Goodbye JBL L-46s, a mini review.

Just let my JBL L-46s go this afternoon. Both pair. Sad, but glad they'll be appreciated by the eager new owner.




What is a JBL L-46?

A very nice two-way design, with the famed 117H 8" woofer with bright-white paper cone and a butyl surround (on most), and a titanium dome tweeter- the famed 034s.

The build quality of these is outstanding, with a precision, heavy-duty cast aluminum woofer basket that looks like a rim off a musclecar, titanium dome tweeters, and both drivers with close tolerance voice coil gaps and flat coil wire.

The cabs are stout and solid, internally well braced, and finished in a beautiful, high-grade American black walnut finish that, with some tung oil, shines like a brown brook trout in the soft sunlight.

The 8" woofer may not put out the bass of the 10" L-56, which uses a 10" woofer (3dB lower) and bigger cabinet, but it's not a huge night-day difference as one would expect. I would say it's due to the "voicing" of the speaker by JBL that results in this. Quite impressive. Both are a ported design. Drivers are vertically aligned.

Also, the L-46's 8" woofer mates better than the 10" woofer in the L-56, in my opinion, with this tweeter- less of a size gap going on there. The L-46 sounds more balanced, more cohesive, overall, than the L-56. I feel the L-56 begs for a midrange driver, where the L-46 does not.

The L-46 is also easier to place than the larger L-56, another bonus. That bigger cab is kind of hulking for a 2-way, comparitively speaking.

Very efficient, the JBLs really get loud, and fast, off little power. 10wpc is recommended, and will take 100wpc.

The grills are not your run-of-the-mill squares, but bevel-edged, angular, artistically designed covers. Not too fancy, but some design thought went into these. Put them into an Eames setting and you've pretty much got a great match, with those subtle angular grill edges and deep rich veneer.

Pull the grills off, and they look at home in any 70's recording facility. White cone woofers framed by thick, chunky aluminum, and a tweeter, paper-thin titanium dome in a thick black circle, with a mesh screen over it to protect from damage. The screen looks stolen from a front porch window, but formed into a circular and domed half-sphere, it's seductively industrial looking, while still remaining very elegant.

Resale value of these L-46s keeps climbling. For a pair you would grab for $25 to $50 a short wile ago, expect to pay $75, $100, even $150 and up. I've seen 'em sell upwards of $280 at times.

Clearly, like Altecs/Lansings, JBLs are also very collectible. A nearly fool-proof investment, as they'll almost always appreciate in value.




So, what are the physical shortcomings?

Two, total. One insignificant, one annoying enough for me to legitimately gripe.

The nonsensical, petty complaint of mine is, with all the great colors JBL grills came in, the L-46s were offered in puppy-poop rich brown only. Where were the burnt orange, the aqua, the reds of the other models? But this is minor.

The complaint worthy of print is the speaker terminals. Terminally annoying. A decent design of a type where the wire is inserted into a hole then the connection is twisted a quarter-turn to lock the wire in place is great. But they accept only dinky 18 gauge wire, and if your wire is terminated with little pins, they won't "grab", as the pins won't flatten as the terminal is twisted.

Annoying.



Anyhow, on to sound-



The JBLs are a pleasant, but forward-sounding speaker. Eager to please and excite, they pack a wollup. Van Halen's debut self-titled album or "1984" and Queen's "Greatest Hits" & "Classics" both excell on the JBLs. Big sound from the flamboyant singers, large guitars, heavy-hitting drums, and jacked-up control booth operators rolling on a diet of little white pills and little white lines, and getting wild with the faders. It fills the room up effortlessly.


hey, what was that?!? did I just get passed a joint by the sessions player? I think so. I feel like I'm right at home in the 70's/80's with the fellas in the studio, belly up to the mixing board, with these.

Put in a DVD and hook 'em up to the telly, and all of a sudden, the monster (and Arnold, too) in "Predator" sounds bigger and meaner, bones snap with more authority in the hands of Steven Segal in "Above the Law", punches are felt, as well as heard, with both Robert DeNiro & Sylvester Stallone in "Raging Bull" and "Rocky" (respectively), car crashes crunch with more damage and insurance surcharges in "Gone in 60 Seconds", and you pee your pants when Samuel L. Jackson gets mad in "Pulp Fiction".

I loved them for this. Drum and bass, techno, hip-hop, heavy metal, and many other flavours of music are embraced by these dynamos.

But put them on a diet of jazz, or female vocals, or male vocals, acoustic, or folk, and the JBLs are not my cup of tea.

The sound remains, well, sounding "processed". As if the fellas in the studio are dumbfounded how to mic, mix, and record poor old Doc Watson. And the normally easy-going good 'ol doc sounds a bit congested way up in the topmost of his sinuses, and a bit agitated, a bit irritated. Holly Cole sounds like she's being piped in through a Radio Shack PA mic. Someone's got their fingers on the treble button, and it's turned way up on poor old Neko Case- she's sounding white-hot.

My opinion, of course, but that's what these, and many other JBLs of that era sound like- a bit hot, a bit "processed", always "heavy handed" and "produced".

Not bad, and easily balanced with proper EQ, but out of the box, Tom Waits, Townes Van Zandt, Billie Holiday and Chet Baker don't like 'em.

Early Miles Davis? No.

Later, heroin-era, wild-eyed & funky Miles Davis? Just fine.



So, with my musical tastes ranging from hip-hop to techno to industrial, but also to folk and jazz and bluegrass, the JBLs and I, well, we just didn't mesh.




The new owner seemed thrilled, and was pleased as punch with them (he is a tech at a JBL repair facility). I wish him many happy hours of listening and enjoyment.

This post has been edited by thedelihaus on November 17, 2007 05:25 pm

as always, a great review, thanks

elroy

nice review Paul, looks like everyone came away happy on this deal.

Another thoughtful and thorough review, thanks Paul.

I'm not too up on JBL's but it appears the L's are well made. I see J's from time to time but they have cast baskets, which to me represents a downgrade. Are the J's less collectable?

Sam, dunno much about the J models.

I only sold the L46s as they weren't getting much play here. I've favored a flatter response speaker than these, so they weren't in rotation in the music end of things. Aqnd for HT, I've got plenty of options. With the powered sub, I could go with a smaller speaker, like the Paradigm Titans, which take up less room real estate.

So, instead of them collecting dust, I let them go to a home where they'd be played, and enjoyed.

What a nice review, Paul, but then that doesn´t surprise any of us.

I have added a link to this thread in "Sound-Thinking Reviews".

So, how many pairs are you down to?

Jorge

Jorge, I think just a touch over 30, but the Infinity QAs just went out the door, and there's another pair or two leaving Monday.

Goal is to get it down to the following-

Main/Living room-We'll see what lasts after an extended listening of these...

Thiel CS 2s
Vandersteen 2Cs
Dahlquist DQ-10s
a/d/s/ L1230s
AR 9LSIs

kitchen- will try to narrow it down to one-

Dynaco a25s
DCM CX-27s
a/d/s/ L570 IIs

ambient/listening while doing chores-

Bose 301 IIs

For work- will aim to get it down to one-

Minimus 7s
Boston Acoustics A40s
Baltek 30s


For Home Theater-

1 pair Minimus 7s
2 pair Paradigm titans


That's 15 pair, with a goal to get it to 10 pair or less.

Of course, if I come across some small, cheap Maggies, I could be swayed to pick 'em up.

Same for IMF or Fried, Allison, Ohm or a few other select pair like royd bookshelves or Mission 750s- though honestly, I'm not acively looking.

The goal is to thin the herd, not add to it. Not yet, at least.

I think they are calling that "paying it forward" nice job on spreading the wealth.

elroy

Paul:

15 pairs is plenty. I have:

Yamaha NS-1000M (x2)
Yamaha NS-200M (x2)
Yamaha NS-50T
Pioneer HPM-100 (x3)
Pioneer HPM-60 (x2)
Pioneer HPM-40
JBL 4301
JBL L-18Ti
Saba Monitors
ESS Tempest
Soundscaftsmen Lancers (large)
AR4x
Madisound (w/Vifa drivers)
KLH satellite speakers (x2)

I wish I could get down to 10 pairs. Most of mine except the Yamaha 1000M's were dirt cheap so it is a matter of space and not dollars.

Nice review, Paul.
I would not hesitate to pick up a pair of L46s if I came across
'em at an affordable price.

I liked the brook trout analogy.



dennis

PS-For some reason I didn't have permission to say happy thanksgiving, so I'll say it here. Lots to celebrate, and thanks to y'all for a great site. Got to spend time with my family and son yesterday, and get the rest of the weekend with my GF.
Best of all worlds...

<nice li'l westy here to keep me company whilst I watch the Buffs-Cornchucklers game. Gurls are off shopping.

Paul has taken the scientific approach: get rid of the "nice to haves" and move onto the "need to haves".

His selection of keepers would rubber stamp my choices ( but then I AM a suck-up!)

I would loose the AR-9xxx and maybe the DCm's and throw in the Boston acoustics as well.

The rest of the stuff levels the playing field a lot. I believe for serious listening he will be torn between the Thiels and Vanderstines, with both staying put.

to prove he is serious about sound ... he must nuke the Bose..... without looking back.

Here is my threat: Should he not follow this stream of consciousness.... I, the Great and Powerful Oz, will place the "curse of mediocre sound" on every piece of equipment he currently owns or soon to own"!

Lets get moving! I expect an hourly update!

the AR9Lsi can hang with the Vandersteen 2c any day. i dont know about the Thiel's, but mentioning AR9xxx in the same sentence with bloze is way below the belt.

i'll cant resist taking the opportunity to mention that Oz was just a really goofy guy behind a curtain.

Well, Gino, you'll be happy to hear both the Boston A150s and A200s are out the door as of today.

I expect the A70s to follow suit soon as well.

The Bose may indeed go to a friend as a gift, but remember- they get played at times when I'm cutting wood for baseboard trim, or washing dishes, or DeOxiting components, or falling asleep and trying to drown out outside noise interference.

And never, ever for serious listening. They just don't cut the mustard. They actually use mayonaise instead.


The DCMs are a nicer speaker than you'd think, with that co-axial driver placement and complex and advanced crossovers.

However, they too, are to be considered "expendable" if they fail any of my testing at a later date. At worst, sold off. If it's a toss-up, a killer pair of HT speakers.



The AR 9LSIs are going to be interesting to repair and demo. I have never heard a pair, but I do expect great things- many a folk sing their praise. I've got a friend with two pair I'm waiting to go visit one afternoon.

I look forward to seeing how they react with my room. I hope it's a successful pairing. And hopingthe drivers are all good in them. Foam is shot to turd.




Gino, I'd love to have you over to listen to the system. Wish it was feasable for you. We could drink M/D 20-20 or Thunderbird, and throw the empty bottles at the losing speakers, to see if we could knock them over.

Anyhow, you are always welcome and invited.

the AR9Lsi can hang with the Vandersteen 2c any day. i dont know about the Thiel's, but mentioning AR9xxx in the same sentence with bloze is way below the belt.

i'll cant resist taking the opportunity to mention that Oz was just a really goofy guy behind a curtain.

I expect great things from the AR-9s. Hope to see them singing after the Holidat rush is over.

The Bose- true- not for serious listening.

But for backround noise, I'd fare worse- many a speaker not as nice, of course so many that are better.

But that wide soundstage is nice when milling around- one may drop out of it when moving left or right too far. The Bose, though not as good as a pair of Boston A40s, or Paradigm Titans or NHT SuperOnes, can keep a large and warmly fuzzy soundstage going.

Of course, resolution and upper end performance with those paper-cone tweeters is limited.

But who cares while you're chatting over backround music with a bottle of wine with a blonde or redhead or heck, any woman, for that matter?



By the way, never liked the other Bose, though the 601s intrigue me. another "wide soundstage" speaker with I imagine good, but not great sound.

I will admit one thing about the Bose 601's. If you keep just the woofer portion and disable the mid/tweeter. you can then mount that case in your car trunk for a very good subwoofer!!! that sucker plays LOUD & Punchy!!!

As for hiding behind the curtain, so true..so true. Though he was filled with wisdom and caused the 4some to test their own metal before they came to the realization of their ample abilities.

I own and have owned 2 versions of AR's during my audio life. Original AR-3a's and AR-LST's. The 3a's tweeters constantly burned out, never played loud enough, had poor bass, though the mids were done right for the time. The LST's were the sweet spot in the line and continue to perform well over these many years. When Teledyne took over AR, everything pretty much went downhill quickly. Too many models of dubious quality, overlapping without distinction. The "thoroughbreds" continue to be Ar-1w, AR-2, AR-3 & 3a, AR-4 and of course the LST's. The rest IMHO are drek.

As for sipping or gulping... makes no difference. T-bird=no-way! 25yr old single malt Scotch....Puligny Chassagne, Chambertin's,Cotie Rote's, Barbaresco's, 1st or 2nd Growth Beaudeaux's, Chianti Reserva Ducale, and then Martell VSOP 50-75 year old cognac.

Then we can throw the bottles at the speakers or the non (wire makes no difference )believers!

This post has been edited by Ginovino on November 24, 2007 07:01 am