Article: Naim Audio Mu-so Review

[james45974]

Nope. I'm under the impression that it is selling well and has achieved quite a decent fan following. So you not liking it doesn't make it a dud.

 

No dislike of Naim here, I have auditioned a few pieces of their equipment and although I didn't end up buying I don't have a negative opinion of them. But by judging some of the comment here the reviewer, and by possibly by extension Naim, has not done an adequate job of explaining the product. Take my comments out of the equation, when there are comments that basically say 'I don't get it' you have a marketing and information problem! If we can't call the product a dud maybe we have to call the review a dud then!

[Ajani]

No dislike of Naim here, I have auditioned a few pieces of their equipment and although I didn't end up buying I don't have a negative opinion of them. But by judging some of the comment here the reviewer, and by possibly by extension Naim, has not done an adequate job of explaining the product. Take my comments out of the equation, when there are comments that basically say 'I don't get it' you have a marketing and information problem! If we can't call the product a dud maybe we have to call the review a dud then!

 

The problem is that any product in a relatively new category is going to be a bit tricky to define. Naim call the Mu-so a Wireless Music System. I think that sums it up perfectly, but I can easily imagine other persons having no idea what a wireless music system is. As for marketing, despite any confusion about what it is, it is selling well.

[Ajani]

You're right... It's interesting (with specific reference to the MuSo) how people's opinions on the Naim forum changed... Most (of those posting) dismissed it when Naim first launched it, only for many to slowly change over time. And these are die hard "audiophiles".

 

Products like this, the Devialet and Naim NAC-N 272 are where audio is heading, reducing boxes and increasing "convinience" while at the same time keeping a high quality sound.

 

Yep. Plus these products have the potential to appeal to consumers who are not stereotypical audiophiles. Consumers who value both convenience and aesthetics, but still want good sound quality.

[monteverdi]

"Wrap Up

 

The reason all of us entered into this hobby was because of the music and how it made is feel emotionally. We didn’t start purchasing sterile HiFi gear only to find out we could play something called music thought said gear. Music brings out emotion like few other things in this world."

" In addition, the ability to share both our favorite recordings and high quality reproduction with our friends and family is hard to put a price on. "

That is the essence of why one should deal with all of the complications these toys. I see listening to music becomes more and more not a shared experience (especially reproduced music) but a singular thing and thus the rise of headphones, music played in isolation. That is definitely a cultural shift!

[LCC0256]

You're right... It's interesting (with specific reference to the MuSo) how people's opinions on the Naim forum changed... Most (of those posting) dismissed it when Naim first launched it, only for many to slowly change over time. And these are die hard "audiophiles".

 

Products like this, the Devialet and Naim NAC-N 272 are where audio is heading, reducing boxes and increasing "convinience" while at the same time keeping a high quality sound.

 

After being thoroughly entertained with her plain spoken (while at the same time being in perfect Queen's English !!) analysis (head firmly planted in arse at times with respect to "what" defines true "audiophile " quality sound & this device represents the future of audio...) I believe she is absolutely correct on BOTH points...

[ajay556]

BAD NEWS FOR NAIM BUT GOOD NEWS FOR ALL AUDIOPHILES....

I was at the apple store attempting to listen to the Naim Mu-so without any luck as it was very noisy. But the salesman came over and provided great news. He said if you are interested in Naim i would recommend to wait for 2 days more....we have a great new audio system coming...

DEVIALET!!!!

I was very excited...hopefully now the mass population will get some exposure to great audio...

I personally have not heard it but salesman said he has...and for additional $500 you get far superior audio system than the Naim.

[Ajani]

BAD NEWS FOR NAIM BUT GOOD NEWS FOR ALL AUDIOPHILES....

I was at the apple store attempting to listen to the Naim Mu-so without any luck as it was very noisy. But the salesman came over and provided great news. He said if you are interested in Naim i would recommend to wait for 2 days more....we have a great new audio system coming...

DEVIALET!!!!

I was very excited...hopefully now the mass population will get some exposure to great audio...

I personally have not heard it but salesman said he has...and for additional $500 you get far superior audio system than the Naim.

 

The Devialet hitting the Apple store is a good thing as it provides more options. However, my only concern with it is that almost every review of it focuses on two phantoms used in stereo. So $4K (or $4.6K) rather than the $1.5K for the Mu-so. The only review of a single Phantom that I've seen was on What Hi-Fi? and they gave it 4 out of 5 stars because they felt it didn't really justify the price premium over the Mu-So. However, even that review is hard to judge because they compared the slightly more expensive Silver Phantom ($2.3K) to the Mu-So ($1.5K) making the price difference even more striking.

[silverarrows]

The Devialet hitting the Apple store is a good thing as it provides more options. However, my only concern with it is that almost every review of it focuses on two phantoms used in stereo. So $4K (or $4.6K) rather than the $1.5K for the Mu-so. The only review of a single Phantom that I've seen was on What Hi-Fi? and they gave it 4 out of 5 stars because they felt it didn't really justify the price premium over the Mu-So. However, even that review is hard to judge because they compared the slightly more expensive Silver Phantom ($2.3K) to the Mu-So ($1.5K) making the price difference even more striking.

 

When my electrostatic speakers died I went in to hear Magnepans as a replacement. I was ready to pull the trigger, but before doing so had a listen to the Mu-So. I was impressed. It has the Naim house sound. What is also useful about the Mu-So is it has good connectivity options. But then...I saw a Phantom in the corner. After hearing that I bought the Phantom and eventually sold off my entire system.

 

The Spark software is a work in progress and connectivity options are thorough as the Mu-So, but that can be taken care of with with an Airport Express. I thought I was done, but then I returned the Phantom. I now have 2 Silver Phantoms in stereo. 1 is fantastic on it's own, 2 is better. I don't want to get into a debate about separates and value for money, but the Phantom has a sound I like and I'm happy to no longer be tweaking and seeing if things like power cords or other cables make a difference. In terms of the price, relative to the Mu-So, it depends where you are in the world and the exchange rate. For What Hi-Fi I would think the spread between the two is larger in the UK than other parts of the world.

 

From my end I can now spend more time enjoying the music with a simplified setup. As development continues, while the Mu-So (and Phantom for that matter) may seem like a niche product today, the engineering, simplicity, and ability to just listen to music has the potential to push stereo components into niche status.

[Ajani]

When my electrostatic speakers died I went in to hear Magnepans as a replacement. I was ready to pull the trigger, but before doing so had a listen to the Mu-So. I was impressed. It has the Naim house sound. What is also useful about the Mu-So is it has good connectivity options. But then...I saw a Phantom in the corner. After hearing that I bought the Phantom and eventually sold off my entire system.

 

The Spark software is a work in progress and connectivity options are thorough as the Mu-So, but that can be taken care of with with an Airport Express. I thought I was done, but then I returned the Phantom. I now have 2 Silver Phantoms in stereo. 1 is fantastic on it's own, 2 is better. I don't want to get into a debate about separates and value for money, but the Phantom has a sound I like and I'm happy to no longer be tweaking and seeing if things like power cords or other cables make a difference. In terms of the price, relative to the Mu-So, it depends where you are in the world and the exchange rate. For What Hi-Fi I would think the spread between the two is larger in the UK than other parts of the world.

 

From my end I can now spend more time enjoying the music with a simplified setup. As development continues, while the Mu-So (and Phantom for that matter) may seem like a niche product today, the engineering, simplicity, and ability to just listen to music has the potential to push stereo components into niche status.

 

I think products like the Mu-So and Phantom only seem like a niche product in the audiophile world. They seem exactly like the kind of product that is popular with regular consumers. Just think about how popular (somewhat similar) products such as Bluetooth speakers are becoming. The Mu-So and Phantom merely elevate the performance levels to more HiFi like levels.

 

BTW, I regard the Phantom as a $4K to $4.6K product as it is really intended to be used as a stereo pair. So it's a far more expensive product than the Mu-So and really should be a proper upgrade in sound quality.

[Paul R]

Ah, well done. Thanks for giving some audiophile credibility to such a totally wonderful piece of gear. It is indeed quite a shareable, and awesome experience.

 

-Paul

[shp]

I see a lot of people are confused about the product. I posted a review a while back, here http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f22-networking-networked-audio-and-streaming/review-naim-muso-25884/

 

The answer to that question, really, is "a lot of fun in one very attractive, easy to use case."

 

The sound was not perfect. It's single source (not stereo) and we found the top end a bit rolled off.

 

But it was seriously fun. My girlfriend and I don't have a lot of overlap in musical tastes. We were struck by how much fun it was to construct joint playlists for the living room.

 

If Naim could pull an Auralic and release a Muso without the amp and speakers at ~$500 I wouldn't hesitate.

[Ajani]

I see a lot of people are confused about the product. I posted a review a while back, here http://www.computeraudiophile.com/f22-networking-networked-audio-and-streaming/review-naim-muso-25884/

 

The answer to that question, really, is "a lot of fun in one very attractive, easy to use case."

 

The sound was not perfect. It's single source (not stereo) and we found the top end a bit rolled off.

 

But it was seriously fun. My girlfriend and I don't have a lot of overlap in musical tastes. We were struck by how much fun it was to construct joint playlists for the living room.

 

If Naim could pull an Auralic and release a Muso without the amp and speakers at ~$500 I wouldn't hesitate.

 

Wouldn't that just be a streamer? Why not just buy a Bluesound Node 2?

[Audio_ELF]

If Naim could pull an Auralic and release a Muso without the amp and speakers at ~$500 I wouldn't hesitate.

Naim do have a Muso without the amp and speakers - its called the ND5XS but is more than $500. Its £2400. Equally just without speakers its a UnitiQute at £1300. Though they aren't identical as the ND5XS adds much more in the way of digital processing.

[master]

I heard it a while back and it was very impressive. Pretty much ate my Sonos Play 5 for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

 

However, the pricing is a bit on the higher side and you can get separates for the same price for an actual stereo setup.

 

As a convenience it is amazing, especially for the sound quality delivers. No more Bluetooth speakers provided you have the money.

 

Still a bit late to the party, I see Chromecast Audio giving the same capabilities to pretty much any setup, including my 15-year-old hi-fi.

[Ajani]

I heard it a while back and it was very impressive. Pretty much ate my Sonos Play 5 for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

 

However, the pricing is a bit on the higher side and you can get separates for the same price for an actual stereo setup.

 

As a convenience it is amazing, especially for the sound quality delivers. No more Bluetooth speakers provided you have the money.

 

Still a bit late to the party, I see Chromecast Audio giving the same capabilities to pretty much any setup, including my 15-year-old hi-fi.

 

I would say that it's really aimed at persons who value the compact form and convenience. If you are fine with putting a much larger and less stylish HiFi setup in your room, then there are no shortage of more traditional stereo options.

 

If you want something far more discrete, but still sounds good and has modern connections then you look for products like the Mu-So. If you just want maximum sound quality for your money, then chances are that you would prefer a separates system.

[master]

I would say that it's really aimed at persons who value the compact form and convenience. If you are fine with putting a much larger and less stylish HiFi setup in your room, then there are no shortage of more traditional stereo options.

 

If you want something far more discrete, but still sounds good and has modern connections then you look for products like the Mu-So. If you just want maximum sound quality for your money, then chances are that you would prefer a separates system.

 

I did not find anything lacking in the sound quality, other than the fact that it was a single unit and so no stereo separation that comes from separates. But all said and done it's a Naim so performance is given.

 

I would certainly consider it a serious upgrade over my Sonos Play 5, however I did not consider it seriously only because I will be auditioning the Devialet Phantom Silver Duo soon and considering the price to performance ratio (based on reviews) the Devialet looks to have the upper hand.

[Ajani]

I did not find anything lacking in the sound quality, other than the fact that it was a single unit and so no stereo separation that comes from separates. But all said and done it's a Naim so performance is given.

 

I would certainly consider it a serious upgrade over my Sonos Play 5, however I did not consider it seriously only because I will be auditioning the Devialet Phantom Silver Duo soon and considering the price to performance ratio (based on reviews) the Devialet looks to have the upper hand.

 

Yep. The only real sound quality problem that products like the Mu-So may not be able to overcome is getting the kind of stereo separation of two distinct speakers (how much of an issue that is really depends on the individual).

 

The Silver Phantom Duo should be a real step up, but it's also triple the price of the Mu-So. So it's really getting into more hardcore audiophile prices.

[hifitubes]

Streaming may the future, but it is yet another way the artist gets screwed, and the consumer ends up not owning any media.

 

Have a computer, just use AirServer or one of its ilk to have friends stream into your hifi.

[The Computer Audiophile]

Streaming may the future, but it is yet another way the artist gets screwed, and the consumer ends up not owning any media.

 

Have a computer, just use AirServer or one of its ilk to have friends stream into your hifi.

Please don't get me started on streaming. It's not streaming that's screwing artists, it's record labels. Sign a contract and you sign your rights away. Act as your own label, write your own songs, you'll make great money from streaming provided you release songs people like. Same as it ever was.

[PeterC]

Chris - Is the sound quality better or worse than Peachtree one, that you gave a rave review to? Your comments about sound quality, as opposed to aesthetics, seem rather tepid.

[zenpmd]

This is a terrible con of a product the drivers are too small and the sound terrible no better than Sonus from my listening

[The Computer Audiophile]

This is a terrible con of a product the drivers are too small and the sound terrible no better than Sonus from my listening

Too small for what?

[Popspin]

I own a Mu-so. I can't quite understand why all the critical comments are being made about this unit,especially by those who haven't heard it. After all, it is intended as a single piece design, not separates. While it isn't inexpensive I find it worth the extra dollars over the less expensive competing products I have owned. I use Airplay to listen to uncompressed CD's i have in iTunes and Tidal.

This item is not meant to be the final word in audio; it is meant to be a convenient package using more modern streaming technologies to provide above average results instead of using separates. It accomplishes this goal admirably. There is no way a serious audiophile would mistake this for a truly high end system but they will be surprised and pleased with this as a second or third system used to provide better than decent results, in a room where installing a larger system does not make sense or please the wife!

I have placed some Stillpoint SS Mini's under mine and it sounds significantly better than before. It is being used for background music in my vacation home living/dining room. I am extremely pleased with it successfully fulfilling this purpose.

Since I have a Devialet 200 in my office at my primary residence I did look closely at the Phantom. It wasn't the dollars that drove this decision. The Phantom is more of a louder rock out speaker, not such a refined sounding piece. Perhaps a future version of that will end up in place of the Mu-so someday.

popspin

[ipeverywhere]

I picked up one of these yesterday after finding out about it from the 2015 awards thread (thanks!). Felt like I should throw out my impressions of it since this thread has such mixed feelings about the device.

 

First, it's important to understand my intended use of the thing and my journey of finally deciding on the Muso. I had been wanting to replace the system in my home office for a while now. For many years I had a small headphone DAC/Amp hooked up via USB to the Mac on the source side and some "PC" sat/sub system on the other. I had looked at various things to replace this set-up. My requirement is that I needed a "bookshelf" sized system. I did not want to locate a sub. I did not want or need a bunch of traditional preamp features with a bunch of inputs. I'm about 85% listening to Spotify, Beats 1 Radio, or stuff my EDM DJ friends send me while I'm in my office. I do have my entire CD collection ripped and available on the NAS and that is played the other 15% of the time. My "reference" system is Vandersteen 3a sigs and 2x V2W subs in an acoustically treated room. I've got my listening room and I wan't trying to build a second one. I just wanted respectable sound in a package that would fit in my office and not be too silly complicated to set-up. In walks the Muso to my life...

 

For clarification the Muso is a box that measures 24" wide, 10" deep, and stands 5" tall. It weighs a decently hefty 28 pounds, is encased in aluminum, has swappable colored cloth grills on the front, sits on an acrylic looking attached base which lights up the "naim" logo at configurable light intensities. Input sources include USB drive/iPods, analog, optical, and various forms of network streaming. It has built-in WiFi or hardwire ethernet. So far so good. This meets my requirements really well and the dimensions are actually pretty perfect for what I want in my office.

 

My first listen was in front of the Muso naim display, in the middle of the audio store, streaming Apple lossless over BT from my iPad and sitting about 6 feet away. This was a store with dedicated listening rooms but they set their Muso display front and center of the store. Everyone in the store got to hear my eclectic mix of music. Not ideal but neither is my office environment.

 

Very first impressions were a bit better than so-so. It goes much louder than I expected but stays very clean. It's a fairly neutral sound with maybe just a bit too much low-end while loudness is set to on (more on this later). That's the first setting I changed to off. The highs are a little bit lacking but what is reproduced is clear and decently placed. Listening in the store with loudness off I found everything that I threw at it was being reproduced in a very pleasing way with nothing feeling bloated or out of place. No real WOW factor here. Just clean music. My only complaint is that the midrange and vocals are a bit subdued for my liking. At no time, even with some female vocals that other systems struggle with, did this system "miss". It was spot on to the recording and reproduced everything that was there. I just like to have those vocals more forward than what the Muso was doing (maybe that's the "naim sound"? I don't know naim). Bass response was good, deep, and rolled off well before the dreaded bloat of a small system trying to do too much ever occurred. I was even impressed with how it handled the electronic music I sent it. My biggest surprise was that there _is_ actually some stereo separation and even a little bit of height and depth. You've really got to know your recording and be listening for it but it's there.

 

After about 45 minutes my conclusion was that I could easily do better with separates if I was willing to give-up a lot of low-end or add a sub (which I didn't want to deal with). I could even spend a little less money than the asking price of the Muso by doing separates. Then the store offered me "black Friday pricing". That made it worth taking it home and giving it listen in its real environment.

 

Here is where things get more interesting.

 

I pulled down my old speakers and dropped the Muso in their place (about 7-8 feet on top of a bookcase). Now the highs were really lacking and it just wasn't nearly as good as sitting in front of it at the store. Time to rearrange the office. My office has bookcases on one side, desk in the middle, and a built-in cabinet on the other side that my printer sits on. I needed to find a place to get the Muso down to ear level. Time to move the printer. Then the WOW finally showed up. It is better than it ever sounded in the store. Final set-up is on a cabinet counter about 3 feet high and angled towards the center of the room where my desk is. Let's pause for a minute and talk about the 2 settings that affect how the Muso sounds.

 

There is a room position setting in the app which lets you set "more than 25cm" or "less than 25cm" from the back wall. This setting significantly affects the highs and partially the way the Muso is presenting the soundstage. The other setting that affects the sound is "Loudness" which is supposed to increase the bass at lower volumes and then roll off that increase at higher volumes. I found that Loudness does a bit more than that and is, contrary to the documentation, affecting the highs ever so slightly. Now, there seems to be some magic that can occur by playing with the various combinations of these two settings. At the store I left the back wall setting alone but turned off Loudness and all my in-store impressions are based on that.

 

OK, Muso at ear level about 11 feet away in the corner and angled towards my head in the center of the room. The highs are now back and significantly better than what I heard in the store. This required setting the room position to "more than 25cm" even though it is not. If this is set to less than 25cm the highs roll-off really really quickly. Almost as if someone keeps grabbing the cymbals after they are hit. Also, leaving this at "more than 25cm" raises the sound stage a bit. I've also turned on Loudness as this new position isn't bloating the lows so increasing the lows no longer has a negative effect on the balance of everything and really does help balance the sound at lower volume.

 

With the new location and settings my impression of this system has changed a bit and for the better. It's now much better balanced and, while the highs are still not as good as I could get from a true bookshelf system, they are better. The highs are significantly better than any other all-in-ones I've heard. Just not as good as what this community is probably used to from "reference" equipment. I don't feel like I'm missing anything from the music other than space. The lows are powerful and room filling. Tight and balanced with the rest of the system. They are much much better than I could get from any bookshelf system I've ever listened to (without a sub). Naim really worked some magic here. The little bit of stereo separation that was there while sitting directly in front of it is gone now. This was completely expected. I'm not entirely sure I'd get much better with separates in my environment anyway. The slight depth and height of the music is still there though and this location has even opened up those vocals a bit and brought them forward which lessens my complaint from how I heard it in the store.

 

Listening conclusion: Well balanced system needing only a bit more impact and volume on the highs. Mostly accurate to the recording (except for that complaint about the highs). No real stereo separation unless you're right in front of it and then only slightly. Wonderful depth to the music for such a small chassis. Wonderful liveliness and detail in every genre I throw at it. A really excellent system for my home office.

 

Is it the ultimate in small room sound reproduction? No, absolutely not but so far I'm keeping it as it's pretty perfectly fitting into the environment I bought it for. The convenience of being able to send my music to it, without having to attach an Apple TV or Chromecast or some other dangly bit, is it's best quality. The streaming works great and sounds great right out of the box. It's well balanced to my ear which makes it pleasing to leave on for the, sometimes, 12+ hours I spend in my office a day. I've not found a genre that causes the Muso problems and that satisfies my eclectic playlists. It looks great as well which is generally something I never consider so bonus there. If the features and form factor are intriguing to you then go get yourself a listen. If you've got room for separates and already have a streaming solution then you could do better with those separates. If you want to pull something out of the box, set it down, and get into the music this is a really good set-up.

 

If you do go have a listen I think its important to make sure you have access to the naim app. The two settings I mentioned do make a difference and they make a difference in a way that will be a listener preference so the store isn't going to set these right for everyone. Additionally, take it home and move it around. Placement makes a difference. That isn't surprising but maybe more important here because of how poorly the stores have this set-up for listening. Also placement plus swapping around the two settings requires a bit of trial and error unique to the Muso.

 

Well, if you got this far thanks for reading and thanks to CA for including it in the awards this year. I'm finally working and listening happy again.

[ipeverywhere]

Since thin is CA I should add a few notes or concerns:

 

It will only stream 48kHz over WiFi so if you intend to use UPnP it needs to be hardwired to achieve the 24/192.

 

This cannot be used as a DAC. The USB is expecting an iPod or a disk with folders and music on it. It does support a wide range of file formats up to 24/192.

 

I don't have a tidal account but am impressed with its Spotify streaming so far. It's extracting as much as possible from that 320kbit stream. Even the radio station streams sound very well decoded. There is obviously a lot of processing going on but without anything sound "digital".

 

WiFi is limited to b/g as others have commented. The WiFi reception seems OK. Could be better for having so much chassis though. Even with a "marginal" rating in the software I didn't have dropouts or issues though. Ethernet is limited to 10 or 100 mbit/sec according to the documentation. That just seems cheap to me. I'll plug it into a switch and verify but there is no reason to be releasing gear without gigabit transceivers. There is no mention if it support full-duplex either which is important on a streamer.