Naim Audio Launches Their First Ever Turntable – Solstice Special Edition

If you’re a Vinyl head the British brand is releasing a one-of-a-kind turntable in limited quantity. It comes partnered with a next-generation version of the iconic Naim Aro tonearm, an Equinox MC cartridge, Solstice Series Phono Stage, Power Supply, and bespoke accessories set. Naim will create just 500 units of this Solstice Special Edition package.

“Solstice Special Edition offers an exceptional all-around experience,” said Paul Neville, Naim Audio Research & Development Director. “If you love the organic, authenticity of vinyl, now you can enjoy it with the musical purity and passion only a Naim system can deliver.”

Here’s what you can expect from the Naim Audio Solstice Special Edition.

• Naim Solstice Turntable NVS TT – combining core Naim design philosophies, such as multiple levels of mechanical decoupling, with a celebration of beautiful materials. Features a magnetic bearing supporting a high-mass, highly polished aluminum platter, with a unique, self-calibrating motor drive system, meticulously delivering the Naim sound.
• Naim Aro Tonearm – retaining the original’s design principles and excellence but boosting performance further still by using improved materials – including tungsten and carbon-fiber – and adding an all-new, no-compromise bias, arm height, and azimuth adjustments.
• Naim Equinox MC Cartridge – featuring a microline stylus shape – closer to the original cutting lathe head to enable the retrieval of accurate high-frequency information – and a boron cantilever, a stiff-but-light design that faithfully transfers the stylus movements to the moving coils.
• Naim Solstice Series Phono Stage NVC TT – the first Naim phono stage to use DR technology, first used on the flagship Statement amplifier. Sophisticated, ultra-low-noise Class A design with dedicated MC and MM head amplifiers.
• Naim Solstice Series Power Supply NPX TT – powers both the turntable and the phono stage. For the ultimate performance, these two different power supplies are completely isolated, with no risk of interference. Also uses Naim DR technology.
• Solstice Accessories Set – including Digital Stylus Gauge; Bubble Level; Hex Drivers (x3); Vinyl Adjustment Tool; Dust Protector and Cleaning Cloth
• Naim Records True Stereo album – a curated collection of superb-quality True Stereo recordings, newly remastered for vinyl by original engineer, Ken Christiansen.
• Solstice Special Edition Book – including insight into heritage, technology, and design

Design and manufacturing

The Solstice Special Edition combines a contemporary, living-friendly design with a classic Naim look. It offers incredible sound quality without the complications associated with performance turntables. Simple to set up and use, it’s all about hearing your vinyl collection as you never have before.

There are exquisite design touches throughout, such as the turntable plinth painstakingly crafted from 47 separate layers of wood, and the cartridge sitting in a solid aluminum housing machined from a single billet.

The Solstice Series NVC TT phono stage and NPX TT power supply are hand-crafted in Salisbury, while the NVS TT turntable, Aro arm, and Equinox cartridge are exactingly manufactured to Naim’s unique design by Clearaudio. Like Naim, Clearaudio has 40+ years of premium audio expertise, including numerous patents for its acclaimed turntable designs. Naim has worked closely on the Solstice Special Edition project with the German specialist for more than two years, continually listening and refining to deliver the unmistakable sound of Naim from a turntable, for the very first time. All elements have then been precision-engineered by Clearaudio for consistently excellent performance.

Available from late July, the Naim Audio Solstice Special Edition is available to pre-order now from select retailers worldwide, with a suggested selling price of £16,000 / €17,000 / $20,000 USD / $26,000 CAD.