My first grown-up speakers - JBL L890 - or will I not know the difference?

[Kurisu]

My first post about my first real audio equipment. Groundbreaking, I know.

I currently have an 8-year old Sony boombox of modest size that I play everything on, mostly classical and jazz standards, but sometimes rock, pop, or hip hop. I often listen to FM radio - CBC Radio 2 (great classical) and also other public radio stations heard in the Detroit area. I love great music and was raised with symphonies and jazz concerts, but my audio ears are definitely not as refined as many of you posting on this forum.

I'm settling into my career and a long-term relationship, so I'm ready to grow up and out of my college dorm room boom box. Since working for Best Buy during college, I've had my eyes and ears on the JBL Studio L series. Obviously, Best Buy is not the best place to listen, but I was still impressed by JBL's products.

The L890's have been my reasonable "dream" speakers for awhile now and they seem to be moving to the end of their production - as they're on sale all over the 'net. I don't think I'm as informed a buyer as most of you would prefer to give advice to but I'd like to throw this out there anyway.

I'd like to build a full 7.1 AV system, but I'm starting with just the speaker pair and a solid receiver to build on. My FOCUS for audio will be music. Probably a fair estimate is: MUSIC 60%, MOVIES 30%, TV 10%. Of the music listening, I will probably listen a lot to radio, but also CD and MP3 (196 bit rate). The primary room in my abode is a cathedral-ceiling living room that opens to a dining room and hallway. The entire living / dining room is hardwood with a full 20 ft. peak in the living room. My gut says buy the L890 like I've always wanted and don't worry too much about analyzing. But will I really know what I'm getting?

I am planning to buy a 7.1 receiver in the $500 to $1000 range, maybe the Onkyo TX-SR805B or a similar Denon, but I'm not sure. I feel like the speakers deserve / require something with at least 100W per channel power and reproduction that matches the speaker's broad 30Hz - 40KHz range. Should I post my receiver quandry on the Receiver-focused forum?

Any advice on the speaker choice and/or receiver would be most appreciated. Hope you can help this audio kid grow up!

 

[jamie2112]

A few ideas

I myself am not a fan of jbl at all there are many speakers out there much better than the jbls. I would listen to or check psb image t-55 or t-45 they are in the same price range and will smoke the jbl speakers. There a ton of great used speakers on audiogon.com to check out as well. As for the receiver get the Yamaha 663. Great for the money 3 hdmi inputs plenty of power. Check it out online...Best of luck

 

[jamie2112]

What is your budget for speakers? I assumed you were going in the same range as the jbls

 

[gus6464]

I myself am not a fan of jbl at all there are many speakers out there much better than the jbls. I would listen to or check psb image t-55 or t-45 they are in the same price range and will smoke the jbl speakers. There a ton of great used speakers on audiogon.com to check out as well. As for the receiver get the Yamaha 663. Great for the money 3 hdmi inputs plenty of power. Check it out online...Best of luck

Have you heard the JBL L series? The Studio L line should not be compared to the cheap big box store JBL's that you see at Best Buy. The Studio L's come from their professional stuff and it is a very good speaker. OP you should go out and listen to them and if you like them go for it as they will not disappoint.

 

[jamie2112]

Not a fan not that there is anything wrong with that.

Yes i have heard and mixed on a few different JBL systems and used them for live sound as well. I am not a fan of jbl because in almost every circumstance that I have heard them they all have a peak at 2.5khz and their studio reference monitors have a slight peak at 8k. I have been in the music industry since 85 and that is just my opinon.

 

[Seth=L]

The L series is much different from the big box store offerings. I would go and have a listen.

 

[Tomorrow]

Yes i have heard and mixed on a few different JBL systems and used them for live sound as well. I am not a fan of jbl because in almost every circumstance that I have heard them they all have a peak at 2.5khz and their studio reference monitors have a slight peak at 8k. I have been in the music industry since 85 and that is just my opinon.

You will undoubtedly note "slight" peaks on any and all speakers, depending upon the circumstances of your measurements. (And you didn't mention just under what conditions you measured them. Anechoically? Probably not.) The JBL Studio L-890 are rated by Harman at 28Hz - 40kHz, +/- 3dB. That's pretty darn good, and well beyond the limits of human hearing at the high end. You might claim that speaker manufacturers in general fudge their specs, but this is likely the least likely company to do so as JBL has tremendous speaker testing facilities.

JBL offers terrific value in their speakers. The L-890s have received glowing reviews, btw. Finally, all that matters is whether or not the OP enjoys the sound presentation of the speakers. Nice looking units, too, IMHO.

 

[jamie2112]

22 years worth

Well as it goes I did measure in all situations. I used smart live and spectra foo for mac. I have been tuning concert pa's for 16 years now and have done extensive studio work going as far as having a 3X platinum release under my belt. I used a 2500 earthworks mic for all my measurements and have been asked to do many tours because of my tuning experience. I find JBL to be a good low budget speaker, but as soon as you go up the line they get worse. I know a little bit about speakers and sound after doing the music biz for 22 years and most good engineers would probably agree with me. We all have different tastes and I just am not a JBL fan. But in response to your assuming I am a tinkerer I am not and I know what I am talking about......Thanks keep up the good work audioholics.......

 

[Kurisu]

What is your budget for speakers? I assumed you were going in the same range as the jbls

My budget for this primary pair is in the range of $800 to $1200. I'll add more speakers later...

That's why I'm thinking to buy these L890s now, because they've been running at $1600 per pair for a long time and suddenly are 25% to 50% off. B&H has the L890 with black finish for only $430 each. I consider that a deal hard to pass on.

I appreciate the alternate choices, the PSBs look to be very nice as well.
More so, I'm glad some of you are agreeing with the L890 choice.

In a surround system, is it important to stick to one line of speakers or one brand? My guess is no, it's only a matter of preference.
What about the size of surround speakers? If I have a speaker like the L890 as my primary pair, then do I need medium-sized bookshelf surround speakers or can I stick with smaller satelite speakers? I'm sure the best choice would be a study in acoustics in my living room, but I'm wondering if there are any rules of thumb.

 

[Seth=L]

The front three speakers should be timbre matched. For those that listen to multichannel music (SACD, DVD-Audio) they might want to match the rears as well.