Jordan O'BrienNaim Audio is launching a brand new all-in-one audio system range designed for high-end installations, dubbed Uniti.
The range comprises of the Uniti Core central audio server and Uniti Atom, Uniti Star and Uniti Nova music players.
Steve Sells, Naim Audio electronic design director says: “The new Uniti range is the result of years of development, designing and building these systems from the ground up. From the user-interface and apps, to the interior electronics through to the premium materials used, we have meticulously designed the Uniti range to deliver the ultimate audio performance for a one-stop wireless solution.”
Taking design and technology elements from Naim’s Mu-so wireless speaker system range and flagship Statement amplifier – their rotary control interface is at the centre of the Uniti range – these new players are designed to be simple, plug and play hi-fi systems that allow everyone to enjoy high-fidelity sound. Naim says that the system itself should be easy to set-up (just add a choice of speakers) with an intuitive user-interface and automatic online updates.
It has been engineered to connect to a home Wi-Fi network, so that the listener can enjoy a world of music from any source. Wirelessly stream downloaded music in high-resolution from a PC, Mac, NAS drive or a Uniti Core via UPnP (Universal Plug ’n’ Play) or browse and play millions of songs through popular streaming services Spotify Connect and TIDAL.
Support for Apple AirPlay allows streaming of music from Apple devices such as iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch and Mac via iTunes, similarly Google Cast for Audio plays music directly from compatible devices and control App. Internet Radio provides access to thousands of radio stations while the Uniti Nova and Uniti Star have the added option of DAB radio.
The players also support Bluetooth aptX for high-quality and stable wireless streaming from compatible devices such as a smartphone or tablet. The Uniti Star features a CD player (for playback and ripping to a connected storage device) with all the players featuring USB slots for playback of music from MP3 players and USB sticks.
To satisfy those wanting a multi-room audio system, the Uniti range allows users to play music between any combination of Uniti players and Mu-so systems via one new look dedicated Naim App for iOS and Android.
At the heart of the new range is the Uniti Core. This network-storage device allows for ripping of CDs, track-level cataloguing for detailed search, storage and wireless distribution of a music collection. Users can slot in a hard drive or solid-state hard drive too. Maximum capacity is 8TB – enough to hold up to 16,000 CD quality albums.
The Uniti range features Class A/B amplification. Naim says that it chose this because it believes it to be superior to its digital counterpart, with analogue Class A/B able to drive a wider range of speakers while being more efficient, creating less electrical noise, resulting in a cleaner audio signal and pure fidelity. The Uniti Atom’s integrated amp drives 40W per channel while the Uniti Star commands 70W and the Uniti Nova 80W per channel.
Both the Uniti Atom and Uniti Star models boast a powerful 40-bit SHARC digital signal processor that removes ‘jitter’ timing errors while all Uniti players harbour premium Burr Brown DACs (Digital Audio Converters) and digital filter technology based on components from the company’s Statement amplifier. Naim says the result is a smoother and more precise sonic performance.
All Uniti enclosures are designed using specialist grade materials and precision engineering. Constructed from thermal conductive aluminium that, coupled with the Statement and Mu-so-referenced heat sinks, removes heat for the circuitry to work fast and efficiently. The 5mm thick, brushed aluminium top plate is scratch and dent resistant while also protecting the interior electronics from magnetic influences and unwanted internal and external vibrations that can affect the sound.
The Uniti range can also be a home entertainment hub, boasting digital HDMI inputs for connecting digital sources such as TVs, set-top boxes and games consoles.
The Naim Uniti Core will be available in December 2016, priced £1,650 (inc. VAT). The Naim Uniti Atom will be available in November 2016, priced £1,600 (inc. VAT). The Naim Uniti Star will be available in February 2017, priced £2,999 (inc. VAT) / £3,150 (inc. VAT) with DAB. The Naim Uniti Nova will be available in February 2017, priced £3,800 (inc. VAT) / £3,995 (inc. VAT) with DAB.