Naim is wasting no time in celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Just four days later at CES 2023, the British brand has unveiled a new Classic range of components at CES 2023: the NSC 222 streaming preamp, a new iteration of the iconic NAP 250 power amp and the NPX 300 power supply upgrade. A launch that indeed fits the milestone of half a century.
Speaking of the new Classic range, Steve Sells, head of hardware engineering at Naim, says: “From designs with our best-ever performance at this level, to added features and flexibility, to environmentally friendly elements – New Classic products use less than 0.5W in standby – we have combined our 50 years of experience with the very latest technology to redefine hi-fi at home.”
The NSC 222 – which already won a CES 2023 Innovation Award this week – is a gateway to streaming services such as Tidal, Spotify, Apple Music and Qobuz, as well as internet radio and network music. As well as facilitating wireless streaming within a system, the NSC 222 can also house a turntable thanks to its built-in MM phono stage, while an integrated headphone amplifier – the same used in the Uniti Atom Headphone Edition – is on board for high-quality personal listening. The streaming preamp certainly looks good (as you can see at the top of this page), following the contemporary design that has contributed to the success of the Naim Uniti range.
A natural partner is undoubtedly the 100 watt-per-channel NAP 250 power amplifier, the sixth iteration of a model that has been in continuous production since 1975 and is, if you ask us, one of the very best Naim products. in the company’s five decades. To improve performance even further than its predecessor, the NAP 250 features technology taken from the company’s flagship Statement amplifier, such as an eddy current switch between the loudspeaker outputs, and promises “more power, even better performance and a greater system-matching flexibility.” Proof of the latter point can be found in Naim’s decision to include balanced XLR connectors this time around.
Another potential partner in crime for the NSC 222 is the NPX 300 power supply, which Naim says provides an “instant upgrade” to the streaming preamp by cutting out the internal power supply, reducing the noise floor and providing “superior, cleaner stream.
So there you have it. A new Naim trio that we hope marks the start of a productive 50th anniversary year for the brand. The new Naim Classic range will be available from this month (January 2023), with the NSC 222, NAP 250 and NPX 300 each priced at £5700 / $8999 (approximately AU$10,000).
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