Naim nac 202/ nap 200

Naim nac 202 and nap 200

This is a pre/power combination from British hifi company Naim audio. This is mid range for naim even though it costs the inconsiderable sum of three thousand quid! Any way you look at it this is hi-end for most of us poor wood cutters and for this kind of money you will be expecting quality.

As is usual for naim the pre amp has no power and you actually power the pre amp via the power amp, complicated stuff! You can also upgrade the pre amp and boy is it cheap! I am being sarcastic, their mid priced upgrade costs nine hundred pounds and their recommended upgrade costs two and a half thousand pounds; welcome to the wonderful world of Naim.

Naim know how to charge but then they also have fantastic reputation of servicing and reliability. They do not cut corners and true quality costs. Their upgrade path is a stroke of pure genius and is followed by true believers although the way to the very bottom of their wallets.

Anyway back to the sound.

Once the pair are fully warmed up they start to sound good. This is not the naim sound of old and if you have dismissed Naim electronics in the past you should listen to these. Forget the comparisons with valve amps that some magazines have very wrongly suggested, these are definitely transistor designs.

What they are is a lot softer than the olive green Naim but in the best possible way. They are fast sounding but never rushed. They have pretty good tone too and they can provide texture and colour if it is on the recording.

They also sound superbly rhythmic. Not only is coherence pretty much perfect but the way they handle the speed and flow of a song is really quite superb. Songs seem to have a swing, even acoustic tracks and dynamics are fantastic. From quiet to loud from fast to slow, they can build a track like few others.

They have even mastered the art of separation. Naim amps used to put everything in the middle of the speakers and could sound awful with busy music. This pairing are so much better in this regard, you can hear each element very clearly.

The other plus points are detail and refinement, these are the most refined Naim amps I have heard, bad recordings are certainly bearable. The power amp also does a good job of controlling most speakers. It is only rated at seventy watts but Naim watts seem to be about twice as good as a normal watt, so don't take too much notice of the ratings!

The down side to this pairing is that it isn't the most colourful amp in the world, valve enthusiasts will not be swapping their single ended eight watt devices any time soon. It is also very live sounding in its recording perspective and this doesn't always suite everyone, musicians have that in the room with you feeling that Naim fans crave.

In conclusion this is a great combination. The swing, flow and dynamics are about as good as you can get. They sound big and powerful yet can turn on a six pence. They are missing a bit of colour but are far from cold sounding and are incredibly emotive, they are never clinical and always get to the heart of the music.

If you like transistor designs and are after a live presentation you must audition these amps. They may be expensive but to be honest they are very good value for money. They make your favourite artists sound good and isn't that what this hobby it is all about? I would have them!

Ebay Alert! Still expensive. Just buy them new or ex dem. They will last a life time and you probably won't want to change them!