J

jewel5

Audiophyte
Here's the newest review on them.

Wharfedale Jade 7 loudspeaker | Stereophile.com

I have the Jade 3s, I love these speakers, very clear, picks up every detail available in the music, and very very neutral, which makes it easy to listen to. Incredible bass from this bookshelf too! When I finally replace my Dali Helicon's, it will most likely be with the Jade 7s.
 
haraldo

haraldo

Audioholic Spartan
Here's the newest review on them.

Wharfedale Jade 7 loudspeaker | Stereophile.com

I have the Jade 3s, I love these speakers, very clear, picks up every detail available in the music, and very very neutral, which makes it easy to listen to. Incredible bass from this bookshelf too! When I finally replace my Dali Helicon's, it will most likely be with the Jade 7s.
Interesting to hear your opinion, from what I read, only real downside as been claimed is that it's said that the high-end may become a bit rough if you push 'em really hard, how do you feel about this?

As far as I believe this is an incredible successful trickle down of their much much more expensive airedale product line, seemingly they're getting very close to the prestige series at a much lower price point :p

The bigger models (Jade 5 and 7) do have a higher crossover point to the midrange, which I'm sure helps the midrange doing it's job even better!
There's an x-over point from mid to high at 2.4KHz on Jade 5, while it's 2.8KHz on Jade 3 and 7, 2.5KHz with Jade 1; I really don't understand why it's like this if they use the same drivers...

Sorry Gene about posting links to competitors :rolleyes:, but here is a review of Jade 1, which is quite close to the 3's. I believe mid and tweeter is the same throughout the range, althoutgh crossover points are somewhat different on some of the models.
Wharfedale Jade 1 Bookshelf Loudspeaker Reviewed

the Jade 1 is a curious performer, for it sounds good at moderate and even low volumes, though it does elevate to that proverbial next step when given a bit of juice. The problem with this is that the window for it to be at its peak is somewhat narrow, in that you'll definitely notice when the Jade 1 has gotten comfortable, but it may not take much to break it from its comfort zone, the result being disaster. For me, this window spanned but a few clicks of the volume... when pushed too hard, the first thing to go is the Jade 1's tweeter
 
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J

jewel5

Audiophyte
The Jade 3 is quite a bit larger than the Jade 1, and no, I've played them pretty loud, and I've tried my heaviest, harshest music on them(heavy metal, of course) :)...they have not lost their composure at all. That's what has so impressed me about these speakers. They stay clear without losing any detail. and they image really well in my room, which is 12x23, and the jade 3s have no problem filling the room. I still want to get my hands on the bigger models though.:)
 
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D

didge70

Audiophyte
The Jade 3 is quite a bit larger than the Jade 1, and no, I've played them pretty loud, and I've tried my heaviest, harshest music on them(heavy metal, of course) :)...they have not lost their composure at all. That's what has so impressed me about these speakers. They stay clear without losing any detail. and they image really well in my room, which is 12x23, and the jade 3s have no problem filling the room. I still want to get my hands on the bigger models though.:)
How would you describe their sound? Are they forward sounding or more even or laidback, bright or neutral, ...?
 
ImcLoud

ImcLoud

Audioholic Ninja
I have hade 5's crossed to a pair of sw subs, and they sound great, the highs sound very clear, its one of the most detailed speakers I ever heard.. well worth the price...
 
J

jewel5

Audiophyte
How would you describe their sound? Are they forward sounding or more even or laidback, bright or neutral, ...?
Like I stated above, they are the most neutral speakers I've ever owned. The stereophile measurements for the Jade 7s were pretty flat, from what I understand. They will play what they are fed...adding nothing that I can perceive. They are very musical, natural sounding speakers, imo, enjoyable to listen to for hours and hours at a time.
 
Fastnbulbous

Fastnbulbous

Audioholic
I'm [trying to] sell my Opus 3, tri-centre and surrounds, though I might put the Opus 3 in my listening room, even though they're a bit large. In looking at what I could upgrade to, once again, Wharfedale has the best deals, with a deep discount on the Jade 7 at Music Direct, who's warehouse is in town so I could pick them up same day. I see that they're smaller than the Opus 3, with range only going down to 40 Hz as opposed to 23 Hz.

Has anyone been able to compare? I'm guessing the Jade was made more with home theater and a subwoofer in mind. In which case I might be better off keeping the Opus 3 if I want to use them for just music with no sub.
 
C

ctmorsejr

Audiophyte
I haven't heard the Jade 1s or Jade 3s but I have a pair of Jade 5s and a pair of Jade 7s and won't be shopping for any speakers in the future. I never thought I’d see the day where I was completely satisfied with my audio system but the addition of the Jade 7s made that a reality.


My main system:


Arcam AV888

Aragon 8008x5 (Mondial) – center and 4 surrounds

Aragon 8088ST (Mondial) – sub amp

Aragon 8008 (Indy Audio Labs) – mains

OPPO BDP-95

Kuzma Stabi

Kuzma Stogi Reference Tonearm

Benz Micro Glider

Jade 7s

Jade C1

2 pair Jade SRs

2x 15” sealed DiY subs


I have found what I read in most Jade reviews to be true that they sound fabulous at lower volumes but really sing when you push them a bit. I have not noticed any issues with the high end at high volumes and I play at ear bleeding levels from time to time. I didn’t push them until I had well over 100 hours on them so the high frequency roughness at high volumes might be an issue of not enough break in. I broke mine in for 10 hours a day while at work for 2 weeks with moderate volume listening over the same period which added up to about 150 hours of break in.


Both the Jade 5s and 7s can be used without a sub which is how I broke them in. I had planned on using them without subs for music and with subs for HT duties but they both blend so seamlessly with my subs I use the subs all the time. I have never heard a better blend of mains with subs in my 30 years of audiophilery.


The way I would describe the sound is explosive finesse. Sound jumps out of the Jades in a way I haven’t heard before yet at the same time they handle delicate sounds so well that it’s beguiling. And the distinctness of the individual instruments/sounds is amazing. My main listening room is 30’ x 32’ with 9’ ceilings and I have the speakers pulled out about 5’ into the room. This of course hurts the lower bass response a bit but at the same time removes any nearby boundaries that might harm the mid and upper frequencies. As dynamic as they are I never get the sense that they’re


I got the pair of Jade 5s from a dealer about a 6 hour drive from me that had a demo pair he was letting go for 60% off of the list price. He loved them and couldn’t understand why they weren’t selling but he decided to sell them at a highly discounted price to move them quickly. I loved them from the start but then I noticed that the two major US Wharfedale online retailers were both discounting the Jade line from 40% - 60% off. That’s when I got the 2 pairs of Jade SRs and the C1.


My wife loved the appearance of the Jade 5s and wanted a pair for her TV/listening room so I decided to get myself a pair of Jade 7s and let her have my Jade 5s. I expected there to be a small difference in the sound (the whole Jade line uses the same tweeter and 3” midrange) but the differences were greater than I anticipated. The addition of the Jade 7s got me excited to listen to music again and there’s zero listening fatigue except for really bad recordings.


The whole Jade line has been discontinued unfortunately but there are very good deals to be had on them at the moment. If you’re in the market for a great pair of speakers I highly recommend auditioning the Wharfedale Jade line.
 
TLS Guy

TLS Guy

Seriously, I have no life.
Interesting to hear your opinion, from what I read, only real downside as been claimed is that it's said that the high-end may become a bit rough if you push 'em really hard, how do you feel about this?

As far as I believe this is an incredible successful trickle down of their much much more expensive airedale product line, seemingly they're getting very close to the prestige series at a much lower price point :p

The bigger models (Jade 5 and 7) do have a higher crossover point to the midrange, which I'm sure helps the midrange doing it's job even better!
There's an x-over point from mid to high at 2.4KHz on Jade 5, while it's 2.8KHz on Jade 3 and 7, 2.5KHz with Jade 1; I really don't understand why it's like this if they use the same drivers...

Sorry Gene about posting links to competitors :rolleyes:, but here is a review of Jade 1, which is quite close to the 3's. I believe mid and tweeter is the same throughout the range, althoutgh crossover points are somewhat different on some of the models.
Wharfedale Jade 1 Bookshelf Loudspeaker Reviewed

the Jade 1 is a curious performer, for it sounds good at moderate and even low volumes, though it does elevate to that proverbial next step when given a bit of juice. The problem with this is that the window for it to be at its peak is somewhat narrow, in that you'll definitely notice when the Jade 1 has gotten comfortable, but it may not take much to break it from its comfort zone, the result being disaster. For me, this window spanned but a few clicks of the volume... when pushed too hard, the first thing to go is the Jade 1's tweeter
Its too bad it has a lousy tweeter. Everything else looks A OK. However even though the break up in the tweeter is at the upper limits of hearing. I can always here those devils. The problem is retained energy and I suspect there is severe distortion heading into break up. You may not hear it on pop music, but you will on classical. That problem creates a sort of odd "swish" sound to the top end. It particularly makes cymbal crashes sound distinctly odd. That tweeter seems a particularly bad example of the breed. That was a mistake they could easily have avoided. Marketing I bet insisted on a shiny tweeter!
 
haraldo

haraldo

Audioholic Spartan
Its too bad it has a lousy tweeter. Everything else looks A OK. However even though the break up in the tweeter is at the upper limits of hearing. I can always here those devils. The problem is retained energy and I suspect there is severe distortion heading into break up. You may not hear it on pop music, but you will on classical. That problem creates a sort of odd "swish" sound to the top end. It particularly makes cymbal crashes sound distinctly odd. That tweeter seems a particularly bad example of the breed. That was a mistake they could easily have avoided. Marketing I bet insisted on a shiny tweeter!
yes, I reckon this looks like a pretty severe resonance

.... The whole Jade line has been discontinued unfortunately ....
Hmm, they are still on the Wharfedale website, how can they be discontinued?
http://wharfedale.co.uk/product-list.php?cid=1
 
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TLS Guy

TLS Guy

Seriously, I have no life.
yes, I reckon this looks like a pretty severe resonance



Hmm, they are still on the Wharfedale website, how can they be discontinued?
http://wharfedale.co.uk/product-list.php?cid=1
yes, I reckon this looks like a pretty severe resonance



Hmm, they are still on the Wharfedale website, how can they be discontinued?
http://wharfedale.co.uk/product-list.php?cid=1
Yes, it is severe. It is a nasty 15db up and downer and in the audio range. If you look carefully you can see it actually starts to misbehave at 6 to 7 KHz. The funny thing is about that problem on a quick listen it can add a sort of attractive shimmer to the top end. I can assure you the novelty will wear off. That was totally unnecessary as you can buy a tweeter that does not do that for less then $20. I would never ever select a tweeter that does that for any of my designs.
 
haraldo

haraldo

Audioholic Spartan
Yes, it is severe. It is a nasty 15db up and downer and in the audio range. If you look carefully you can see it actually starts to misbehave at 6 to 7 KHz. The funny thing is about that problem on a quick listen it can add a sort of attractive shimmer to the top end. I can assure you the novelty will wear off. That was totally unnecessary as you can buy a tweeter that does not do that for less then $20. I would never ever select a tweeter that does that for any of my designs.
Robert Deutch really liked the Jade 7....
Metal domes never made it for me, at least not the aluminium ones, I can't vouch for Beryllium as I did not audition speakers with beryllium domes. Somehow, all the speakers with aluminium domes sounded hard and unmusical to me.

Maybe I'm oversensitive to these things, and I guess it has something to do with the ringing. I ended up with speakers that employ Morel soft domes and another one with Vifa ring radiators. I'm not saying the hard domes are bad, just doesn't do it for me, that's just my opinion.
 

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