JBL Discussion & Owner's Thread

[tuyen 623]

I was actually really impressed with the $2500 JBL Studio 590  paired with the Harmon Kardon receiver (possibly little biased, as I have always been a closet HK fan).  Excellent sound for 'little' money.

 

Good review here.  Got measurements too.

 

http://tinyurl.com/o4hcqvq

 

I like this extract from the review:

 

But the beautiful thing about the Studio 590s is that even if you choose not to play them at high volume, they still deliver a sound that is immediately and totally realistic. I find that many speakers, although they produce sound that’s technically ‘accurate’ in that it’s very well-balanced, can also be rather dull. I don’t mean that in the sense of the sound being audibly dull, but in the sense that the music played through them, no matter how good, is reproduced in such a way that it sounds uninspiring and uninteresting. Music played through the JBL 590s, on the other hand, is involving and interesting, making you want to listen to more and more music, and the clarity of their sound lets you appreciate the finer details of the music, the tiny touches that musicians inject to lift their performances to the highest level.

 

[RockandorRoll 1,204]

I was half right..

 

Check these. They are a bargain...

 

http://puremusicgroup.com/cart/index.php?_a=viewProd&productId=402

 

M

I've thought long and hard about how i can make these a part of my life. I reckon they would sound fantastic with some Meat Loaf

 

I pretty much have to sell everything i have. Thats the dream though isnt it, just starting out fresh

[henry218 1,351]

 

I was actually really impressed with the $2500 JBL Studio 590  paired with the Harmon Kardon receiver (possibly little biased, as I have always been a closet HK fan).  Excellent sound for 'little' money.

 

Good review here.  Got measurements too.

 

http://tinyurl.com/o4hcqvq

 

I like this extract from the review:

 

But the beautiful thing about the Studio 590s is that even if you choose not to play them at high volume, they still deliver a sound that is immediately and totally realistic. I find that many speakers, although they produce sound that’s technically ‘accurate’ in that it’s very well-balanced, can also be rather dull. I don’t mean that in the sense of the sound being audibly dull, but in the sense that the music played through them, no matter how good, is reproduced in such a way that it sounds uninspiring and uninteresting. Music played through the JBL 590s, on the other hand, is involving and interesting, making you want to listen to more and more music, and the clarity of their sound lets you appreciate the finer details of the music, the tiny touches that musicians inject to lift their performances to the highest level.

 

that is one great engineered speakers, i didnt read the review, but looking at the measurements it should sounds spacious and neutral to touch of warm in the midrange.

 

great FR, great impedance and phase plot that you can use most amps too.

[Chill3 655]

Naim do ipod docks?

Not for $100 and sold at JBHI

[Darren69 10,001]

I was half right..

 

Check these. They are a bargain...

 

http://puremusicgroup.com/cart/index.php?_a=viewProd&productId=402

 

M

 

I looked at them too but there was nowhere close-ish I could have a listen.

[RockandorRoll 1,204]

I somehow feel that they would only play well when really loud. Sort of like a PA speaker

 

Totally unfounded opinion, just a thought. I feel the same way about all horns though

 

I reckon if they were in my house for trial, i would buy them

[Ando 164]

i have not heard the recent JBLs, but i think recently they got favorable reviews.

interestingly those models that you mention, the woofers is made by SB Acoustics .

Henry, I would be interested to know where this info comes from ? It is a little hard to believe.

Cheers Mike

[henry218 1,351]

REVEL use all SB, for this JBL i can only be sure for the woofer, u can check the reviews and see the basket of the woofers.

[Ando 164]

I think JBL have done next to nothing to promote their more sophisticated home speakers in the the US in recent years . They seem to concentrate there on serious HT installs through specialist dealers and on their least expensive products through non specialist outlets.

When they released the Array series a few years back fine speakers like the 1400 arrays ended up being nearly given away probably because they just didn't have a network of quality dealers prepared to explain why they looked a bit strange and demonstrate how good they could sound.

I think at least part of the reason JBL has had a low profile here is distributorship / retail network which has seemed all over the place with different JBL lines available through different importers, not just pro vs home.

The JBL LSR 6332 is available widely in the US very cheaply and could be bought here for around $4000 a little while back when our dollar was high but good luck finding anyone with a demo or even on hand stock.

I also think JBL is just not cool anymore generally with people who spend serious money on HiFi . I guess there's lots of reasons for this but it is a pity that JBL /Harman seem so disinterested in promoting quality products embodying the excellent work done by their engineers and respected research facilities.

Cheers Mike

[Ando 164]

REVEL use all SB, for this JBL i can only be sure for the woofer, u can check the reviews and see the basket of the woofers.

I don't think that's quite correct. Revel have said they use SB to manufactures drivers in new Performa 3 series. I don't think this the case for Ultima series. Certainly not tweeters at the very least.

Even if it turns out to be correct that SB manufacture the woofers I think there is a significant difference between saying they "use a SB woofer" and using a woofer designed by JBL and Manufactured by SB.

I think you should be very careful making claims like this unless you can actually confirm them from a reliable source.

Cheers Mike

Edited February 19, 2014 by Ando

[Newman 3,448]

The S4700 uses the stunning new in-house JBL 2216ND 15" woofer, same as used in their new Reference M2 studio monitor, incorporating several JBL patented technologies. The idea that it is a stock SB Acoustics item is laughable.

[henry218 1,351]

well if you read my post, i said it is "made" not using sb acoustics woofer.

[henry218 1,351]

and why would using SB Acoustics drivers gives less value to the speakers, the Satori is one of the best 7" on the market.

[Newman 3,448]

I can't stop laughing.

[Ando 164]

Henry, Fair enough you didn't specifically say it was a stock SB product but my , not unreasonable, interpretation of your comment was that you were saying its not a "real" JBL woofer ( in the tradition they are justly famous for )

Do you have a credible reference for your claim that this woofer is made by SB

Cheers Mike

Edited February 19, 2014 by Ando

[henry218 1,351]

have a look at this

http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/jbl/4.html

then have a look at this

they are not identical, but as for manufacturing goes, the basket is the first giveaway of factory origin, it happens all the time

Edited February 19, 2014 by henry218

[Ando 164]

Henry, This is not the same woofer as the one under discussion.

Your initial post may have been innocent but to me still reads like an attempt to denigrate JBL .

You also posted that Revel use all SB which is false.

If my memory is correct you have previously posted that Wilson use the SB Satori as a midrange in one of their more expensive models which also turned out to be untrue.

I think you are, possibly inadvertently, being unfair to these manufacturers. If your point is that many manufacturers use custom drivers from companies like SB fair enough but I think you should be more careful going beyond that. Maybe you could go back and edit your previous posts to be clearer.

Cheers Mike

Edited February 19, 2014 by Ando

[Newman 3,448]

and now, the 15" 2216ND from the S4700 and M2 Reference....

 

 

The only approved supplier is JBL Pro Manufacturing. JBL patents 5664023, 5748760, 6768804, 6847726, and 6774510 apply.

 

OTOH, the approved supplier for the S3900 bass driver is GGEC of China. 

 

Both transducers were designed by Jerry Moro, Senior Transducer Engineer at JBL. So they are both JBL drivers, and my bet (only guessing) is that the S3900 bass driver is a JBL driver outsourced to GGEC in China and also sold under JBL licence to SBA.

 

Which is a long, long way from them both being made by SBA.

[henry218 1,351]

 

 

Which is a long, long way from them both being made by SBA.

good to know. 

 

i have no intention to denigrate JBL, i suggested JBL few times over other hifi brands. You dont get the bling with JBL, but you got a solid engineering, even though maybe not as exotic as some. 

 

in regards to REVEL, i apologised for not being clear, the whole Performa3 series are built and made by Sinar Baja Indonesia

[THOMO 1,559]

I somehow feel that they would only play well when really loud. Sort of like a PA speaker

 

Totally unfounded opinion, just a thought. I feel the same way about all horns though

 

I reckon if they were in my house for trial, i would buy them

Actually the Studio 590s are the opposite.

Really good with medium powered valve amps.

I heard them with my Almarro 318B which is about 15 watts and a SET and they sounded superb.A breath of fresh air in a world of boringly up-tight and mechanical sounding modern speakers.

[Guest Karl Rand]

A friend runs a Yamaha A -S500 amp into JBL Studio 590's. I'm very impressed, especially when I had to admit he'd achieved such a wonderfull result for such a relatively small outlay ( well small compared to high end silly money gear ) There is a mindless prejudice against JBL speakers in audiophile circles. They're often described as rock and roll speakers. That may have been the case in the past and I confess to thinking that way until I heard the 590's. Additionally they're efficiency could save you a lot of money and let you play around with lower powered valve amps. My mate however tried his 590's with a borrowed Cary 300b amp and found the bass went 'all fat and sloppy' - - his words. 

The really galling thing about this is my friend knows nothing about audio. He bought a single issue of Australian Hi-Fi News then went out and put his hard earned down on two products that received good reviews in that issue. 

Edited February 20, 2014 by Karl Rand

[Newman 3,448]

Hear hear. Thanks for saving me the typing. I have had similar experiences with other recent JBL models. Their West Coast Sound reputation is long gone into history, and only revived today through prejudice or lack of better knowledge.

[Number 9 262]

Up until 1994, I sold more JBL Speakers than anyone else in the country. In 1995, with the release of the "Radiance" range I stopped. At the time, I wondered whether if in the early seventies, Gianni Martini AKA James  Bullough Lansing had had a psychic view of the products that would bear his name in future years, when he picked up his gun and blew his brains out . How many more people have to die before Polypropylene Bass Drivers are banned forever?

Edited February 20, 2014 by Number 9

[blinky 241]

Up until 1994, I sold more JBL Speakers than anyone else in the country. In 1995, with the release of the "Radiance" range I stopped. At the time, I wondered whether if in the early seventies, Gianni Martini AKA James  Bullough Lansing had had a psychic view of the products that would bear his name in future years, when he picked up his gun and blew his brains out . How many more people have to die before Polypropylene Bass Drivers are banned forever?

I agree about the radiance series but fact check: James Lansing was was Giacomo Martini. He committed suicide by hanging himself in 1949.

Bill

[Number 9 262]

I agree about the radiance series but fact check: James Lansing was was Giacomo Martini. He committed suicide by hanging himself in 1949.

Bill

Thanks Bill, now that I think about it the Radiance thing happened when Penny Lane was still in Toorak Village so I'm roughly a decade out on that as well! Every now and again something happens that makes me think that all those rumours about my being "Senile", "Past it" and "an old D*ckhead", may not be entirely without foundation.

 

Steve?

Edited February 21, 2014 by Number 9