Worth the switch to Naim?

The only way is to go and hear them. If there is nothing wrong with your sound why bother, just enjoy the music. Generally I would say Naim are underpowered and I would be looking for more powerful amp to upgrade to. I may go and hear them next week, if I do I will let you know.

I would agree that it has to be a personal decision.

FWIW. WHF thought the Arcam A19 was a step up, so if you like the Rega type sound, it maybe worth a listen.

To answer that question, yes, the XS would be a step up, but as mentioned, you really need to hear it to see if you like the sound of it, particularly with your speakers.

I had the same dilema, went to listen to a unitilite but i prefered the sound of my Rega system and I would of lost money swapping over to naim and i would of had to buy a phono stage too.

Stick with the Rega and enjoy it!

Do you mean because many of their amps are in the 30-70 watt range or that they don't deliver the claimed output?  I thought Naims were conservatively rated?

thanks Steve.  Difficult to find those who have listened to both.

Irrational I know, because I like what I have, but I've heard Totem and Naim were a great combo and I've always dreamed of a Naim system for some reason. 

I'll probably stick with what I have (and be perfectly happy -and more so after adding an Apollo-R) but might try and demo the Nait XS at some point.  Maybe new Rega amp will be out in a few months to make things even more complicated.

Concur with the others about comparing different amps and decide for yourself. However, I really do think those Totems deserve a higher quality amp, given they are over £2k. I would be looking at Naim XS as a minimum. I heard the XS last powering Dynaudio Contour S1.4 and it sounded awsome... up to a point.

Can't comment directly on the Rega Brio-R, but as the amp is sub-£500 in the UK, logic tells me that a better quality amp is preferable.

The rating given the price. Ive been told they lack headroom, so (clipping) distortion can be a problem. I have not heard those speakers but my dealer seems to stock them so maybe give them a go if time. From what I have read they need some careful matching.

I recently demoed the Rega Brio-R, Cyrus 6, Audiolab 8200a and Naim Nait XS. All connected to Monitor Audio RX6 speakers and a Rega DAC.

I found the Brio-R a real disappointment, not particularly exciting or articulate to my ears. Cyrus 6 was OK, although not an all rounder. The Audiolab was the surprise of the bunch bearing in mind you can pick it up for between £630-£650. I was mainly auditoning with rock music to give the amps and speakers a real work out. I preferred the Nait XS over the Audiolab, it had more control, however it's more than twice the price. For less money than a new XS, you could get an Audiolab 8200a + 8200p pairing which would possibly equal or exceed the XS for control? I should point out, given the WHF review, I didn't find the Audiolab treble at all bright, I actually found it quite smooth sounding. The Rega DAC would have played a part in that working it's magic.

You need to listen with your speakers, all the above amps sounded very different with B&W 684's connected, albeit the final result was the same for me.

I was captivated by the XS sound and picked one up secondhand.

My listening room is 5m x 5m and I've never needed to go much past 11 o'clock on my XS volume, and that sounds very loud! Most of my listening is between 8 & 10 o'clock position on the volume control.

Have a listen. I knew the moment I heard it that I loved the xs, compared to the arcam a38 it was leagues ahead with my old 683's IMHO. With my ovators it is a barnstormer. As for output, as long as the the speakers are of a sensible sensitivity then I can't disagree enough, it's plenty powerful enough. Big thumbs up here. I also have the unitilite which has a cracking amp in it, arguably the best part of the machine.

regards

I think the comparison between the Rega Brio R, DAC, Apollo R and the Unitilite is very valid - both lovely systems, of course the XS is better amplification but were are talking about £1600 systems here..... One is seperates the other all in one and both have lovely presentations!

The XS is a lovely amplifier.

Is it to expensive? You have to decide that. Materially, a no-frills integrated of comparetively low power shouldn't cost that much imo but its a Naim. - Have I heard anything that sounds like it cheaper ... ? Not yet but I'd probably would check out some of Harman's products too.

I could happily live with one but would try and get one s/h and use sensitive speakers with a reasonably benign load though the amplifier has adequate current to be at least a little bit flexible in that respect.

regards

i bet it is, if I had more money I would be aspiring to one!

Totems respond well to very good amplification - I'd recommend giving Primare's I22 a listen (£1250). I can also suggest their I32 for £2200 which I heard up against the XS - much better imaging, IMO, as good as the Naim was.