As Neil stated such products probably did not pass their extensive trials one way or another. He mentioned either a sonic reasons or H&S ( I am guessing here Health and safety? ) reasons.
I am not completley buying it but here we are.
H&S is health and safety and there are stringent requirements for solder, flux and ventillation in the UK, otherwise they would not be legal in the work place with human operatives.
Sonic reasons, possible, but it doesn’t sound right as these materials are only used for extraction. It’s cleared and cleaned and retinned (of course) and soldered using the target solder. I am not sure Neil or anyone has said this specifically has been evaluated as a servicing tool, just that tools used are assessed.
So the reasons given just don’t quite add up to me, but anyway it’s irrelevant as I said it’s Naim’s choice… but I would not be satisfied if that was given a reason to me if I needed my Naim products servicing.
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For anyone interested in low melt solder, which would seem to be a solution here…
Google Louis Rossman Low Melt Solder Vs 500C Hot air
That video shows the difference between hot air component extraction (similar to just using a soldering iron to melt and remove existing solder - board area can get overly hot, causing track damage) versus liberal flux application combined with low melt solder - with no board or component damage.
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Better than The Groove I assume.
Got the Radikal a few years ago to replace Lingo 1. Wondered then if I should have gone for a Linn solution for phono duties but had not long had my Linn Linto serviced at Class A.
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I thought it fairly clear what this statement meant, “unsustainable” has been mentioned at least 3 times.
I’m not sure some people realise how companies like Naim are likely structured. On the forum we’re not directly engaging with those who can make decisions, they are communicating the agreed policy on this specific issue. I would expect a Product Manager to have a policy position that has been had input and agreement from manufacturing/servicing/design/etc and is signed off by Senior Mgmt.
Does an individual product decision reflect an overall servicing strategy? Possibly, but not necessarily.
Naim, like many other similar companies, are working through how product lifetime expectations are managed given they are now not in full control of the production/maintenance process. Witness issues with streamer providers, outside suppliers, etc.
My opinion is that servicing is clearly a part of the Naim proposition for legacy customers (still impt and valuable). How is that managed against the complexity of modern delivery (as above) and when the exceptions of new customers may be different?
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I assume that a Urika has to be used with a Radikal?
Not very clued up on the Linn phono, apologies.
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Yes. It is powered by the Radikal.
DG…
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If electrolytic caps have such a limited life span why not use polypropylene caps or polystyrenes or Teflon’s?
No idea about the pros and cons of different capacitors, as i’m a mechanical engineer !
But if you’re intrested in different types of pumps, valves, pipework, fabrication techniques and differing nuclear power plant technologies, i’m your man.
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Electrolytic capacitors are used where high capacitance is required in small spaces as well as being more cost effective. Large capacitance Electrolytics are typically used for regulation / filtering such as in power supplies. Capacitance of 0.1 F or more can be provided in a relatively small space.
Polystyrene capacitors are the other end of the scale. They are used where precision stable capacitance is required, but for relatively small capacitance values. The largest polystyrene capacitance I am aware is going to be the the order of 10 to 100 nF. That is is a range roughly 1/10,000 less capacitance than you would expect for an electrolytic.
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I feel very sorry for you and understand the frustration of many people in this topic … however, when I see people talking about alternative solder types etc. please do not forget that Naim is a professional company and not some sort of hobby project … I understand the good intentions, but as mentioned, solutions should be sustainable, safe, etc.
Isn’t it about time to stop complaining and move on?
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A bit off a mess all this isn’t it.
I am not sure from reading all this if the superline is still a current product you can buy from a naim dealer or not? But whatever the answer is, stopping service on it, when you was or are still selling it is the other day isn’t great.
Plus looking at the oldest ones, and they are starting to come up to service time, if you go by what naim has said in the past, and now find out, sorry we don’t service it anymore, is again a poor show really.
Obviously a solution for all this is easily possible if you want to do it, obviously naim would rather not, and leave superline owners out to dry.
The we can repair it if it breaks is a slight welcome, but having to wait till something breaks isn’t great.
I would also say, well why have i bothered wasting my money over the years on servicing my naim gear when out the blue now i dont need too, as naim say. Just carry on till it breaks, rather than waste thousands getting it all serviced, when it probably doesn’t need it?
Strange times once again, and it makes me think what’s next.
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Im waiting for a proper statement on service policy from naim. What should be done to what and when.
Clearly the current line of black boxes every 12 to 15 years now come with a hidden caveat of " only if we can".
I want to hear why naim designed something that cant be serviced in accordance with their service recommendations. Got a feeling i coukd be waiting a while.
Btw, superline is still available to buy new from UK dealers.
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Exactly, remember some of us have or have worked in the electronics and communications industry where this sort of thing is not so unusual and obviously legal and appropriately safe where the correct operating and environmental procedures are adhered to as with all commercial and industrial environments and is why some of us are familiar with industrial tools and materials to do this. We are not talking about some back shed hobby, hence it makes the stated stance all the more curious as it sounds like it almost is. I suspect there is more to the stated resultant position than meets the eye. I won’t venture to speculate as it would be disrespectful to our hosts… but I sit the other side of the fence too with my customers.
But it appears Naim have some frustrated customers, and remember when it comes to electronics manufacturer and servicing industry in the UK, Naim is but a small player focussing on consumer electronics.
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True – but Naim’s brand, backed by its legendary servicing commitments, needs to be protected by them, not whittled away on a piecemeal basis by a drawbridge announcement, without accompanying FAQ’s, as that’s just a recipe for running the hares, as this thread (and others) evidence.
In this life, it’s all about maintaining brand and managing the expectations of customers (actual and potential). It’s all about the comm’s IMHO.
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Unfortunately communication has long been one of their achilles heels.
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I’ve read this thread with interest and am of the opinion that it is the power supply service that has by far the biggest impact on maintaining performance. After investigating the possibility of getting my NDS serviced a year or so ago I concluded based on the info I was getting back that servicing source components was not a significant concern and one small manufacturer who is well experienced with Naim equipment has even suggested that servicing a pre-amp (mine in particular) is a waste of money. Now whether I agree with that is irrelevant. What I feel is that if my PSUs can be continue to be serviced then I will continue to be happy. As a community we should be supporting Naim and their service department, not bashing them. If I were a Superline owner I would not be stressing about this one bit. Most of us are dealing with much worse in our lives compared to this.
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Yep, same feeling here, and a bit confuse now about “recap” and all “service maintenance” activities concept from naim.
As other brand (AFAIK) are not offering such service and assuming sound quality is also key for those brand, i’m even more confused
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Are these other brands recommending equipment should be left powered up 24/7.
Electrolytic capacitors powdered up 4 hours a day will last longer than one powered up 24/7.
People with a Superline do have an option, if they wish to extend it’s useful life. 
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Good point 
and clearly not for most of them…some offering stand-by mode or similar feature