Good amp for JBL HP 530s?

[Mark E. Long]

I think these were made for the Asian markets as that’s where I’ve seen this model with the extra front port but still made in Denmark tho .

 

[afterlife2]

Those speakers are fantastic. You are very lucky as was I when I found mine. I listen to them with my vinyl, CDs and also in Surround almost every day. I got thick monoprice gauge on mine and they sound amazing. In my small bedroom room these have great soundstage. I use two Energy 8 inch subs that I also found thrifting and it does a great job! Got this Half Master Bob Marley and Wow it sounds amazing!

 

[Audiohead501]

Where did you find those? They are very rare. They date from the early nineties and were made in Denmark and may be Hamburg as well, but certainly Denmark. They were for European consumption mainly and I think most sold in Germany. I do not know who actually made those speakers.

Thanks for your reply, they were given to a friend of mine and I've tried to buy them from him for months. Once he moved he just gave them to me. At the time I wasn't really sure what I had.

 

[Audiohead501]

That would be me I have two pairs in my home setup although mine are the 520’s which are vented a little different. But I’d never use bananas on the bottom of these bare wire is the best idea on the speaker end . I use twisted canare 4s11 11 ga effective gage . The glass top is not replaceable as I bought the last 2 in the states several years back . Iam kind of busy at the moment but later I’ll read the whole thread and offer any insight I can give .

Thank you for your insight. I am enjoying these things thoroughly. Do you know what the cabinet is made of? It may be worth a sand/stain or maybe a veneer. Also unfortunately my glass is delaminating and is chipped. I bet I could commission someone to cut a custom piece, although that would not be the same.

 

[Audiohead501]

The advantage of subs could well be more movie oriented, depending on the music you listen to, as a lot of music doesn't require a lot of extension (but still think they can help round out the sound even so). I do find subs generally work better at lower frequencies than most speakers and are an easier/more economical way to get "full range". You're using the graphic eq rather than Audyssey? Did you play around with the RLO settings for music using Audyssey? Like this https://ask.audyssey.com/hc/en-us/articles/212347383-Dynamic-EQ-and-Reference-Level

I agree that a sub would make a good addition to the setup, and I do intend to use it for Movie audio in the near future. I've played with them some and was able to get the music to sound much better, but I can't claim to know what specifically each setting was training.

 

[Audiohead501]

All around I am blown away by the courteousness and the helpfulness of this group. Thanks a ton to everyone for your input. I am learning a lot.

 

[Mark E. Long]

Thank you for your insight. I am enjoying these things thoroughly. Do you know what the cabinet is made of? It may be worth a sand/stain or maybe a veneer. Also unfortunately my glass is delaminating and is chipped. I bet I could commission someone to cut a custom piece, although that would not be the same.

The cabs are made of very good danish ply with a white ash veneer stained black is not sand them but a good quality oil and was does the trick .The glass can be fixed if you carefully remove it by a thin knife started around the edge and lifted upward if not broken can be repainted. You’ll never find new glass I bought the last here in the USA years ago from a jbl warehouse in New England along with two complete crossovers for spares . I’ve sourced enough spare drivers to build two complete speakers .
The cabinet is lock mitered on the corners and the cabs are very solid .

 

[afterlife2]

Did you adjust the bottom of the speaker settings?

 

[Mark E. Long]

I’m not sure on the subwoofer, I’ll need to do some research. Currently I find the low end adequate for the music I listen to, I’ve got the EQ flattened out and their “Auddessey” filter off. These speakers were unexpectedly acquired so I’ve done no planning whatsoever (did I mention they were free?)

Currently playing with toe in and positioning in the room, trying to find my sweet spot.

Pulled the cap out with electrical tape, vacuum cleaner was the next option, mouth naturally the last resort.

I run mine with dual SVS pb-1000 pro subs they complement them very well . Crossing them over at 80 in my setup renders the best results. These and the rest of this line were designed for Sacd’s and high Rez music which I can say they will take anything you play but they are very revealing of the source material so if it’s a old bad recording you’ll know but if your useing good quality recordings sacd’s or dvd audio or Blu-ray audio disc these will sound incredible . They like to be out from the wall at the least a foot or better 24 inch’s is best in my room. They can be difficult to drive with a receiver and do like power . Quality outboard amps that handle 4 ohm loads well is recommended for best performance. The 3 way switch on the bottom crossover plate i run on the center 0 db setting . In a big room setup right these sound amazing and just disappear as the sound source . Enjoy these !

 

[Audiohead501]

Okay so my verdict is that these speakers absolutely rock. I did pair them with a subwoofer (Klipsch R20) which I found at goodwill for 15$. I hacked the sub so it would work with my amp. I am having issues tuning the crossover. The 530s are relatively comfortable down to 45-50hz IMO, the sub with crossover set to 40Hz sounds a bit intrusive and muddy. Any suggestions for making this setup sound better? Also considering investing in a center channel, or modifying the R20 sound bar for this function. Any thoughts? Budget is minimal

 

[TLS Guy]

Okay so my verdict is that these speakers absolutely rock. I did pair them with a subwoofer (Klipsch R20) which I found at goodwill for 15$. I hacked the sub so it would work with my amp. I am having issues tuning the crossover. The 530s are relatively comfortable down to 45-50hz IMO, the sub with crossover set to 40Hz sounds a bit intrusive and muddy. Any suggestions for making this setup sound better? Also considering investing in a center channel, or modifying the R20 sound bar for this function. Any thoughts? Budget is minimal

What is the crossover. I would run the JBLs full range for sure. Connect your sub out to the sub with an RCA lead.

 

[Audiohead501]

What is the crossover. I would run the JBLs full range for sure. Connect your sub out to the sub with an RCA lead.

The crossover is the one built into my amp, an Onkyo HT-R550, set at 40Hz now. Any higher is worse, any lower and the sub becomes inaudible unless I am listening to something really bassy. Side note, the R20 is wireless only, and I have toyed with the idea of soldering in an RCA jack or getting a new amp for it altogether. Currently, I've modded the soundbar receiver to run the sub wirelessly using a mono to stereo RCA adapter. It has its own crossover but it's not adjustable, but seems set really high. I am sure I am violating many best practices.

The RCA adapter is connected to Amps pre amp sub out

 

[lovinthehd]

Okay so my verdict is that these speakers absolutely rock. I did pair them with a subwoofer (Klipsch R20) which I found at goodwill for 15$. I hacked the sub so it would work with my amp. I am having issues tuning the crossover. The 530s are relatively comfortable down to 45-50hz IMO, the sub with crossover set to 40Hz sounds a bit intrusive and muddy. Any suggestions for making this setup sound better? Also considering investing in a center channel, or modifying the R20 sound bar for this function. Any thoughts? Budget is minimal

Probably just the sub itself at a guess. Try moving the sub to various positions? Soundbars usually aren't very friendly to working like real components.....

 

[TLS Guy]

The crossover is the one built into my amp, an Onkyo HT-R550, set at 40Hz now. Any higher is worse, any lower and the sub becomes inaudible unless I am listening to something really bassy. Side note, the R20 is wireless only, and I have toyed with the idea of soldering in an RCA jack or getting a new amp for it altogether. Currently, I've modded the soundbar receiver to run the sub wirelessly using a mono to stereo RCA adapter. It has its own crossover but it's not adjustable, but seems set really high. I am sure I am violating many best practices.

The RCA adapter is connected to Amps pre amp sub out

That sounds like a real mess. With that set up you will be better off without the sub. Where does this sound bar come in? Definitely sounds like a setup designed to sound awful.