SBL Grills

From what I understand the non-cutout versions have to be "stood off" the cabinet. If you could live with that then fine.

I afraid with my sort of OCD type thingy it would drive around the bend, knowing it wasn't "correct".

I have the Puresound grilles, and thought they made a very positive difference to how smart my SBLs look. I ran the supplied Velcro strips around the outermost edge of the cabinets, and can't see them in situ at all.

I couldn't hear any SQ difference in comparison with the (admittedly a bit old & tatty) originals. And given how much cheaper they are than the alternatives, I'm very pleased with them.

I'll attempt a picture or two:

Close up:

I got the tomtom ones as of late last year and the sbl's look just like new, with crisp edges to them.

also they have cutouts so just fit like the old ones.

paul

+1 for the Tomtom ones, I cannot tell from the originals when new and just had bite lip and forget the cost  Was quite attached to my original SBLs and they are in fine nick so was worth it.  will see if I can sort a picture in a min. 

The Tom Tom grills are really good. They made my SBLs look as good as new and worked beautifully 

Dave***t posted:

I have the Puresound grilles, and thought they made a very positive difference to how smart my SBLs look. I ran the supplied Velcro strips around the outermost edge of the cabinets, and can't see them in situ at all.

I couldn't hear any SQ difference in comparison with the (admittedly a bit old & tatty) originals. And given how much cheaper they are than the alternatives, I'm very pleased with them.

I'll attempt a picture or two:

Close up:

Thank you so much Dave. I actually think these look rather good. I don't suppose i could be a pain and ask for a photo underneath of the Velcro and how it's fitted? I anticipated a gap but yours look perfect. 

Also can one of you guys with the Tomtom ones lost a good photo of them and a close up please? I do have OCD but I also really cannot bring myself to spend nearly £200 on foam. If they were £100 then I could swallow that but £180 is so much. If they look amazing on the photos I may be tempted lol

Picture of my Tomtom grills...

To me it looks like the density of the foam is much closer to the original with the Tomtom but I have not seen alternatives up close.  I also know the tweeter box is leaning, these are not set up yet

I bought mine from a guy on eBay, they have the proper cutouts on the rear and fit the SBLs perfectly. It wasn't the best of experiences on a personal level, the guy was rather harsh and slightly impolite for still unknown reasons, but his work is really ok. They cost around £50.

I think he can be reached with a little research. He has the same name of a former European currency.. And it's not Lira, nor Frank.

M

Fozz posted:

Picture of my Tomtom grills...

Thanks Fozz. Those do look very nice I will say. The top runs parrallel to the cabinet too I notice, opposed to the pure sound ones being cut at 90 degrees. Still, £120 more I'm not sure it's worth it.....

The other option is the other eBay ones that feature a cut out. I'll see if I can track the guy down. Thanks fellas

Yeah, I'm with you Lewis. £180 is extortionate. Mine are looking tired and seem to 'suck' in, but they still look ok and more to the point, since the rebuild a couple of weeks ago, sound great. After all it is about the 'music'!

Lewis posted:

The other option is the other eBay ones that feature a cut out. I'll see if I can track the guy down. Thanks fellas

I hope I'm not breaking any forum rules: Lewis, another forum member who's a friend of mine has contacted the guy. If you leave me a post on the wall I'll make the junction.

Max

Massimo Bertola posted:

Lewis posted:

The other option is the other eBay ones that feature a cut out. I'll see if I can track the guy down. Thanks fellas

I hope I'm not breaking any forum rules: Lewis, another forum member who's a friend of mine has contacted the guy. If you leave me a post on the wall I'll make the junction.

Max

Thanks Max I really appreciate that

Something to bear in mind with the ones I saw on eBay (no idea if they're the same as those in question, but something to check in case they are) is that the elevation is provided by sticking extra smaller pieces of foam to the back of a flat piece of foam.

Which means there's a line running around the edge of the finished product where the surfaces were glued which is slightly visible. May not be an issue to many people, but I didn't fancy them as a result.

Dave, I read that as they stick out more.

Chris

Don't know if they do or not tbh.

If they use the same thickness of foam as others, then I suppose they would. But presumably all manner of thicknesses and types of foam are available, so maybe they don't.

I just remember noticing the line around the edge and thinking I'd forever be noticing it. Being bothered about pointless tiny differences kind of goes with the territory

They may not even be the same ones that Max referred to, just something to check if going the eBay route.

Are you guys referring to the line where the back is stuck to the front?  This is the other type of eBay grills not the puresound ones, as they are all one piece?

Yeah, the eBay ones (or at least *an* eBay one that I saw a while back, they might not be the same).

The Tom Tom & Puresound are both one piece.

I'm enjoying my SBLs with these wonderful Invisibigrills™

It's not easy to see their finer points but i'm assured they are designed to produce more transparency.

If anyone would like a set, mail me 50 quid and i'll email you the download code 

Debs

But FOC Debs, Naim say at the bottom of their SBL assembly instruction sheet: "The SBL is designed to be used with its foam grilles in place, both frequency and phase response will be adversely affected when used without them."

Chris

Christopher_M posted:

But FOC Debs, Naim say at the bottom of their SBL assembly instruction sheet: "The SBL is designed to be used with its foam grilles in place, both frequency and phase response will be adversely affected when used without them."Chris

Yeah, i've been laughing at that for donkeys years, wot it should say is: The SBL is designed to be used with its foam grilles in place, both frequency and phase response will sound minutely affected when used without them if you have the hearing of a long eared fruit bat."

The acoustic differences of one room to another will affect the sound thousands of times more than the grilles, so why worry so much about them?

SBL grilles do come in handy if you have children in the room who like pressing tweeter buttons, and i often use my Puresound grilles for aesthetic purposes and dust control, although it has to be said they are just like the original SBL grilles in that they don't exhibit any noticeable improvement in sound quality.

I can also see how easy psycological reasons would dictate peoples choice in using grilles if they sit in front of the speakers with not much else to gawp at : ) 

Debs

naim_nymph posted:

 

Off topic - what finish is that Debs ? They look rather striking. 

james n posted:

Off topic - what finish is that Debs ? They look rather striking. 

Dark Oak veneer, from 1991 : )

Nice - they look great. 

Sorry back on topic 

I wish I'd never sold mine, dammit.

I do like to see pictures of well cared for SBLs; with or without grilles they just look so 'right'. I find them so aesthetically pleasing. I know they were a devil to set up, but they produced a realistic and refined sound. And with such a small footprint, and needing to be close to the rear wall, they didn't invade into the living space.

One of Naim Audio's classic products IMHO - along with the NAP250 (which I never owned), the NAT01, Nait 1 & 2, and of course the venerable Aro.

Sorry about the deviation...you can now get back on topic.