Dear Count.d,

Resortimg to a personal insult is below the belt.

I have worked in the HiFi Industry for a manufacturer, a NAIM dealer, a general TV HiFi dealer and had my own small specialist hifi dealership.

When i lived in the UK there was a group of us in Norfolk and Suffolk who used to meet up for music evenings and there were a few all NAIM systems and some where NAIM was not in the systems.

I have friends here in Sydney who own NAIM and have been to their homes for music evenings and they have been to mine.

At recent evening meal it was discussed that there have been reliability issues with NAIM equipment which should not be present in equipment of this value. Bear in mind i do not own NAIM but my dinner companions do and they were the discussing their tales of woe and frustration regarding CDP 555 door closing problems, 552 pre amp alps volume pot problems with reliability and equity of balance at low listening levels.

Now these good people love the equipment and have invested many thousands into these products and were experiencing problems.

I still use 40 year old QUAD 11 valve amps have 50 year old speakers and a large range of other equipment from which to choose to listen to.

I hope this can help you to accept that my post was not malicious but a reflection of what NAIM owners whom i know have said.

regards David

David,

Below the belt? And your disgraceful post wasn't? I can think of more diplomatic ways to write the point you wanted to put across.

If you have had the misfortune to read my posts over the past years, you may have realised that I only insult when an insult has been given. You should also take my insult light-heartedly, as I gave it.

No matter what experiences you've heard over a glass of wine, it doesn't give you the right to question how really loyal, tolerant and extremely understanding we all are for putting up with such unreliable equipment. Even if it were true.

No I can't accept your post, it was malicious and an obvious display of antagonism. Please don't follow it up with more dressed up defences, just apologise.

let battle commence.

quote:

we should all be more like 555 nothing gets him down, he has a cd555 and he is still happy.

I'm not happy with my 500 series system 151, I'm orgasmic!

Even with only two thirds of a 500 system (Having to make do with a 300 for the time being) I am a seriously happy bunny. At the risk of provoking sleeping gremlins all my various bits of Salisbury product have functioned flawlessly.

I do take comfort in the fact that as and when something does go wrong, Naim will be there to sort it out. Let's hope they can ride out the coming economic maelstrom.

Even with only three quarters of Naim's suggested system 6 I am deleriously happy. Such a pity I have to rough it with a trio of 300s rather than a single 500. Life's little sacrifices.......

I also have to report a niggle free experience with all of the boxes, so the 555 is not alone in displaying exemplary conduct

So ya boo sucks to Dave!

quote:

Originally posted by count.d:
it doesn't give you the right to question how really loyal, tolerant and extremely understanding we all are for putting up with such unreliable equipment. Even if it were true.

Actually, he does have the right, although i am not sure what he expected to gain from his comments. Especially considering where he posted them.

I assume he is looking for reassurance that Naim is not for him.

Might I suggest that perhaps some of you guys have been a bit unfair to DAVOhorn. If I understand him correctly, he states that he has a long experience of hifi, and has met a number of friends who have experienced problems with Naim equipment.
It has been suggested that he should not voice this view, as he does not use Naim products himself.

What would have been the response if he were a paid-up member of the 500 Club and had said something like “I have a Naim system which cost £20,000. It is superb, and I have never had any problems with it. However, a number of friends have…&c &c.”

Would he have been dismissed so enthusiastically?

Which highlights my own dilemma with this Forum. There is a lot of information and ideas shared, and the humour is great. But it seems to be both a temple of worship for Naim hifi owners (and let’s stone the infidels), and the best forum for discussing the pros and cons of good hifi of all makes (courtesy of Naim, who is confident and successful enough to allow it). I presume that DAVOhorn joined for the latter reason.

His treatment seems to prove the hypothesis that the more Naim equipment you own, the more your voice is tolerated, at least by some members. I own only one piece of Naim gear, so I am on thin ice here, I know.

Another guy’s hifi system, like his views on the subject are a bit like his wife or girlfriend. You may think she is ghastly and strident, but it would be most caddish to say so. And by the same token it is hoped you love what you have at home like no other.

Don Phillips

quote:

Posted Wed 09 July 2008 22:08
Might I suggest that perhaps some of you guys have been a bit unfair to DAVOhorn.

i dont think them guys have been unfair,if i had my way he would have been shot.

quote:

Originally posted by Don Phillips:
Might I suggest that perhaps some of you guys have been a bit unfair to DAVOhorn. If I understand him correctly, he states that he has a long experience of hifi, and has met a number of friends who have experienced problems with Naim equipment.
It has been suggested that he should not voice this view, as he does not use Naim products himself.

What would have been the response if he were a paid-up member of the 500 Club and had said something like “I have a Naim system which cost £20,000. It is superb, and I have never had any problems with it. However, a number of friends have…&c &c.”

Would he have been dismissed so enthusiastically?

Which highlights my own dilemma with this Forum. There is a lot of information and ideas shared, and the humour is great. But it seems to be both a temple of worship for Naim hifi owners (and let’s stone the infidels), and the best forum for discussing the pros and cons of good hifi of all makes (courtesy of Naim, who is confident and successful enough to allow it). I presume that DAVOhorn joined for the latter reason.

His treatment seems to prove the hypothesis that the more Naim equipment you own, the more your voice is tolerated, at least by some members. I own only one piece of Naim gear, so I am on thin ice here, I know.

Another guy’s hifi system, like his views on the subject are a bit like his wife or girlfriend. You may think she is ghastly and strident, but it would be most caddish to say so. And by the same token it is hoped you love what you have at home like no other.

Don Phillips

A good posting Don. And you've obviously met my wife...

Dear Colleagues,

As the original thread starter, I’m rather embarrassed, that what I intended to be a constructive exchange of ideas to improve the best CD player I know, turned into some kind of "Forum Cyber War“.

Sorry, but maybe I should have used the word „peculiarities“, rather than n"iggles" in the title, but as a non-native English speaker, my choice of words may at times be rather accidental indeed and hence misleading.

I wish to emphasize that I was - and still am !! - exceedingly happy with NAIM, starting with a CD-2, 102 & 140 and -some 12 years later - enjoying the ultimate musical benefits of a 555 and 552.

My idea of reporting these „peculiarities“, was
a) Ask this forum community for possible remedies of such special characteristics – one of the prime purposes of this so excellent forum and its membership in my view !
b) Help NAIM to correct possible or real problems in future products or being informed of how to solve it .

Best regards

...and be nice to each other again – another important feature of the forum – normally ..

Urs



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You do not seem to have received this - which means I will also need to have an active e-mail address for you. Please contact me (send an e-mail with "For the Attention of A. Meredith") to the address on the Contact page.

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Tony
I have met your wife and thought she was lovely! She also produces a world class chili!

Dear All,

I have been a fan of two cartridge manufacturers and remain an enthusiastic owner of both. But one is a consistently reliable manufacturer the other combines both agony and ecstasy.

Grado Cartridges i have lovingly used since the early 1970's and still use the Black in my cheapo Project arm and turntable. This combination punches well above its purchase price and provides hours of fun and pleasure in equal measure.

Decca London Cartridges i have enthusiastically used since 1977 and still have several ranging from late 1960- early 1970 SC4E up to todays Gold Supergold and Blue.
Due to the design of this cartridge they can be overwhelmingly infuriating to use and can sound UTTERLY GLORIOUS in equal measure.

Worst combination i had for Decca's was a Linn Sondek. Utterly Useless combination, even though i struggled for a couple of years, so went back to a Grado for the Linn.

But in a well set up Garrad 301, 401 with 12" SME arm Stupendous. On a Thorens 124 with 12" and/or 9" SME not quite as good but pretty fair.
Sansui SR222mk4 with Decca Gold this was a combination that out performed the Linn so spectacularly that i sold the Linn.

I then got an Opus Continuo with Decca arm for the Gold, then replaced the arm for a 9" SME and i still have this today with both the Gold and Super Gold. A magnificent combination.

Now with Decca's one has problems with tracking/mistracking, Bias weight adjustment, the stylus lifting out of the groove due to dust collecting on the cantilever (which is vertical) leading to one considering throwing it out with the bathwater. In the Sansui i tracked the Gold at 0.75 gm with no bias. In the Garrards i used 1.00gm and no bias. On the Linn i used 1.75gm due to the Linn's infernal bouncing causing the Gold to leap out of the groove at the slightest provocation. In the Opus i used 1.25 gm and minimal bias or no bias.

The latest generation of Decca's has just been reviewed in HiFi News by KK with its new arm and latest incarnation of the London. The article is interesting to read as it points out many of my comments here.

So brand loyalty is important to the success of any manufacturer and i can live with the problems of the London as what it does right is worth living with.

I am a HiFi enthusiast and have owned a lot of brands over the years and tend to keep a product as long as it does what it says on the box. I even own a rare nervous temperamental valve amp which has just died again, so will have to probably repair the power supply and a couple of valves again. But it is rare and wonderful so i tolerate its idiosyncracies. If i want a relaible valve amp i will use my 1961 Quad 11's.
But it dont sound like the other one so i have both, i even have a delightful Cary valve amp for when i get bored with the other two amps.

regards David

I've owned Naim gear for 21 years, (working my way up from a lowly system to my current set-up, fairly close to the top of the range.)
I've only ever had one problem.. when something blew in one of my 135 amps. It was repaired promptly and efficiently. Frankly, I think nothing compares with the overall quality of Naim equipment, and they're a brilliant company to deal with.
If only cars and household goods had the reliability of Naim...

I've owned a 555 for six months or so now and am very pleased indeed with the sound quality - but I have had problems with the player software.
I really like the 'Naim sound' and have a 552, 3 way NAP300, Isobarik system - I'd just like the software to be better for that price.

I'm presently on my third 555 player, which sounded the best of the ones I tried, so I've decided to keep this one and put up with the software 'niggles' that all three had.

Along with the sporadic change of the input over to phono (00 symbol on the display) and associated sudden loss of music (which happens about every 2 to 3 months) I get the following.
I experince an occasional 'mute' of the music shortly after a track begins - this is on any disk, new or old - and is sporadic.

When the fault happens, it ALWAYS happened after the transition of a track - about 1 to 2 seconds after. Example:

-----Track 7-----|-X----Track 8-----

Where X is the glitch, either a mute or 'hickup' of some kind.
It is very random and will happen when you play a track for more than 3 or 4 tracks in sequence. I tend to play disks right through - it will happen on any disk at random; some evenings I do not hear it. I had a month or two recently where nothing was noticed, then it happened again.

There is associated with the track-beginning random fault another condition which affects the tracks at the end of the CD near the rim. The glitch will then do one of two things:
A: it will hang the player's play/stop software - needing a player off/on reset to fix.
B: it can decide there is no last track and end the disk - you can then select (say) track 14 and it will search and play it where it thought it did not exist before.

This is definitely a software fault in the head-unit, as there are no random faults other than those at the beginning of the track at exactly the same place.

I appreciate that others have not had problems with the 555, I just wish it included me! I'm hoping that Naim will eventually offer a software update to resolve these 'niggles', until then the sound quality is just so amazing that I really can't be parted from it

quote:

Sansui SR222mk4 with Decca Gold this was a combination that out performed the Linn so spectacularly that i sold the Linn.

Another blinding insight. What did your 'friends' think of your decision?

Hi Darke Bear, and welcome to the forum. Your 555 woes aside, that is a cracking system you have; all you need now are the dibbles

In summary it appears there are a few software bugs;
maybe Richard or Adam could tell us if there are there are any plans to address these?

why dont you just sell it to me cheap,save you the grief,i am trying to be helpful .