Naim Supernait 3
£3499
An integrated amplifier costing £3500 is distinctly premium, but when it has us questioning the need to spend more, it suddenly seems great value.
The Naim Supernait 3 is about as well equipped as an all-analogue amplifier needs to be. There are four line-level inputs, each offering the choice of conventional RCA or Naim’s favoured DIN options.
There’s a variable line output available with both socket types in case you want to add an additional power amplifier or subwoofer. The Supernait 3 can also be upgraded by using Naim’s Flatcap (£939), Hi-cap DR (£1419) or Supercap DR (£4599) outboard power supplies.
It turns in a remarkably assured performance, sounding solid and muscular and handling whatever you throw at it in terms of music and partnering speakers.
Such confidence works wonders for the listener. When that subliminal messiness of an amplifier struggling isn’t present, it’s so much easier to focus on the music instead.
We start with Four Tet’s There Is Love In You set and the Naim sounds as happy as a toddler in a sandpit. It has a fast, punchy sound that’s backed with real heft at low frequencies. We’re impressed by the organisation on show, and the amplifier’s ability to track a multitude of musical strands and still tie them all together as a cohesive and musical whole.
We can’t think of a more capable alternative when it comes to rhythmic drive and precision, either. The
Supernait 3 conveys the changing momentum of this music brilliantly.
Switching to Dvorak’s New World Symphony shows off the Naim’s excellent handling of dynamics. It delivers crescendos with venom, but has the grace to handle low-level shifts of intensity well too. Detail resolution is good, and it’s easy to gain insight into the recording and the production methods used.
If you’re looking for an integrated amp at this level, you must hear this one.