Naim Audio DBL loudspeakers. Any review
- Thread starter Peter_Tos
- Start date
Fuller
pfm Member
No the time I was referring to in my post was later than that and in retrospect I would have heard them previously when they were first on dem at the Bristol show. Anyone recall the year they were introduced? Might have also heard them at another show I recall going to in London in 1995 when the Penta show stopped running for a while? Used to enjoy going to the shows as it was the only way to hear kit such as the DBL’s, which was good fun.
I also remember Malcolm Steward RIP had a pair in his system and he talked about them in his features, and he was known to play his music very loud!
JWM
pfm Member
Your slimmed down stacks look good Tony 
Glad to hear it’s all sounding good too.
Best wishes from our neck of the woods.
Glad to hear it’s all sounding good too.
Best wishes from our neck of the woods.
Still got them…
Bought them off a fellow Fishie many years ago (he'd bought another pair in a different finish) &I started off with them active, in the end with three NAP500DRs/552DR etc. Due to a health scare, & not wishing to lumber SWMBO with a heap of black boxes to get shot of (she ain't a hi-fi person), on the advice of my trusty dealer I tried the DBLs passive with an Accuphase integrated, and was pleasantly surprised. Will the next model up sound better? Of course it did. Would a separate pre/power be even…You know the way these things go. Currently running the DBLs with Accuphase C2150/A48. They sound fab passive with this combination, as maybe fellow Fishies who have visited my humble abode may kindly attest to.
Being slightly nervous about running such old speakers, over the years I've sought out possible replacements, but none have done the trick, so I've given up. I've a spare pair of tweeters in the cupboard, ATC will refurbish the 15” bass drivers, & someone on the Naim forum has managed to source a good midrange driver replacement. I really thought the Kudos 808s would do the trick, so I had a pair at home for a few days. Nope. Large ATC actives? Same.
OK, they're a bit big (hear the visitors gasp!) but they're shallow & sit back against the wall, so in many ways, they're less intrusive than speakers stuck out into the room.
I've owned the IBLs, SBLs and DBLs, all for long periods. I like them all; the best were the DBLs, and the most disappointing in hindsight were the SBLs (probably because they were in a space that was too big for them). The DBLs were great speakers if a bit idiosyncratic. I stand by this view based not only on my own 20 year ownership of them but having heard them many times in various configurations and spaces of at least 6 other owners.
Will I acquire them today? Probably not. They are long out of production, drivers are no longer available and the damping foam lining the internal walls of the cabinets would have crumbled into dust. In fact, these are the reasons why I sold them.
But I still have my IBLs. They have the closest sound to the DBLs, just without the low bass.
Will I acquire them today? Probably not. They are long out of production, drivers are no longer available and the damping foam lining the internal walls of the cabinets would have crumbled into dust. In fact, these are the reasons why I sold them.
But I still have my IBLs. They have the closest sound to the DBLs, just without the low bass.
Suffolk Tony
Aim low, achieve your goals, avoid disappointment.
I saw there were some folks on the Naim forum who share my appreciation of DBLs, can't find an an adequate replacement, have gone to the trouble of sourcing internal foam (I expect mine has disintegrated, but it's a bit like Schrodinger's cat - it's only turned to dust if I look inside. That's my theory anyway), and have sourced replacement midrange drivers. ATC will happily refurbish the bass drivers, and tweeters are still available.
Naimaren
New Member
I have DBLs. Refurbished with new internal foam, new grills, reconed ATC woofers etc. Run passively with 552/500 in a large room. Sits 3 meters away. Been in audio for some 45 years and have listened to most high end stuff out there. Have also owned Isobariks with 52/sixpack on Mana. No comparison. What impresses me most is the DBLs ability to do ”inner detail” and micro dynamics like no other speaker I have listened to. Midrange clarity, scale and speed also unrivalled. High frequency could have a bit morse sparkle and extention but despite this I find them very balanced. Don’t need to play them loud to do their magic. Retirement speakers.
That's a kind thing to say to ugly people.
per-Sony-fied
Me in another jacket
Did this originally have ATC woofers?
pocketkitchen
Registered User
The 15” bass unit was always an ATC driver.
Beobloke
pfm Member
Only time I heard DBL’s was at the Bristol HiFi Show probably about 20 years ago, on the end of a full, top of the range at the time, Naim set up. Pretty sure some Paul Weller was playing. Certainly gave the impression of being in the studio or on stage, quite impressive but ultimately fatiguing, as was so often the case when I’ve listened to Naim gear.
Referring to SBL’s, they were often in competition with the similarly priced Linn Kabers, which I preferred and still use to this day with Linn amplification.
My dealer back then, Audio Excellence in Gloucester, called the Naim speakers Ibbles, Sybils, Nibbles and Dibbles
I've heard DBLs twice - both times at the Bristol Show and both times on the end of top end Naim equipment
The first time I was hugely disappointed - I think I made some joke afterwards about Naim forgetting to connect the bass driver and tweeter as they were flat, lifeless and dull lat the top end and genuinely seemed to have no bass at all!
The second time they were in a much larger room and was absolutely spellbound - I think I sat in the room and listened to them for nearly an hour. They went straight into my top ten of all time favourite passive loudspeakers and are still there.
Remind me of hearing Naim Statement amps twice
Both times at shows and both times with Focal loudspeakers
Both times pretty disappointing, judging by other people I was not alone in this judgement
I'm sure Statement amplication could do much better with other speakers, those Focal were terrible really
Would love to hear on DBL or Titan speakers
I've only heard Focal speakers a couple of times, at the same dealers, but I thought they sounded unusually bad. The dealer was clearly happy enough with the sound so I assume it was normal.
And not cheap, Sopra and Utopia seem to have some Utopia prices
I can't remember what they were. One was a stand-mount and one a large floorstander. The smaller speaker was absolutely terrible, harsh and unnatural sounding.
Suffolk Tony
Aim low, achieve your goals, avoid disappointment.
As Naim, and presumably their dealers, have to use Focal speakers at their demos, I've never liked them in that situation, with some sounding pretty dire. But, strangely, a friend had a pair of standmount Focals on the end of his Naim system that sounded very good indeed in his room.
Fatmarley
"It appears my intelligence circuits have melted"
Am I the only one interested to see the top ten list? Are Kans in there?
Experienced Naim staff may have had their silent thoughts, they would not be able to express own opinion, sure independent dealers can.