Super Lumina guidance

I haven't tried the interconnects but my dealer loaned me a set of SL speaker cables before Christmas. I couldn't great on with them at all. I too found them cold, hard and almost 'aggressive' in my system. I prefer my less expensive TQ cables. 

The feedback has been variable. Some reports of great performance out of the box, many more IIRC to do with burning in. I thought the SL DIN to DIN sounded rather awful out of the box. Mine were not run in. They sounded so bad that it seemed obvious that burn is was required, because nobody would successfully sell significant quantities anything that bad - even to a gagging fan base. They came good in the end. Still took many hours though. About three months of light listening. The speaker cables sounded even worse. I was on the brink of sending them back more than once. All it took was time. The DIN-XLR came last and my teeth were pre clenched. They sounded great from the off. 

Thanks and yes aggressive, another good adjective 

The DIN to XLR is stunning.  

Hi, I was considering the DIN to XLR as a first step up grade between my 102 and 250DR. Harry do you think this would be a worthwhile upgrade? Is the level of improvement on par with the DR upgrades? I have been so happy the DR upgrads on my 250 and HiCap. Thanks Best wishes Amer

Partcloudy- The Urika to 252  is an IC that can greatly influence your enjoyment; I found the Linn Silvers to be a bit bland. Many have had outstanding results with  RCA/Din Chord Sarum STA, Super Sarum and Chord Music in this application. I have tried each of these cables and can say that they all simply trounce the Linn Silvers, straight out of the box with zero burn-in. Cannot comment on the SL variant as I have not heard it in this application. I did demo the SL speaker cables and walked away preferring Naca5 ...

Ask your dealer about the Chord options...

ATB,

Mark

I found the peaks and troughs of break in with both interconnects. Now I describe them as system transforming, in a positive way. Yes leaps of faith are required but I have never been disappointed in the end with any Naim upgrade.

Amer posted:

Hi, I was considering the DIN to XLR as a first step up grade between my 102 and 250DR. Harry do you think this would be a worthwhile upgrade? Is the level of improvement on par with the DR upgrades? I have been so happy the DR upgrads on my 250 and HiCap. Thanks Best wishes Amer

Hi Amer,

i believe the SL XLR is £1600.  In your case if I were considering that level of investment I would be looking to put the money towards an improved pre-amp.  

Regards,

Lindsay

Lindsay is on to something  here.... I agree 100%

I tried a run-in phono to DIN SL in place of my Chord Super Sarum between Chord DAC & 552. It really did not work, making the music dull and losing timing. It was a relief to go back to the Chord. I also use a Chord Sarum from my LP12 (/ARO/Keel/Kandid/Ureka) & it works a treat.

Amer posted:

Hi, I was considering the DIN to XLR as a first step up grade between my 102 and 250DR. Harry do you think this would be a worthwhile upgrade? Is the level of improvement on par with the DR upgrades? I have been so happy the DR upgrads on my 250 and HiCap. Thanks Best wishes Amer

I'm not Harry, but I'll give you my two penneth regardless. You'd be far better off putting your money towards a used 282. 

Partcloudy posted:

Using Linn Silvers with a mayware, and based on users experiences, I decided to take the final plunge and upgrade to Naim Super Lumina phono to din.

The shop kindly burned them in for 100+ hrs and on getting the system home it's been something of a disappointment. Hard, cold, lost timing etc. and no goosebumps! It feels like a step back when feedback suggests this should be a superb upgrade.

has this happened to any other users on the forum? Is it a burn in problem? Tempted to go back to the Silvers and Mayware.

Help appreciated!

Last year i demo'ed Super Lumia vs Chord Super Sarum Aray - Phono to DIN between Urika and 552.

The result was an easy preference to the Chord, however i found the SL sounded 'okay' but it was just that the Chord SSA was head shoulders boot and braces better, detail more organic, better sense of realism. Both these cables are very expensive so one needs to be happy with the choice, my upgrade was from using the Linn Silvers & Mayware adaptor, and back at home the improvement was pleasantly staggering of drop jaw proportion, and no funny burn-in issues to report here.

If you do decide to try n buy a Chord SSA phono - DIN you may benefit from the slightly longer 1.2 meter length for better connection reach [recommended] ...available at all good Chord cable dealers in Leicester.

Good luck with your choice : )

Debs

I had a set of fully run in SL speakers cables on demo initially they sounded bloody awful slightly cold but the main problem was lack of bass they took over a week to settle in.

After having the speaker cable on demo for a couple of weeks I asked the dealer to supply a SL interconnect for my NDX he supplied a brand new one and straight out of the box this cable sounded good which surprised me, the combination of the SL speaker cables and interconnect in my system is quite stunning but they can take time to sound correct.

As always it's down to personal choice and can be system dependent.

Hungryhalibut posted:

Amer posted:

Hi, I was considering the DIN to XLR as a first step up grade between my 102 and 250DR. Harry do you think this would be a worthwhile upgrade? Is the level of improvement on par with the DR upgrades? I have been so happy the DR upgrads on my 250 and HiCap. Thanks Best wishes Amer

I'm not Harry, but I'll give you my two penneth regardless. You'd be far better off putting your money towards a used 282. 

please get a 282, Amer.

to the OP: a £2100 cable should sound fab right away. if it doesn't, send it back!

My opinion of SL cables is that they represent poor value.

I'll elaborate on my post...The SL DIN to XLR was the last little piece I added to an otherwise decent system.  The focus and cohesion it brings is icing on the cake.  Like a tightening of acoustic screws.  I could plainly hear the improvements and in my case, I'm not sure what else would bring that refinement for the value.  It was a year old when tested, FYI.

according to the USA dist of Vertere they offer better cables then the SuperLumina the suppy Naim

Partcloudy posted:

Just before Christmas my 25 year old sondek went through it's final upgrade overhaul with a new plinth, bearing and outer platter as a full Ekos SE, Kandid, Ureka, Keel, Khan, power supply.... the bifters spec and the finished outcome was music heaven... goosebumps and all

Plays through Naim hi end amplification full DR spec on 252, 250 etc. and PMC's

Using Linn Silvers with a mayware, and based on users experiences, I decided to take the final plunge and upgrade to Naim Super Lumina phono to din.

The shop kindly burned them in for 100+ hrs and on getting the system home it's been something of a disappointment. Hard, cold, lost timing etc. and no goosebumps! It feels like a step back when feedback suggests this should be a superb upgrade.

has this happened to any other users on the forum? Is it a burn in problem? Tempted to go back to the Silvers and Mayware.

Help appreciated!

 

 

 

 

It's great that you have a dealer who at least went to the time and effort of burning them in as, with a turntable, that's what you really do need. The last thing you want is to wear out a cartridge during the burn-in process. My advice is that if it isn't delighting you at this stage, it's time to look at alternatives. Or else it's several hundred more hours on the offchance....

As with others here I'm a delighted Chord user, having gone through the various iterations of Sarum, all of which completely wiped the floor with Linn Silvers, and now use ChordMusic. If you like what the Urika does with the Silvers, you'd be astonished at what happens with Sarum Supers in place.

My experiences of SL have, sadly, all left me disappointed.

I bought my SL speaker cables s/h and I can confirm that they weren't fully burned in, and they'd had their fair share of playing...

 so yes, they seem to require extensive burn in (100+ hrs is nothing)  but I am more than happy with the results.

hang in there !

I've not tried the interconnect as my system has no need for it, but I do have the din to XLR and the speaker wires. They sounded rather odd at first and took months and months to run in, but once they had done so, I was delighted with them. They make the music very engaging and somehow seem to make the speakers disappear. The effect does seem to be additive, and I imagine will vary from system to system. 

That said, they are not cheap and if you don't like them that's fine. Other wires may be better, or maybe just different, I don't know. 

I tried the Chord XLRs vs Vertere (before SL came out) on my 500 and strongly preferred the Vertere and then when SL came out tried the Chord vs the SL DIN-DIN between the 555 and the 552 and much preferred the SL. So, given the difficulty with demming the cables on the LP12, I went with the  SL replacing a HiLine on the Urika, as I'd preferred the DIN-DIN and have been happy with it. The SL speaker cable followed later. I was very underwhelmed/disappointed with all the Chord options I tried, so I suppose it's all taste/system driven. I would stick with the SL for a good while longer and if it doesn't improve to your ears, look again then. Perhaps you could try an IC on another source component more easily than changing the LP12 one and change it when you find one whose characteristics you like?

Neil

But there's the problem; sticking with something that doesn't sound as you'd like and using your finite-life cartridge as the burn-in source could be a big and expensive mistake. If you can, do try to hear the Sarum alternative, there's one well-known dealer who can demonstrate various cable options - including Sarum Supers - so that you can hear for yourself.

sbilotta posted:

I bought my SL speaker cables s/h and I can confirm that they weren't fully burned in, and they'd had their fair share of playing...

 so yes, they seem to require extensive burn in (100+ hrs is nothing)  but I am more than happy with the results.

hang in there !

That's an expensive lesson for the original owner of the Super Lumina speaker cables to not wait until the cables are fully burned in.

.... or maybe after a while people just get used to them. How many go back and recompare?

I should say that I have yet to try SL speaker cables at home and when I have heard them I have liked what they do. 

The burn in is a bit long, but the result very good to my ears. While I have to be honest I only compared the NACA5 with the Superlumina and it was even without burn in a no brainier ......., didn't compare with equally gifted stuff. However I do still belief after the burn in that when I listen to other systems that Super Luminas are the best choice as we love the characteristics of the Naim Sound.