Yes I am a NOOB....is this overkill?

[RGCriss]

First I would like to say i've been reading the forums for a couple of weeks now and i enjoy all the info.
I have been into home audio for many years but am now putting together a home theater system. I have purchased a JVC RX-8040B reciever and have a question about speakers. I am the proud owner of a pair of JBL L100 speakers I purchased in 1976 that have been hooked up to everything from a marantz 2275 to a JVC JRS600 stereo reciever. Do you think I can still use these in a home theater system, and if so what can u recommend for the surrounds and sub in a 6.1 system. trying to keep the cost under 600 US.
Sorry for the dumb question but I have been out of the loop so to speak for several years.
TIA

 

[Rob Babcock]

Not a dumb question at all- in fact, if you're happy with your main speakers it only makes sense to want to incorporate them into a new HT rig. But, it generally isn't all that practical. The main problem is that the "timbre" (or basic voicing) of speakers varies a lot from brand to brand, or even from model to model. It's very unlikely that you'll be able to find a speaker that sounds similar enough to get a good voice match, and no reliable method of finding one without trying them all brute force style. You may luck out and find a serendipitous mating, but the odds are long against it.

With speakers that don't voice match well, you'll find that as sounds pan across the soundstage they'll change in tone quite noticably. A Harley might turn into a Yamaha dirt bike as it moves from the left to the center of the screen! And actor's voices will also change in sound as they move to dissimilar sounding speakers. Yech!

Also, it's my opinion that speakers have generally improved a lot over the last 20 years or so. I realize there's a lot of fans of vintage gear, and I'm not putting them down, but there's never been as much good sounding gear for as little money as there is right now. We really are in a Golden Age for HT.

I'd suggest the best thing is to start over from scratch and get 5/6 voice matched speakers and a sub. Five or six identical speakers would be ideal in theory, but in actual practice many find that due to placement issues and a host of other concerns that specialized speakers designed for each purpose is often the best way to go. You can buy a set of towers or standmounter's for the front, a matching center channel, and a set of special surrounds and get excellent HT performance. Especially handy in many rooms is that many surrounds are made to be wall mounted. If you buy them in white, you may leap many WAF hurdles!

That's not to say you must scrap your faithful JBLs. You may want to keep them for a 2nd zone or 2nd stereo-only rig. Maybe you have a shop or office that could use some music? An entertainment room or workout area that could use a 2nd zone music system? Maybe you can give them to a relative or friend that may be building their first system? And there's always Ebay.

 

[RGCriss]

Thanks, I think I will use them as zone 2 speakers in my system for stereo listening. They are rather large, and i understand the "voice matching " equation. Decisions decisions, think I will look at some infinity or klipsch systems to go with it. unless anyone knows of another manufacturer that can provide best bang for the buck

 

[Swerd]

I have purchased a JVC RX-8040B reciever and have a question about speakers. I am the proud owner of a pair of JBL L100 speakers I purchased in 1976 that have been hooked up to everything from a marantz 2275 to a JVC JRS600 stereo reciever. Do you think I can still use these in a home theater system, and if so what can u recommend for the surrounds and sub in a 6.1 system. trying to keep the cost under 600 US.TIA

I have a slightly different answer to your question than the one described by Rob. Several years ago I was in a similar position to yours. I had 2 older full-range speakers that I liked and wanted to keep, and needed to buy a center and surrounds. I was told the same answer that the solution to the voice matching problem is to buy voice matched speakers. It does solve the problem, but it is not the only solution.

The important feature for a center speaker is that it doesn't cause a collapse or narrowing in the sound stage as sounds pan across the 3 front speakers. This could happen if your center speaker has inferior mid and treble dispersion compared to your JBLs. If you get a center speaker with dispersion at least as good as your JBLs you should have much less of problem. Do you know what type of tweeter and crossover point is on those speakers? Is it a dome or cone tweeter? Is it crossed low, say at 2 or 3 kHz, or high, say at 5 or 6 kHz? Most modern speakers have better tweeters than those from 1976, and should have better dispersion patterns. Haul those JBLs to a shop where you can listen to them along with some center speakers and find out for youself if the voice matching issue is a problem for you. I have found that as long as the dispersion of the center speaker is wider than that of the left and right speakers, strict voice matching is not a problem. For what its worth, I ended up buying a NHT center channel speaker, which to my ears presents neutral uncolored mids and trebles.

The criteria for choosing rear speakers is less stringent than for matching up the front three speakers.

As far as a subwoofer goes, you may find that you have to spend quite a lot of money before you get one that outperforms those efficient 12" JBLs! The power of your receiver will be the limiting factor for their bass performance, where most subwoofers are separately powered. If your buget is limited, I would try things without a subwoofer.

 

[RGCriss]

Thanks, more food for thought After reading alot of posts about HT I feel it is time to set them free (my L100's) . They are like comfortable old shoes if u know what i mean. I'll set them up in another system for stereo music where they can live their lives out in peace...although they will probably outlast me!
Going to make a trip to Phoenix (5 hour drive) and Las Vegas (2 hours)
to check out some gear at the end of the month. With the information I have gathered from all of the Audioholics, I am looking forward to making this a succesful shopping trip.
Thanks to everyone

 

[Rob Babcock]

Sounds like a good plan, RGCriss. Your JBLs have had a pretty good run; if you "put them out to stud" they can still continue on in a stereo capacity. Besides, if you've wrung two decades out of your current pair, you certainly deserve new ones!

 

[RGCriss]

Well I returned from vegas with a pair of jbl e60's (in a cherry finish). listened to polk, infinity,and yes a guy tried to sell me some bose (not gonna happen lol) and I guess i am a sucker for JBL . will round out the system with some e30's and an ec35. sub still no decision but perhaps the e250p.
I do have a question about bi-wiring.... why should i or shouldn't i and what will it achieve??
Thaks to all

 

[Leprkon]

I do have a question about bi-wiring.... why should i or shouldn't i and what will it achieve??
Thaks to all

Bi-wiring won't really get you much if you are already running a decent size speaker cable (12 gage or larger). If you are running a smaller size wire (say 16 or 18 gage), you would probably be able to hear a difference of adding a second set of wires. Please check the jumpers on the speaker and make sure they are decent size as well.

Even if you are running from both the A/B speaker output terminals, most receivers run those off the same power source, so you're not getting any extra juice to the speakers.