I want to go oval on my Spectral 8.0 with Deore XT cranks. I want to keep the double chainring but I infrequently use the smaller chainring so can I just got oval on the larger one or will this balse up changing gear?

Would quite like red one to match the bike, any recommendations?

Most ovals are also narrow-wide. If so, it wont work due to the chain missing the correct narrow/wide sequence when upshifting.

If you can get an oval that is designed for a 2x, then no problems.
As long as the capacity of the front mech is enough for the larger oval dimension, I can’t see it being much worse than normal.

Hi RedJon,

Absolute Black do a XT M8000 oval, in red!

As AlexSimon said, the oval won’t shift to the granny but you can ditch the derailleur/shifter and do a manual shift when you really need to winch. I used this system last year and it worked ok-ish as long as you’re not changing regularly.
Gaidong

Or, to go one better, why not ditch the granny altogether. Assuming you’re on a 36/26 double, how often do you really need 36×11? The development ratio is 3.27 in that gear. 32×11 development is 2.91 and that for 30×11 is 2.73. See how you get on not going beyond your current third (36×15) and second (36×13) highest gears, which develop 2.4 and 2.77 respectively. If you can live with that then you could get the 11-42 XT cassette and go single ring.

What does the “narrow wide” refer to, is this the fact that one tooth is wider than the next? And what is this for?

Yep matches up with the narrow and wide segments on the chain

Narrow / Wide helps chain retention so you don’t need a guide. But as mentioned ^ it’s designed for 1x. What cassette are you running? 32t oval + 11-42 cassette is probably OK for most stuff but depends on fitness. If you’re spinning out a 32/11 offroad that isn’t a forest track you’re going pretty fast (my vision goes blurry at that point!).

Ahhhhh, I get it, so you can’t run a double chainring narrow-wide as when you change gear you can’t guarantee it will drop onto the teeth in the same pattern!

Ahhhhh, I get it, so you can’t run a double chainring narrow-wide as when you change gear you can’t guarantee it will drop onto the teeth in the same pattern!

And there’ll be a fight between your front mech and the long N/W teeth that are designed to not let the chain derail.

That’s it, and by “manual shifting” I meant physically stopping and moving your chain from the narrow wide to the granny using your hands. Obviously you don’t want to be doing this all the time but if it gets very very steep or you very very tired. Honestly though, given a 30T ring with a 42T sprocket, that gets up most climbs I’ve ever seen – you’ll normally tip over backwards before you run out of grunt!