I used the Linn Sara until they began to behave, then ES11 for many years until the cone fell out of the left speaker and no spare parts. And now the SBL:s that replaced them is getting increasingly wobbly despite new gasket kits and all. NEAT is a great choice.
I have found the Naims can go a bit stale. I always blaim Naim. Maybe it is the quiet humming of the transformers that puts me in some mode. One really good thing I did was get back the 52 in the system. I have tried sometimes getting the 252 back out again but no, it doesnt work.
The other thing that brought some life back was replacing hi-lines with the good old lavenders.
You talked about valves. Stick to a valve preamp if you want to try that. Valve power amps dont mix well with typical naim system speakers. I have tried the EAR 868L preamp in a Naim system (300) with very good result, clean, fast and open.
One thing I’ve always wondered if the CB NAXO I got ex-demo or secondhand (the dealer just had one) was set up for SBLs (I always assumed so) or for something else like a Sara.
When I replaced my Epos ES14s with the SBLs I lost a considerable amount of bass - loved and still have the ES14s despite colourations.
Interesting about the 52. After I got a 282 I briefly swapped the 72 back and preferred it, just so much smoother - it needs servicing. The 72/250/HiCap was a real sweet spot, especially with the Epos speakers.
No hi-lines or superluminas. I borrowed a hi-line when I last tried an NDX 2 as it wasn’t bowling me over compared to the Nova being used as a source. Initially I thought it was great but ultimately stuck with the stock cables.
Have been considering a phono stage upgrade for my LP12 - have always found the Linn Linto rather bright for some reason, wondering about a Urika or Uphorik, but was looking at some EAR options teh other day.
I often think our minds are our best friend and worse enemy. Sometimes my systems completing memorise me and I’m fully engaged in the music. Other times my mood is off, and it’s just meh…
My system sounds rubbish now but was before lockdown. I hardly listen to it now and nearly threw the remote at it recently through frustration. Really harsh, Uniti2 /ATC 11 , the unitiserve is playing up as well , so disappointing.
This is quite often the case when an interest becomes OCD. Time to take a good walk or holiday. If after a while it still isn’t delivering the magic - move it on.
Same hear. I planned to decorate the kitchen, paint the outside of the house, fix a broken window frame. All I have done is buy more things, drink more beer and wine and done very little.
Well, it cetainly sounded a lot better last night after a moderate tidy up, that’s without touching any of the boxes/interconnects or even dusting components (dusting always makes things sound better for some reason).
I managed to move the SBLs a little closer to the wall, not sure if it helped or not. Not recommended I know but they had been toed in a little long term until the other day when I decided to make them more parallel to the rear wall - may have caused a change for the worse.
Disconnected an extension lead I’d added to power a few things temporarily but had stayed for months - this has a surge protection filter.
Also checked where my two Powerlines were.
One on the Nova - it really does make a difference vs the Lite.
The other was on one of the NAP 250s so I swapped this onto the WireWorld Matrix 2 6-way adapter which powers the HiCaps and Linn kit. I think I’d been swapping the Powerline leads around some months before seeing where they subjectively worked best, but had opted not to put it one on the strip because it’s free standing rather than wall mounted and I felt the decoupling of the plug would be less effective going vertically into the strip. I should perhaps try it on the NAPSC again at some stage.
In fairness I got a lot done in the garden when I had a week off late May, but the rest of the time working from home has meant I’m simply too tired to tackle things in the evenings and just want to chill out with a glass or two when I’m not working.
Being a procrastinator doesn’t help.
Just dropped the family in town, a few hours to myself - about to assemble some Ikea shelving that’s probably been in its box in a corner in the hallway for over a year!
We all feel like this every now and again, my advice is to switch the system off, go and do something completely different and come back when you are in a more engaging mood.
Is summer, the sun is shinning and there is plenty more things in life to enjoy.
I haven’t been happy with it for some months and have been looking at replacing it. I don’t know if the Uniti needs servicing but something has to change.
In fairness being at home all day, working and being a parent 24/7 and a teacher for 6hrs a day is tiring. You don’t get much me time any more. At least now we can go out more. I have a lot more respect for teachers now as getting little minds to focus is not easy. But then it’s there primary job and we are juggling three. We also got some gardening done as we have spent so much more time outside in it due the good weather we have been fortunate to have for most of lockdown. Summer seems to have vanished for now though.
I would agree with few suggestions here. Take a 3 to 4 weeks holiday without any access to the hifi system. When you come back the system will sound golden irrespective of mood or emotional condition. Trust me.
I dont know , about you lads, but my pref Audiophile Season is Fall. When the weather changes and goes more “ Mehh” i turm to Home pleasures, namely Audio.
Classic Naim system and should be sounding great. This all ends up more frustrating because you are never sure what the problem is.
Think this is why I end up taking it a part and putting it together again, but as some posts suggests just turning it off for a while might let it all " drain down" and stablise properly when you switch on again.
I’m with you 100% on that one.
September has always been a month when great albums are released.
October is when red wine tastes more delicious - maybe from the reduced pollen count.
And that smell of damp leaves warmed up from the odd hot sunny day that has the most beautiful light.
All adds up to stir the soul ready for music.
My best time to listen to music is during summer holidays: sun, less noise outside, open windows, and good mood.
I listen much more to lps during that period too.
