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It is with tremendous excitement that we share the good news - the all-new Gramophone Experience Center is nearly here! Opening in May, it will feature the finest high-fidelity systems we’ve ever had the pleasure of displaying. With this exciting grand opening right around the corner, let’s share a bit about what you can expect to find in the soon-to-be best high-end showroom in all of Maryland. 

Even empty, it would still be a top-shelf contender in any prestigious interior design publication. One of the best things about the new Experience Center is that much of what you will see has been made possible by our amazing and frankly legendary partners such as Focal Naim, Sonus faber, McIntosh, LG, Sony, Bang & Olufsen, Control 4, and Kaleidescape. These brands represent the finest in the whole Hi-Fi, A/V, and custom integrations space, and this entire showroom is a testament both to the quality of products that these innovators and artisans of their craft provide and to the integration quality that Gramophone provides.

 Today, I want to talk about Focal Naim as we will be featured as one of their “Experience Centers” as well. Can you imagine how we came up with the name of the showroom? They have provided products from three lines of awesome Naim electronics, and three lines of Focal speakers for all of us to enjoy. We will have the highly acclaimed Kanta No. 1 bookshelf/stand-mount speakers, as well as the Kanta No. 2 Tower/Floor-standing speakers powered by a Naim Uniti Nova integrated streaming amplifier. Few amps look and sound more elegant while offering all the features Uniti Nova does. The Kanta line delivers terrific bang for the buck while looking straight up svelte, yet sounding exact in all the right ways with that masterful Focal beryllium tweeter. 

Next up - the speakers that in our view basically make Focal, with all the best characteristics Focal is known for - the Sopra line.  Sopra features perfectly finished cabinets with no sharp edges, along with a color/finish selection like no other, and a world-class suite of drivers. The beryllium tweeter returns, now furthered by Focal’s best cone drivers: the “W” Glass Fiber mid and bass woofers - among the world’s stiffest and lightest. The Sopra is simply genre-defining. 

This system is powered by three of Naim’s excellent New Classic line of electronics. We have the NSC 222 preamplifier with built-in streaming. The interesting thing about this preamp is how it is powered, which is via the NPX 300 power supply. This unit has two proprietary cables delivering a very precise, measured, and clean power feed to the preamp. This combination produces an utterly black/silent background or noise floor and ensures that virtually no strange electrical artifacts can be heard in your music. Finally, this pristine signal is delivered with the strength to your speakers via the NAP 250 Power Amplifier, with 100 watts of marvelous Class A/B power. Now if you’re thinking, “That’s not really all that much,” you’ll be surprised. Naim does not overrate their power output - many others do. This system keeps up with and even surpasses the dynamic capabilities of other similarly priced units with supposedly higher power numbers. To taste the fully Focal experience, start with the Sopras and New Classics.

Finally, we come to the grand finale - the awe-inspiring presence of the Focal Maestro Utopia Evo, through which the serenades of the new Naim 500 series speak notes of bliss to you. It’s called the “Utopia” series for a reason! The Maestro Utopia Evo is among the most meticulously over-engineered loudspeakers we have encountered. Every single detail is just so extra but in the best way. Nothing comes off as gaudy or too much, but the opposite, as you recognize just what it takes to make a speaker achieve what it does. Its design is as simply elegant as its science and anatomy of it are detailed. 

Here we find the beryllium tweeter, the “W” cone bass, and mid-drivers, and now a massive cabinet with an internal rigidity and bracing system worthy of using as a design philosophy for a new space shuttle.  All of the drivers enjoy their own completely independent cabinets, sharing no internal volume with each other. You could say that each member of the band has their own tour bus!  Keep your eyes open for a soon-to-come YouTube video about them.

Next, the electronics, which are all two-chassis designs. The reason for this is discrete outboard power. Recall when we said that the preamp of the New Classic series used a separate power supply for nigh flawless delivery of energy?  Each piece of equipment here uses that system, each with its own specifically optimized unit. This is a level of dedication (obsession?) that ensures an experience that is top shelf, without an iota of noise, or other weird power-related gremlins.

Also regarding noise, this system is fully balanced. Some analog signals go through XLR (such as preamp to a power amp), and some through Naim’s own proprietary cable/connector design.  Though similar in principle, the result is arguably even better, as Naim’s design has superior grounding.  The entire system consists of the ND 555 Network Player, the 555 PS Power Supply, the NAC 552 Preamp, and the NAP 500 DR Power Amp. These solid, clean electronics are so finely finished, they deserve to be both seen and heard in your home. They are statement pieces in every metric, denoting the owner’s passion, commitment, and investment in the hobby/lifestyle that is Hi-Fi.

Now for a few technical details (keep your eyes on YouTube for more). The NAP 500 DR makes 140 watts into 8 ohms - a conservative rating in a world of oft-inflated power ratings.  One look at this amp and you’ll see it is ready for whatever you throw at it, especially with that robust power delivery system. The NAC 552 preamp is loaded with inputs, chief among them Naim’s DIN connectors - vastly superior to RCA, as they lack the impedance issues often found between the wire and the RCA connector. DIN is a much tighter standard. Naim has chosen the best tools for the job, esoteric, and rarely found elsewhere.

If you want that which is among the best that can be physically provided in the space of Hi-Fi, anything Focal and Naim is a strong option. The 500 Series and Utopia are representatives of the greatest possible achievements that mankind has the technology and skill to create at this time. If you desire to know what is to be touched and graced by a thing so lofty, so refined, so pure, and beyond…make sure to visit the Gramophone Experience Center come next month (details coming soon). Be seeing you!