The Tom Tom Story
My inspiration is the Flat Earth Audio scene of the 1970s and 1980s, and my model is the way in which Naim Audio was sold back then, by true enthusiasts for enthusiasts. Back in the day, before the web connected us all and we thought up daft names to use on internet forums, the one place you knew you could hang out and listen to good music was with your Naim Audio dealer.
Saturday became the sacred day, that day of the week when you worshipped at the shrine of Flat Earth Audio, offering up your black discs like gifts to the musical Gods at the turntable altar (in those days, more often than not, a Mana Table). Not only was the welcome always warm and friendly, but the staff were knowledgeable audio enthusiasts who just loved to talk about music and Hi–Fi. There was that feeling of belonging, that we’d all discovered something really rather special and unique.
birthday in 2013
And then there were the stories of making the pilgrimage to Salisbury to visit the Mecca that was the small shop at number 11 Salt Lane. Or the new factory on Southampton Road to see skilled artisans building not only the finest audio equipment in the land, but arguably the best that can be bought anywhere.
When it came to making that next upgrade, everything was just so simple. The dealer would gladly take your existing piece of kit and give you a damn good price for it to boot. Then you had a great choice of new or used kit from all that gear that they had taken in part exchange to help some other happy soul move further up the Naim Audio ladder to audio nirvana. And once you’d decided what that next upgrade was going to be they’d come and install it as well, enjoy some records with you and make sure you were absolutely delighted.
It was simple and it worked, and just like the music itself it had an easy flow to it. Everyone was happy.
So all I really did was remember how it used to be done and banked on the fact that there would be enough people out there who remembered it as well, or if they were new to all this, agree that it’s actually a pretty good way of getting things done. Naim Audio is still there at the Southampton Road factory, and although it’s bigger now, they are still making the finest hand–made British Hi–Fi. Kit that makes your chest swell with pride and your foot tap along when you play music on it.
And here I am today, hanging out with fellow Naim Audio enthusiasts, listening to a lot of music and chatting about Naim Audio systems new and old. I sell a great deal of new Naim Audio equipment, and take lots of lovely pre–loved Naim Audio equipment in part exchange, safe in the knowledge that there are plenty of good homes for it to go to. So now some other lucky soul can carry on upgrading their ‘chrome bumper’, ‘olive‘ or current Naim Audio system, happily continuing their own Naim–story, and once again it all feels rather special and totally unique.
We eat, sleep and breathe Naim Audio. Cut us in two and you’ll see we bleed green blood. We are Naim experts with an intimate knowledge of Naim components from the last 40 years. As such we are in a unique position to help you, whatever your Naim query may be. There is as much art as there is science to setting up a Naim system. At Tom Tom Audio, we know exactly how it should sound and how to extract the ultimate in performance. If you want genuine upgrade advice or just a chat about the best Hi–Fi in the world, you’ve just found some new best friends.
‘Purveyors of iconic British Hi-Fi’ | tel: 01727 810047 | email: tunes@tomtomaudio.co.uk
All images © 2020 Tom Tom Audio
