than a 250DR, if your lucky 272/300.

Or you could like some, just got the ND555 ????

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Mercky

The poor Atom is coming out badly here, although the Nova is a step up and very very good it’s not a knock out. The Atom can sound really nice and  I really enjoyed it but the insatiable upgraditis got the better of me, certainly value for money wise the Atom is the sweet spot in the uniti range imo. Get a good listen to both, preferably at home would be my advice before you commit to spending twice the cash. 

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Perol

I never really understand why people buy brand-new item "X" just to realise shortly after, they wanted item "Y"

 

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by David Hendon
Perol posted:

I never really understand why people buy brand-new item "X" just to realise shortly after, they wanted item "Y"

 

It's because at the start of your Naim journey you would never believe how much money you will spend before you are done.

best

David

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Mike Sullivan
Bobfa posted:

It sounds like folks like the NOVA a lot.  I am REALLY impressed with the ATOM and I am fussing about a Nova.  I have a small system in my basement where the ATOM would be overkill but would really be nice.  So, May be,...  Move the ATOM down there and get a NOVA for the main system....  That is a lot to think about.

I had a UC2 and NAP100 as my main system for 5 years and just landed a Nova and moved the old system to a media setup room in the home office/media room. So, if you want to go the Nova route, then you will have two great systems.

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Mike Sullivan
Obsydian posted:

The Nova is allot better than the Atom, my Atom lasted less than 2 weeks, BUT you need to ask yourself can you resist the box upgrade syndrome?

If you can a Nova will keep you very happy.

However, if you always get the itch, I would suggest a second hand 272/250DR for possibly £4 to 5k. I personally think the Nova is allot better than this combo, but what it does give you is upgrade options ...

Actually a few 300 non DR come up lower priced than a 250DR, if your lucky 272/300.

Or you could like some, just got the ND555 ????

Have you compared the 272/250DR Nova? I’ve wondered how they compare, personally I wanted the new technology with the Nova. Also wonder how a NDX2 and SN2 integrated amp would compare against the Nova, as they are both 80W, but twice the price.

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Alley Cat
Perol posted:

I never really understand why people buy brand-new item "X" just to realise shortly after, they wanted item "Y"

 

Sometimes impulsiveness as item X is available a few months before item Y too....

Posted on: 12 September 2018 by Bobfa

I think it is a lot more complex than it appears at first blush.  Take the current example.  I have moved from a Ayre AX-5 Twenty with a Schiit Yggdrasil DAC, ISOREGEN, UltraRendu, JS-2 Power supply.  to a ATOM.    The ATOM is more flexible, less complex allows for more use cases, warms up faster, uses less power, takes less space and you know what it sounds as good for some materials and better on others.  

I can sell all of the other listed gear and come out way ahead of even a Nova!  Really the ATOM is more than “fine” is sort of a Goldilocks component.  (Mine is not even fully broken in) .  I am sitting in another room around the corner from the system and I am hearing things in an old Jim Croce album I have not heard before.  REALLY!

My interest in the NOVA is pretty high.  If the “entry level” ATOM is this good what is the NOVA?  Notice that I said interest.  It is really hard to get a feeling of what others think.  I do not think my local dealer has one in the store.    So I can swap uprade to a NOVA or just buy one and put the ATOM in my second system.  The ATOM might be overkill for a basement office system with iota Alphas!!!  Heck the NOVA might be more than the B&W 804 Nautlius speakers in my main system needs.  BUT DAMN THEY SOUND BETTER TODAY!

It is really easy for me to think I NEED to upgrade but when I was listening to my son casting SoundCloud from is iPhone last night we both said why do you need more???  Bottom line I do not NEED a NOVA but I know I NEED TO KNOW what is sounds like in my system...  I will have to call my “fixer” (Stereo Dealer) and talk with him some more.

 

As a long time music listener the ATOM is my first NAIM piece and I NOW UNDERSTAND the comments I have heard over time.  Thanks NAIM!!

 

Bob Fairbairn

 

 

Posted on: 13 September 2018 by Pev
Mike Sullivan posted:

Have you compared the 272/250DR Nova? 

I heard them back to back on a Naim factory visit, both driving huge Focals (I believe they were Maestros), so a tough test for the Nova. I could hear that the 272/250 was better but to my ears the difference was not worth the extra cost; in fact to me the gap was surprisingly small. YMMV

I'm sticking with my Nova.

Posted on: 13 September 2018 by Mike Sullivan
Pev posted:
Mike Sullivan posted:

Have you compared the 272/250DR Nova? 

I heard them back to back on a Naim factory visit, both driving huge Focals (I believe they were Maestros), so a tough test for the Nova. I could hear that the 272/250 was better but to my ears the difference was not worth the extra cost; in fact to me the gap was surprisingly small. YMMV

I'm sticking with my Nova.

Good to know, the Nova is a thing of beauty, to be sure. An NDX and SN2 would be an interesting face off,  but again, double the bucks.

Posted on: 13 September 2018 by Cut Throat Jake

Bob,

I don't profess to be an expert in Hi-Fi but I do have a well cared for 50 year old pair of ears.  All I can say is that when I auditioned the Atom, Star and Nova, the Nova was head and shoulders above the other two.  Not that the others were bad, it was just for me the Nova was just better and I was in a position to drop the required £££.

I honestley didn't think I would hear the difference between them all as I orginally planned to purchase either a Star or a Linn Majik DSM (no contest there in my opinion) then after reading many reviews and reports on here thought I may as well get an Atom and save myself ££...continued reading and I thought I may as well audition the Nova...can't be that much better!!!

The second audition took place around a week after the initial one when my dealer had a pair of demo X2's in and after 3 hours or so of going back and forwards between the units I ordered a Nova.  It's still running in along with my new X2's, speaker cable etc. but even now I love it and I am discovering all kinds of music I wouldn't normally listen to because it sounds so good...really looking forward to what it is going to sound like after 100 hours or whatever is usually expected to be the run-in time.

CJT (Paul)

Posted on: 13 September 2018 by Obsydian
Mike Sullivan posted:
Obsydian posted:

The Nova is allot better than the Atom, my Atom lasted less than 2 weeks, BUT you need to ask yourself can you resist the box upgrade syndrome?

If you can a Nova will keep you very happy.

However, if you always get the itch, I would suggest a second hand 272/250DR for possibly £4 to 5k. I personally think the Nova is allot better than this combo, but what it does give you is upgrade options ...

Actually a few 300 non DR come up lower priced than a 250DR, if your lucky 272/300.

Or you could like some, just got the ND555 ????

Have you compared the 272/250DR Nova? I’ve wondered how they compare, personally I wanted the new technology with the Nova. Also wonder how a NDX2 and SN2 integrated amp would compare against the Nova, as they are both 80W, but twice the price.

Yes - i did post a whileback, for me i clearly preferred the Nova vs 272/250DR, the NDX2/SN2 is what i was waiting for and now it is out not in a rush, as the Nova with tweaks i have covered elsewhere has the upgrade itch at bay (for now).

Posted on: 16 September 2018 by Bobfa

So here is my “status report” after a couple of weeks of playing.  First and foremost the Atom is by far one of the best values in high quality audio I have ever had the pleasure of listening do. At some point the Nova might be interesting but not now for me.

Yesterday I put the Yggdrasil and the Ayre AX-5 Twenty back on the main speakers after they had warmed up for a few hours.  IT took exactly 30 seconds for me to hear how much better this sounds over the ATOM.  My son listened to five or six tracks and it is totally obvious that this is better.  As well it should be with about $20k vs the ATOM.

So I took the ATOM to our basement system which  was being driven by an Rotel 1582 power amp and a Rotel preamp.  And catch as I can DAC Where I swap in My Mojo or another DAC.  The ATOM is PERFECT down there.  The speakers are Iota Alphas that are spectacular for their size.  So now that system is as simple as possible today.  I am very happy with that.  Now that is were it was headed before I put it in the main system.  Now is the ATOM too much $$$ for the use case, well mabye.  But it is so cool to do that.

 

Thanks to everyone who has helped me on this journey.   I am pretty sure that the ATOM will stay in the house!

Bob

 

Posted on: 22 September 2018 by Mike Sullivan
Obsydian posted:
Mike Sullivan posted:
Obsydian posted:

The Nova is allot better than the Atom, my Atom lasted less than 2 weeks, BUT you need to ask yourself can you resist the box upgrade syndrome?

If you can a Nova will keep you very happy.

However, if you always get the itch, I would suggest a second hand 272/250DR for possibly £4 to 5k. I personally think the Nova is allot better than this combo, but what it does give you is upgrade options ...

Actually a few 300 non DR come up lower priced than a 250DR, if your lucky 272/300.

Or you could like some, just got the ND555 ????

Have you compared the 272/250DR Nova? I’ve wondered how they compare, personally I wanted the new technology with the Nova. Also wonder how a NDX2 and SN2 integrated amp would compare against the Nova, as they are both 80W, but twice the price.

Yes - i did post a whileback, for me i clearly preferred the Nova vs 272/250DR, the NDX2/SN2 is what i was waiting for and now it is out not in a rush, as the Nova with tweaks i have covered elsewhere has the upgrade itch at bay (for now).

Hi [@mention:1566878604014936], I’m interested in what tweaks you applied to the Nova to scratch that itch?

Posted on: 23 September 2018 by Obsydian

Hi MIKE, tweaks well serious upgrades, as this thread talks of Atom vs Nova, but some of these where far bigger improvements than when I went Atom to Nova.

In order of improvement.

1. Synergistic Blue 13A Plug Fuse - £130 (MAJOR)

2. Synergistic Research MIG 2.0 Isolation  - £250 (MAJOR)

3. SR Blue 13A Fuse to Router/Cisco 6 way power block - £130 (MAJOR)

4. Fibre Bridge (TP Links powered by If I 9v PS - £150 (MODERATE)

5. Chord Indigo Tuned Aray - £1000 (MODERATE)

6. ATOM TO NOVA - £2400 - (MODERATE)

7. Chord Signature Power Cable - £550 (MOD - MINOR)

8. CISCO 2960 Switch New - £500 (MINOR)

9. Chord Ohmic plugs speaker end - £30 (MINOR)

The first two are very fundamental improvements, quite shocking, the MIG 2.0 Isolation I initially thought was a waste so returned them as a free demo, but once they were gone I realised just how damn good they where, another fundamental shift.

Posted on: 23 September 2018 by nbpf
Bobfa posted:

So here is my “status report” after a couple of weeks of playing.  First and foremost the Atom is by far one of the best values in high quality audio I have ever had the pleasure of listening do. At some point the Nova might be interesting but not now for me.

Yesterday I put the Yggdrasil and the Ayre AX-5 Twenty back on the main speakers after they had warmed up for a few hours.  IT took exactly 30 seconds for me to hear how much better this sounds over the ATOM.  My son listened to five or six tracks and it is totally obvious that this is better.  As well it should be with about $20k vs the ATOM.

So I took the ATOM to our basement system which  was being driven by an Rotel 1582 power amp and a Rotel preamp.  And catch as I can DAC Where I swap in My Mojo or another DAC.  The ATOM is PERFECT down there.  The speakers are Iota Alphas that are spectacular for their size.  So now that system is as simple as possible today.  I am very happy with that.  Now that is were it was headed before I put it in the main system.  Now is the ATOM too much $$$ for the use case, well mabye.  But it is so cool to do that.

 

Thanks to everyone who has helped me on this journey.   I am pretty sure that the ATOM will stay in the house!

Bob

 

I came across this thread right now and was about to argue that something might have been very wrong in the setup of your original system for you to come to the conclusion that "The ATOM is really amazing in comparison to the former system".  Enjoy your rediscovered fine system!