Awesome! The L150's are great sounding speakers! :thmbsp:
I have a pair of L150a's that I owned for a couple years now and plan on keeping them for a long, long time! :yes:
JBL speakers are they really that good?
- Thread starter Ken Boyd
- Start date
Awesome! The L150's are great sounding speakers! :thmbsp:
I have a pair of L150a's that I owned for a couple years now and plan on keeping them for a long, long time! :yes:
Clearly speakers are a matter of taste. Does pork taste better than chicken?
I personally have a pair of Altec's made in the late 70's I think they sound great. I know JBL's are very close in the family tree. Many people will expound the virtues of Infinity, Klipsch, Bose, Warfdale, etc. Is one better? Hmm it's really a matter of personal taste.
What I do know is that speakers are supposed to reproduce the sound as close to reality as possible. I went to a fair number of concerts on the west coast in my day and I can assure you that live is about as close to real as it gets. Live performances if they weren't Altec Voice of the Theater they were JBL's. Even in the studio the standard at the time was JBL—studio monitors. So if you want concert quality sound why would you buy something different than is used to produce the concert in the first place?
When Greg Lake played "still you turn me on" at the Cow Palace it wasn't played on a pair of Bose 901's it was played on Altecs, so why would I not listen to the recording on Altecs?
I personally have a pair of Altec's made in the late 70's I think they sound great. I know JBL's are very close in the family tree. Many people will expound the virtues of Infinity, Klipsch, Bose, Warfdale, etc. Is one better? Hmm it's really a matter of personal taste.
What I do know is that speakers are supposed to reproduce the sound as close to reality as possible. I went to a fair number of concerts on the west coast in my day and I can assure you that live is about as close to real as it gets. Live performances if they weren't Altec Voice of the Theater they were JBL's. Even in the studio the standard at the time was JBL—studio monitors. So if you want concert quality sound why would you buy something different than is used to produce the concert in the first place?
When Greg Lake played "still you turn me on" at the Cow Palace it wasn't played on a pair of Bose 901's it was played on Altecs, so why would I not listen to the recording on Altecs?
If I recall EAW makes some great Line Arrays for concerts as well, but for home use, I don't recall them making any speakers. I suppose if you wanted you house to sound like a live concert you would simply purchase some Crest or Crown pro amps, some Pro Line Arrrays and Bass cabinets and then we would enjoy music they way you think we should.
BMWCCA
Addicted Member
You mean you're not doing that now? Pity!
Except a line-array is only beneficial in a large venue to render the soundstage properly over a large audience area. Don't need that at home, unless you have stadium seating in your home theater.
Actually the Peavey SP-1 2-way all horn loaded speaker was pretty damned good and made an excellent hi-fi speaker. I used to use SP-1 basshorns (FH-1s) with Altec and JBL top ends but the Peavey compression drivers and horns were no slouches either.
A damned good speaker that often sells pretty cheap and goes under the radar of many hornies.
My FH-1 bassbins with Altec treble
Stock SP-1s
mhardy6647
Lunatic Member
The Peavey amp I have in the basement (PPP EL84 stereo) sounds pretty dang good - I suspect it'd be bitchen with those Peavey horns, Tom...
You mean you're not doing that now? Pity!
Except a line-array is only beneficial in a large venue to render the soundstage properly over a large audience area. Don't need that at home, unless you have stadium seating in your home theater.
I value my hearing! But do have plenty of Crown amps, they sound pretty good and are just about industructable. Plus have have Rane active crossovers, and have used the Rane processor at time. If I had a real large shop or warehouse by all means I would have no problem having a set up of Line Arrays, you don't have to blast them out. But for home use I think they would be overkill. And I don't need anyone telling me just what kind of system I have to have to enjoy life like music, I personally have heard very few Live recordings that I like, I enjoy studio versions better, thats just my taste, and I would never inject my taste on someone else, I would respect them to listen to music the way they like.
Blown Z-06
New Member
Ken,
You are welcome to hear my JBL 4335's et al with pre-recorded or live concert music. I offer arena seating in my living room. If you opt for the latter, I can provide complimentary ear plugs.
You are welcome to hear my JBL 4335's et al with pre-recorded or live concert music. I offer arena seating in my living room. If you opt for the latter, I can provide complimentary ear plugs.
Hertzz
New Member
This is strictly your opinion and your opinion only. You cannot give people advice regarding which brand of Loudspeaker they would like. It is totally subjective and like trying to tell someone which food they should like.No they are not. Buy something else and leave vintage JBL collecting to those with less discriminating tastes than you. Don't be fooled by their glorious history, numerous patents and widespread use in both studios and concert halls the world over. It's all just hype...they all sound bad - all the hundreds of models produced over the 60 year span.
Especially the " high end " horn based systems treasured by the Japanese audio community. Don't believe a word of it. You know better.
What happened to the "Please don't feed the trolls sign? "
Jblnut
Nope JBL are terrible things, not at all for you -
leave them for others, and get something you really enjoy ...
I don't think much of the L100s tho - let those who like them pay stupid money for them
- a pair just sold on ebay for $1500 - there is so much more you could get for that kind of money!
For me - hell yes, good JBLs are worth it (except for the L100s, I really don't get them) - but I tend towards vintage gear -
the fact I that I find good JBLs on sale makes them even more sweet to me.
Your mileage may vary ...
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70salesguy
Only 99 easy payments!
One man's opinion
Here's what one man, Martin Bernstein had to say about what is probably the most loved/eviscerated loudspeaker system that JBL has ever produced.
Here's what one man, Martin Bernstein had to say about what is probably the most loved/eviscerated loudspeaker system that JBL has ever produced.
4seatPilot
"Broker"
Jbl l50
One model that doesn't get mentioned much is the L50... not sure why, but it just doesn't seem like a common one. I've had a pair sitting in my basement for 10 years that I finally resurrected - they were my Dads before, and he got them used in the early 80s.
They've been re-foamed awhile back, and the shop decided to re-cone one as well - I've since figured out that they probably dropped one woofer and dislodged the magnet - necessitating the re-cone. I think they even charged me for the work
. Obviously this was before I had a clue...
But even with only 1.5 woofers, and not on stands to give a bit of tip-back, and less than perfect positioning, they sound awesome
I haven't compared them to too much, Boston Acoustics T830s are quite nice, C-V D5s do rock and roll pretty well, but the L-50 does it all easily, and accurately (to me anyway). They do sound better with the grills on, they have a kind of mesh behind the cloth - and I think it's needed to disperse the high freq a bit. They'll probably image better with stands and not seem quite so much like two individual speakers, and positioning could be better than where I have them - but I'm not the only one choosing the living room layout.
I'll never sell them - they are just the right combination of size and full sound for the living room. They get loud if you want, and though they may not shake the whole house - just one or two rooms!, when I take out a woofer, I'm still amazed at the amount and depth of bass they can put out, without getting boomy, and again - that's with one of them at half-strength. (thanks again "shop")
Pics are of my re-finished L50s, they appear a bit more red than in real life - in person they are more brown - an almost perfect match to my CR 1010 finish. One shot of them sanded clean... nice grain. Funny thing about the grills, my wife called them ugly. :screwy: so I showed her a picture of L100s in bright blue waffle covers... and told her they also came in bright orange if she didn't like that! :tongue:
One model that doesn't get mentioned much is the L50... not sure why, but it just doesn't seem like a common one. I've had a pair sitting in my basement for 10 years that I finally resurrected - they were my Dads before, and he got them used in the early 80s.
They've been re-foamed awhile back, and the shop decided to re-cone one as well - I've since figured out that they probably dropped one woofer and dislodged the magnet - necessitating the re-cone. I think they even charged me for the work
. Obviously this was before I had a clue...But even with only 1.5 woofers, and not on stands to give a bit of tip-back, and less than perfect positioning, they sound awesome
I haven't compared them to too much, Boston Acoustics T830s are quite nice, C-V D5s do rock and roll pretty well, but the L-50 does it all easily, and accurately (to me anyway). They do sound better with the grills on, they have a kind of mesh behind the cloth - and I think it's needed to disperse the high freq a bit. They'll probably image better with stands and not seem quite so much like two individual speakers, and positioning could be better than where I have them - but I'm not the only one choosing the living room layout. I'll never sell them - they are just the right combination of size and full sound for the living room. They get loud if you want, and though they may not shake the whole house - just one or two rooms!
, when I take out a woofer, I'm still amazed at the amount and depth of bass they can put out, without getting boomy, and again - that's with one of them at half-strength. (thanks again "shop")Pics are of my re-finished L50s, they appear a bit more red than in real life - in person they are more brown - an almost perfect match to my CR 1010 finish. One shot of them sanded clean... nice grain. Funny thing about the grills, my wife called them ugly. :screwy: so I showed her a picture of L100s in bright blue waffle covers... and told her they also came in bright orange if she didn't like that! :tongue:
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JBL's as a whole are like everything else I'd guess, somewhat hit and miss. I know I own some DCM Time Windows and a pair of Boston Acoustic A-150's (not top of the line speakers, but generally well liked) among a few other well liked speakers (a different set of Bostons's (T-830's) and some KLH-23's that are both long gone) and a pair of lowly JBL HLS-620's have earned their top spot in my 2 channel rig.
hbucker
Well-Known Member
I'm not well versed on the different models of JBL. I had a pair of TLX171 JBL's and they were very generic AV speakers for the masses. I got a small set of bookshelf JBL speakers for my son's room, same basic line of speakers. Again, they sound o.k. but are very generic.
If these speakers are representative of the JBL home audio products then I'll have to pass. But I believe these speakers are probably just an inexpensive, consumer line of products so I can't come down too hard on them for that.
When I think of JBL, I think of very good PA speakers. I'm not convinced that home audio is their forte'. But I'm willing to be convinced otherwise and am not using my two examples above as my reasoning.
If these speakers are representative of the JBL home audio products then I'll have to pass. But I believe these speakers are probably just an inexpensive, consumer line of products so I can't come down too hard on them for that.
When I think of JBL, I think of very good PA speakers. I'm not convinced that home audio is their forte'. But I'm willing to be convinced otherwise and am not using my two examples above as my reasoning.
michaelhigh
mind's eye music
You mean you're not doing that now? Pity!
Except a line-array is only beneficial in a large venue to render the soundstage properly over a large audience area. Don't need that at home, unless you have stadium seating in your home theater.
I do something very similar, sit pretty nearfield and listen quietly. No reflections going nearfield, no distortion from overblaring, and no sloppy woofers, they're way heavy and robustly built. I say go pro with the Crowns, the JBL's and even EV for your stereo. You just might as well mic your drum set for playing through the same rig while listening too. Or play a synth while listening that reaches above and below the audible freq ranges while sweeping. I doubt many can do that with their consumer rigs, no matter how esoteric or high-end they might be...I have many rigs, all types, but my PA is the one that takes whatever I throw at it (in any combination) and performs with an audio smile.:yes:
Well there have been plenty of examples that members have shown me that I am sure sound very good, much better than a pair of the 100's. I am not saying that the 100's are bad speakers, I just think that there must be plenty of better speakers that Bernstien could have picked, including JBL models and others brands as well.