Интегральные усилители — Naim SUPERNAIT 3

The SUPERNAIT 3 sits at the head of the three NAIT-family integrated amplifiers that Naim Audio of Salisbury offered in its classic range, sitting above the NAIT XS 3 and the NAIT 5si. It replaced the SUPERNAIT 2 and reached the market on 31 July 2019, launched together with the NAIT XS 3 after six years of research work, with an upgraded power amplifier, a new moving magnet phono stage and a revised power supply. It is no longer available.

Key specs that matter

Each channel delivers 80 W into 8 ohm at 0.1 percent THD+N and 130 W into 4 ohm. The CD, Tuner, Stream and AV inputs each take RCA or 5-pin DIN connections at 130 mV sensitivity and 47 kohm, with 2.0 V as the typical source level, and an Aux DIN socket also supplies +24 V for a separate Naim phono stage. The onboard MM input is loaded at 47 kohm in parallel with 470 pF and its gain suits 5 mV cartridges. Fixed DIN outputs for AV and Stream sit beside three variable ones - an RCA pair for a subwoofer, a 5-pin DIN pre-amp output and a 4-pin DIN bi-amp output. Consumption is 170 W in use, 14 W in standby and under 0.3 W in off mode. The case is 432 mm wide, 87 mm tall and 314 mm deep, and the unit weighs 14 kg.

Engineering and use context

The preamplifier section is fed by a complete 24 V DR module, based on Naim's own Discrete Regulation technology, while a larger toroidal transformer gives more power reserve and quicker recovery than before. More leaded through-hole components were placed in the signal path to limit the effect of vibration and brief thermal changes, and the input sockets are fixed to the chassis and hand-wired to the circuit boards so that the boards stay mechanically isolated. In the power stage the voltage gain section now works twice as fast, and revised second-stage transistors made the cascode unnecessary, which doubles slew rate according to Naim. The Class A preamp output stage doubles as the headphone amplifier on the 6.35 mm front jack, and ceramic heatsink technology is used for the output devices. Front panel controls include volume and a full balance control on Alps Blue Velvet parts, and inputs are switched by reed relays. The RIAA stage runs through gain, passive equalisation and a final active stage, with film capacitors in through-hole form.

Pairing

The extra power into lower impedances makes low-impedance speakers a practical load. The bi-amp socket drives an extra Naim power amplifier for the bass or treble section of bi-wired speakers.

Alternatives

The Naim NAIT XS 3 is the smaller integrated from the same 2019 launch, with 70 W per channel into 8 ohm in a 70 mm high case.