Thanks. Anybody down South?
I would be very wary of anyone offering SBL āupgradesā - itās easy to lose what you already love in the speakers. I would stick with keeping them standard and just replacing anything thatās tired or broken, like for like. Gasket kits are still available from some dealers. I donāt know whether Naim still offer selected and matched tweeters (their stock may be exhausted by now), but you can at least still get the tweeters elsewhere, albeit not selected or matched to Naimās exact standards. The mid/bass units should be pretty bullet proof provided they arenāt damaged in any way. Darran at Class A may well be able to service the crossovers, but do ask whether itās really needed.
Could I ask why you have only used your super system for 10 hours so far this year? Is it because you donāt like how it sounds or because you simply donāt have the time? It would be a shame to spend Ā£2,000 on new speakers only for them to sit as idle as your SBLs.
Iām on a similar quest. All the Ā£5,000 candidates Iāve listened to as potential replacements for my SBLs have been good but in no way Ā£5,000 better than the SBLs and several did not get close. The SBLs, I feel, capitalise on and enhance the strengths of Naimās electronics which I suppose is not surprising.
The original crossovers were always a weak point but especially so once they get old. My personal theory is that a degree of the difference in performance people report between the SBL and SL2 is down to differences in the crossovers.
Replacement crossovers, with polycaps and air cored inductors bring the SBLs back to life, allowing them to produce a more āorganicā performance, everything just sounds more human and less electronic. Separation improves as does the detail in the bass. Voices sound more human and more present. Anyone with a good knowledge of electronics could build new crossovers.
I also agree that if such a good system is not pulling you to make good use of it something may be amiss.
I am away a lot and when I am not I am busy.
I used SBLs for years and they are fantastic speakers. I suspect that many who dismiss them as old and therefore easily bettered have either never heard them, or have never heard them set up properly. I now have SL2s; I think they are better but not everyone agrees. Both the ATCs and the 600s need space and will consume a lot more of your room than either SBLs or SL2s. The trouble with buying used speakers is that itās hard to try them to make sure they work in your room. You can be pretty confident with SL2s but not with the others.
I suppose the question is that given you canāt listen much because you are so busy, whether the existing speakers meet your needs, and if not then what exactly improvement you are looking for.
Hi
First of all, I would like to give maximum credit to this forum. The name community is the correct one. Just thought, that my topic is an old one, butā¦ oops, there is a thread on this.
Hope it is fine, when I hijack. My question is very similar.
I have an all olive System recently updated and serviced. 52/SC/135s to SBL MK1.
Have my SBL since around 1990 and never thought changing it - because it is an Sbl. To bad that I missed the update opportunity to mk2 during a longer non listing to music pause.
I was now offered a SL2 - they do not come often these days. I am tempted, but do not know the difference happening. My room is complicated (plasterboard and under the roof plus quite big). Update in amplification brought bass back - maybe the dac did most of it. Do not want to loose it. Think that plasterboard is critical for both Sbl and sl2.
Does sl2 do more bass in general?
Does it work fine with all olive - think it was developed during early black area.
In the room I need a speaker near the wall but there is no real wall. Some kind of dilemma :o)
SL2 is one of the few near wall speaker.
Another option could be going for a late mk2 Sbl with fresh setup and sealing.
Any thoughts on that?
Thanks a lot. Great forum here, by the way
The SL2 cabinet is a thing of beauty but works in a very similar way to the SBL acoustically. The SL2 aesthetic has not dated while the SBLs look very twentieth century. The tweeter on the SL2 is better isolated from bass vibrations as long as it is properly set up. And as I said above the crossover uses a slightly different design and better components. But the SL2 commands quite a premium second hand compared to the SBL. Whether that premium can be justified as a sound quality upgrade is a personal decision.
I currently do have a mk1 Sbl which sounds perfect, but may have altered slowly.
The sound characteristics being similar is good one.
By the wayā¦ do like the aesthetics of Sbl very much and do think it is outdated. There might be some warm memories in it pushing this 
I have always thought the SBL a thing of beauty, far more elegant than the SL2. As with most things, itās a matter of taste. Although the SL2 can be a challenge to set up, particularly the alignment of the tweeter, the SBL also has its challenges. I recall Doug Graham saying that one of the reasons for the introduction of the SL2 was that dealers didnāt like the silicone seal on the SBL, but when assembled and set up properly, it punches well above its weight.
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When I go through the system pics thread I see a lot more sbls than sl2s.
Is it because there a way more of them?
Also I do see sl2s more with black than olive. Theoretically SL2 must go very fine with all olive.
I do not understand why setup is difficult - thought it is much easier without the sealant situation.
349 SL2s left Salisbury not sure on SBLs probably in the 1000s
349 thatās itā¦ worldwide?
That explains second hand valuesā¦
Any further ideas on
- Sbl vs SL2
- setup difficulties
- or better Sbl mk2?
Thats it 349 - Iām fortunate to own a pair some say Naim lost money making the SL2s.
I had SBLs in my main system for years then upgrade to SL2s. The SBLs remain in my office system.
I think it is fair to say they share a basic similarity of being fast and clean sounding but the SL2s are superior to my ears pretty much across the board. Very natural, bass extension is better with lots of quality and a bit more quantity. Voices have greater refinement although I would never call them smooth overall. Maybe the SBLs are just a tad faster sounding if I was trying to think of one area they may be better.
One issue some have may be driving SL2s but your system should have no problem. I have only used my SL2s active incidentally.
I bought mine without a demo; trusting that if I liked SBLs I was likely to be happy and so it proved.
Bruce
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I bought my SBLs in 2007 with no demo. Used them happily until 2018 but then bought SL2s after the seller brought them here for a listening session - that was when I had a single 300 (non dr, NDS, 555ps, 52 with supercap). I found the SL2s better at low volume, more scale, better reproduction drums in particular (or at least thatās what I spotted).
Have has the SBLs in the loft study for two years but just sold them to use instead nSats on wall brackets - itās not a big room and itās a suspended floor so not the best environment for the SBLs arenāt the best fit, though SBLs sound nicer than the nSats
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Okā¦ sounds promisingā¦ have to look for the price. Might be tough, as they are rare.
Otherwise I will look for Sbl mk2 later SN. This one is more expensive too, but ok as the dealer offers very good service and I have help with sealingā¦
Its hard to find speakers doing justice to Naim. Trying to replace my well-worn mk1 SBL:s I went through three different active ATC:s, LS5/9 and home demoās of AN-K and Devore 3XL. Right now I am pretty happy using a second-hand pair of Linn 212:s driven by 52, SC, 300 and they have been excellent apart from slightly aggressive in a narrow midband. But the combination is tuneful, fun and easy when listening to music.
Lol
Donāt want to go this way. My well worn mk1 sbls should be beaten in a second.
As my ears are so much Sbl proof it will be hard to get ā¦
but the better might be fiend of the good 
ā¦ (translation of German phrase)
Hi JM,
If you want to reseal them there is some good info online with a few searches that helped me avoid the expense of a reseal kit AND do the job myself.
IF, like me, you think youāll be keeping them looooong term and want to go to the expense then Naim still have, or had, small numbers of the drive units. I had a new set fitted, which when fitted by my dealer neccesarily included the reseal kit ā¦dammit ;-).
The gains were not huge, even going from MkI to MkII drivers, but as these will be my last speakers I was happy.
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