Sure they are.
The Focals are very efficient being an 8 Ohm speaker with a sensitivity of 92 db. Just about any amp will drive them.
The better question may be if the Focals are a good sonic match for your ears?
If you heard them and like them, then go for it. The Naim will handle them with ease and never break a sweat. |
I had the Naim. It won't have any problem driving the Focals, but its not a good sounding amp. It was probably the most over rated piece I ever bought. If you have a pair of very dull and forgiving speakers, the Naim sounds OK. On my B&W LM1's I use for my PC, it sounded pretty good. But those speakers have a soft tweeter and are very forgiving. When I put it on a better, more revealing speaker, it just fell apart sonically. The best way I can describe it is that its not a clean sounding component. It won't even come close to doing the Focals justice. I would pick a different amp. |
Zd542
Yap, you was right. On Tuesday I packed the Focals and
went to the Store. The Focals sounded terribly with the Naim. The dealer suggested Arcam A19 but he don't carry the
Arcam's gear. Any opinion on the Arcam. |
Didn't need golden ears to here that one. lol. Nothing wrong with Arcam. I haven't heard the 19 so I can't say for sure what it will sound like. Overall, I find the Arcam product line to have a nice, polite sound. If you're looking for a lot of power and big dynamic swings, you would probably need to look elsewhere. I actually have an Arcam 33 CD player that I like very much, but there's things it clearly does do and things that it does not do. If you like the sound of Levinson, newer Bryston and even Parasound, You'll probably like the Arcam.
I've had a bunch of integrated's in this overall class, and my favorite was the Creek 5350SE. If you could find a good used one, that would be my first choice. If you are willing to go a little more, an Ayre AX-7 would also be a good choice. But I would suggest that if you've never heard Ayre equipment before, you would definitely need to listen to it first. The sound is nothing like we are talking about here. I love it. For me, Ayre makes the best SS gear, but not everyone feels that way, and nothing else sounds like it for comparison.
All I do know for sure, is that you'll definately be able to find something that sounds better than the Naim (and probably at Walmart). |
Zd542,
That was good one. I think that anything at Walmart would sound better then Naim.
I don't need lots of power, 2x50/55w would be enough. I do
like the Parasound power Amplifiers but not the Preamps.
I will try with the Arcam A19. Would be Arcam more open then
NAD. |
Topten, I had the NAD 320BEE and 325BEE (still have them actually). I really like NAD gear. I've had the Arcam A19 for the past 15 months. From my experience the A19 is more open, transparent and smoother than the 50 watt offerings from NAD. The A19 sounds big with great detail and tone. The soundstage is wide and has good depth with a room filling sound.
Now, here's where the A19 jumps ahead big against the its competition: Build quality and functionality. Build quality is exemplary with great fit and finish and a substantial solid feel. The volume control has 99 half db steps and tracks perfectly even as you turn the A19 lower and lower to no output.
With the A19 music stays intact wether playing at background/conversation levels or cranking it up. It also has a very even presentation. I would some it up as having smooth refined highs, open, transparent mids with substantial puchy lows. I hope you get a chance to hear it. |
"I will try with the Arcam A19. Would be Arcam more open then
NAD."
NAD is another good choice but I don't know the sound of either well enough to make the comparison. There is one really nice thing about NAD, though. All their integrated amps, except their lowest price model, jump the amp and preamp sections externally in the rear using rca jacks. That means you can use it just as an amp or just as a preamp, and keep the signal from running through the piece that you are not using. Its great if you plan on upgrades in the future. |
Samac and Zd542,
Thank you much on opinions.
Actually, I am listening the Focals with the NAD C356BEE.
I upgraded the stock Pre/Amp jumpers with the Cardas jumpers. The sound is good, deep bass and extended highs. The problem is, the Volume gain on the NAD.
I barely can move the volume knob.
On 6.35 position is already too loud.
That's the only reason why am I looking for the Amplifier
with the similar sound to the NAD. The Arcam could be even better solution since I heard that is warmer than NAD |
Can you list your entire system, cables, tweaks and whatever else? Also, just to clarify, 6.35 is where the minute hand would be on a clock? Where does the volume know normally sit with the volume turned all the way down? The reason I'm asking is that most volume controls are turned all the way down at 6.35. I'm also assuming that you have 1 pair of speaker cables connected to speaker a on your amp and that speaker b is off. |
Zd542
Sorry, I exaggerated. It was not 6H 35m, it's more like
6H 40m. The rest of the system is: Sony SCD-XA5400ES;
Tascam MD-02B Minidisc and the Focal 807W Speakers.
The Speakers Cables: Signal Cable
Interconnects: Tara Labs
And yes, I am using only one pair of the speakers. |
Just joining in a bit late here. I have the Naim Nait 5SI and after a couple of months of break-in I find the amp to be very neutral and actually quite intoxicating after some time of listening, you just get carried away with the music and no longer caught up in constant evaluation of your sound system, etc. There is no such thing as the perfect system unless you have tons and tons of money to burn and hours to waste your life away. The pursuit of the high-end can be a horrible addiction never admitted to by those that pursue it. At some point you need only to sit back and enjoy your recordings accordingly. My system: Q-Acoustics Concept 40 floorstanders, NACA A5 Cables, Nain Naiit 5SI, Arcam IR-DAC, Kimber Silver Streak rca's, Marantz CD6005, Kimber Hero rca's, isoblocks, vibrapods, acoustic wall mounted panels. I find Arcam gear to be o.k. for the money but it does not grab my attention, where as NAD to me has no signature to its sound, to me sounds lifeless and boring. For intergrateds and best bang for the buck to me: Naim, Rega and Bryston. I just happen to own Naim and quite happy with my system..everyone has different ears, enjoy! |
I had the Arcam A19 for a little while, and I thought it was a very nice piece for its price range. Smooth, open sound stage. I think it would be a nice pairing with the revealing Focal tweeters. Another integrated in that price range that you might consider is the Creek 50A. I've always found Creek to be a refined, slightly relaxed sound, and I think it would pair well with your Focals. |
Agree, the Creek 50A is quite refined, smooth and transparent. IMO, it is a step up from the Arcam and NAD. Mated with the matching CD50, it makes for an outstanding kit. I ran this pairing with Tannoy speakers and the sound was way above its price point. Liked it so much, I went looking for the more powerful Creek Destiny.
Regards........
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