CD5i = muffled - very unimpressed...

mike,
i was there about 2 years ago. some mates went over xmas last year and said ao nang had been refurbished and was a lot more commercial now.
the house thing... feel lucky you got away with 600 quid. i got stung for two grand in survey, legal and other fees last time i was trying to buy.
cheers


julian

 

Eh? In other words the very same one you had out on loan? Might as well have saved yourself the hassle of carrying it back into town and back out again, and asked if you could have kept the one you had over the phone. Shame it was only low hours anyway, otherwise could have got a discount.

 

Keep the Rotel, don't buy anything and go on holiday - very sensible and the option I'd choose ... or ....

The sales guy at the shop in Exeter who dem'd the ESLs to me last year runs a full complement of Masterclass gear with his 989 at home.

Shameless plug: I've got an Accu DP90 CD transport for sale...

 

Well, it'll STILL have to go back to have the effing PIC update done... Grrr.... But it does sound good though. Shame I've lost the little foam pad that goes under the middle cone on the RDC platform. If it's down the back of the rack though it's staying there!

Gazumping sucks. Why are the Brits so far behind Scotland - I mean, it should be up to the seller to pay for all the surveys and stuff if they want to shift a house. It'd take me 5 years to save £2k so if I got gazumped that would be my bid over. Mind you, house prices being what they are - it's enough to make you :chunder:

SL2s are BLOODY ABYSMAL. The worst speaker I've ever heard - and that includes my Sony portable's speakers, the little active ones I used at Glasters (Ross ones), and my old Sony midi system ones. They might rival the ones that used to fit on the top of my folks' HMV stereo turntable (you know - the ones that become the lid). I guess the person who designed the SL2 had blocked ears, 'cos there's no way any sane person could put up with that thin ear shredding sound....

 

Don't even go there - the Scottish system is worse and more costly than the English system (we've spent over 2K so far on surveys and fees with nowt to show for it). Which is why property turnover rates in Scotland are lower than in England and Wales.

What's needed is a combination of English selling practices and Scottish contract law.

Rant over: :Quad:

reg

 

Hi Ian,

I used to have an 82, and imagined that I liked it despite Alex's advice that it wasn't all that brilliant, really. In retrospect, I preferred the 62. Ever tried the 52?

Another much cheaper option is to get hold of a s/h 42 or 62 and send it to LesW for some modding, then you have an excellent device. If I was starting out again, this is probably what I would do.

 

Bub,

What's you opinion on the new Classic range as a matter of interest? Have you had the opportunity to hear much?

 

Not really.

I've heard a CDX2 XPS2 252 300 SL2 at a show and it was dire, don't know why exactly, but very 'muffled' sound. I know it was a show, but it should have been half-decent at the money. I never really rated the old CDX, either. About as good as a CD3.5, but in a bigger box.

Marco briefly 'demmed' me his new improved XPS2 [N.B. with larger transformer ], and they must be kidding - both Naim & the journos.

I have largely lost interest in box changing, but would like to at least try an ATC preamp to satisfy my curiosity, but I have very, very little spare time at weekends for such carryings-on.

 

Jason's just switched to balanced connections for his Micromega CDP into the DVL300 pre with very promising results. Bub, I still think you should go for the ATC pre and the balanced connections - when you do, hook up Paul's Micromega - could be a bit of a shock. That's a bit of box juggling that would save you a lot of money. You could then donate me the ATC 200s I need!

As far as Naim pres are concerned, IMO the 32.5 with a Supercap is still a corker, the 82 is a dog and the 52's very good. The only new pre I've heard at any length is a 252 - I don't think it has the boogie of a 52 or times as well but it has more detail and ambience.

 

Never heard one, would like to hear if it's as good as many think.

In retrospect I should have tried my 42.5 with the ATCs, but I no longer have a hicap so can't. I like the 42.5/110, it's a bit mushy (never been recapped, mind you), but very easy to listen to.

I'm using an ATC CA2 now and very happy with it, dirt cheap as well (£375 s/h). I've seen a few s/h SCA2's around at not too outrageous prices, but any box swapping I do for the next few months will purely be with dirt cheap vintage gear, I think. Having said that, I've just agreed to buy a pair of speakers I have no immediate use for, purely because I know they're excellent and one day I might find some reason for buying them...

-- Ian

 

alex,
could you tell me why you think the 82 is a dog? i run one and am very happy with it.
cheers


julian

 

Julian, beg steal & borrow a 52. Only then will you realise.

 

Hmm, is it me or do you always seem to have these tinniest of niggles which involve you having to take kit back to the shop time again every time you buy something? What does this PIC update that you're lacking give you anyway?

Aren't we supposed to be having legislation that makes it compulsory for a vendor to supply a "buyer's information pack" to each perspective buyer, which would include a surveyor's report, local authority searches, etc? I know they've been talking about this for years, but I'm sure I heard something was going through parliment a while back?

 

james,
i'm sure the 52 is better than the 82 in true naim ladder fasion (baaa ) however there is no way (from my experience of it) i'd call the 82 'a dog' of course alex is entitled to his opinion and i'd like to know a little more detail as to why he's come to this conclusion. i'd love to one day be able to get a 52 but at the moment it just isn;t possible. one thing i did notice with the 82 was that the 'cable tie mod' made it worse to my ears which flies in the face of popular opinion on the naim forum. maybe i'm just weird.
cheers


julian

 

Yes, I think the 82 just sounds a little 'artificial' compared with their other preamps which I've had (62 & 52), but samples can vary apparantly, so perhaps you have got a good one.

 

Now I'm worried! You mean they let units out the factory that sound shit? How do you know if you've got a good one? Maybe all the Naim systems I have heard have been of the poorer variety, still I would have thought quality control could be improved!

 

The 82 I had sounded rough as a badger's arse with lots of recordings, and fine with others. Very good phono stage though, much better for vinyl playback than CD IMO.

-- Ian

 

The voice of experience?

Do badger's have rough arses?

I think we should be told

:lol:

 

Well for one thing, it will allow me to play my CDs...

Dido won't play on it for starters thanks to Crapturds Data Screwup. You know - little fundamental "niggles" that means a CD player isn't one?

OK, so they're not officially "CDs" but if you think I'm going to become a software pirate using my time, my blanks, and my computer to produce a real CD I can play in it you can forget it. Bloody ridiculous that - making a legitimate CD purchaser turn into a pirate just to play the bloody CD he should have had in the first place...

 

I would hazard a guess that it greatly depends on what the Badger in question had to eat the night before but..........badgerbadgerbadger............