What was really JBL's finest speaker creation?

I have a set of those stands in a darker finish under my 4311Bs. I never see those stands anymore.

 

Looks like it may have some newer smoother tweeter, am I right, it's something new?

 

Well, never having had the honor of being able to audition a pair of Everest DD67000s, I'd have to say the finest JBL creation was the 4345 and this pair in cabinets from Rick (of KenRick) with his rare black ash baffles and wooden lens have been mine for about eight years. And yeah, that's an 18-inch woofer!

 

My cousin once loaned me a pair of JBL LX44 speakers when my KEF were sent to repair. I have no idea how high or low they are on the JBL totem pole but I remember they sounded rather decent.

 

I had a pair of JBL l36's for a while and boy do I regret selling them. Not the most accurate speakers but you could listen to them all day. I will have another pair of JBL's someday. One of my favorite speaker brands.

 

4367 or M2. Near flawless off axis performance on both.

 

One more vote for the JBL 4355.

 

I don't know about "best" but my favorite is the Everest K2 S9500. The asymmetric horns just look neat, and I think it is still the only consumer product to try and offer constant coverage asymmetrically.

 

Those look unbelievable. As far as I’m concerned there’s one formula for a great speaker: size. If you want to be overwhelmed you need to push some air. On a more reasonable scale I heard these hooked up to a turntable and they were absolutely stunning. Probably the best “reasonable” set up I’ve ever heard — The JBL C60 Sovereign. If I ever found a pair that would be the last pair of speakers Id need. Most of them seem to have made their way to Asia. Asia was ahead of the curve when it came to grabbing up the good stuff while we were stupidly drooling over our Polk Audio and Cerwin Vega’s.

Redirect Notice

 

SURPRISE!

 

If the criteria is 'longevity of production' (30 years so far) then the excellent little 'Control 1' would be a candidate.Although not sure they are as well made as they used to be..Still hard to beat if you want great value bookself speakers.

 

And it's a very good sounding speaker for small spaces. Better than it gets credit for.

 

They are beasts.Proper speakers.

 

JBL ala Ummagumma

 

They have a freaking 12" midrange driver that weighs 20.9 lbs The 4355s are my favorite JBL speaker.

Here's a video by Rick from Kenrick US facility of a recent pair that was sold for a TON of money..

 

Interesting to know what would be original on a Kenrick rebuild .. Are Cabinets built from scratch.The same with crossovers? Are drivers restored or manufactured new??

 

ill vouch for the 4355 as best too ^^

 

Now don't you go pick'n on us Polkies! (The OP likes them too)

 

I heard some Everests at the RMAF in a room way too small and had to leave shortly after.It was the high frequencies that were piercing to my ears.I think you need a large(like real large) well done(acoustically) room for these.

 

That's a bit of bogus B.S. you're spouting there, Mr. Shark!

Sorry if I offended you with my enthusiasm for my 4345 "clones". The rarity claim for the black ash comes from Rick having only built three pairs of them and saving the material for another pair for himself. The cabinet is 100% faithful to the original JBL specifications other than the color of the baffle and the wood lenses—easily replaced by the original plastic version if anyone cared to do so! The drivers are all NOS or rebuilt with original JBL components. The crossovers are charge-coupled built from the suggested improved schematic provided by Greg Timbers, the original engineer and designer of the 4345 and most of the famous JBL systems from the last 40-years who said the weak points of the original 4345 were the poor switch provided to make these able to be bi-amped or not, and the lack of sophistication of then-current crossover designs. These issues are corrected in my "clones".

If your enjoyment of the music requires all of your components to be visually original, then you'll have a hard time listening to these with your eyes open. But with your eyes closed, the experience transcends even the original design while remaining faithful to what makes the 4345 so great to start with. JBL made only something like 200-pairs of the 4345, so it's difficult to find original pairs in good condition. To me, the sound is worth more than the "originality" of the system. Would I prefer to have dead-stock originals? No, I like the look and these are not intended to deceive anyone into thinking these are originals. They are a tribute to the originals and to the man who created the original. I don't require blue baffles to enjoy the sound. That's far from disrespecting the designer or the brand and you might want to stay around a while here and read some background before you make such a stupid statement again.

Not that I need to defend myself to you but I've had JBLs in my home for coming up on 60-years. Today I own over a dozen pairs of JBLs including 030, L100, 4412, L26, L112, L96, L150A, L80T, L1, L3, L5, L7, 250Ti, LSR305, ProIII+, in addition to my beloved 4345 "clones". Within my experience and frame of reference I believe I know what I'm talking about. I'm sure you are a an excellent source of facts and experience based on what your friend tells you about Kenrick Sound.

 

Whatever makes you happy.

The only person who's offended is you.

I'm already aware of the fact that Rick at Kenrick Sound built three pairs for his customers in black ash; though, based on a quick Google search, it looks like your pair of 4345s have had two previous owners who, mutilated your crossovers multiple times based on a design by Greg Timbers. The information about Rick building charge coupled crossovers for those specific projects is a 100% truth. Having a design specially given by Greg Timbers and having them built by Kenrick Sound not only gives a peace of mind, but something unique that nobody can go out and buy.

Again, nobody is arguing whether or not the cabinets are "100% faithful to the original JBL specifications". It's obvious that they are. And kindly spare me your sanctimonious indignation. NOTHING was intended to question the authenticity of your JBL 4345 components. You and another member are so much alike it's not even funny. You both make excuses to justify poor decisions rather than what the wise and knowledgeable people do. You would be better off investing your money in a JBL studio monitor that's COMPLETELY faithful. In short- what you do is what everybody does. And what everybody does as a recipe for wealth destruction.

I don't ever plan on listening to your speakers.

First of all, I don't get to decide what color baffle was used for the JBL 4300 series of studio monitors. JBL/Greg Timbers does. And what did they decide it was? Blue. I can't really consider somebody a fan if their preference for a speaker is a version of it that subverts the original intent. There's nothing "respectful" about inaccuracy and incompetence. If you really wanted to pay tribute, get something that's actually identical to the original product.

Unfortunately for you, my information is accurate. Keep in mind that being 60-70 years old and having a bunch of JBL speakers doesn't make you "all-knowing" about JBL products. That kind of adittude makes me think you have some kind of superiority complex issue.[/QUOTE]

 

Personally, I'd rather have charge coupled crossovers built by Kenrick Sound rather than a bunch of random hooligans, that's all. Still not sure why you felt the need to write me a book, Mr. BMW!

 

Well this good thread sure went off the rails . Can we get back to speaker porn now?

 

My guess is you're a troll, and possibly one who actually fell for the Kenrick "synthetic leather" surround "upgrade" and now can't sell your own 4333 for half of what you claim to have paid for them only months ago. Name-changing seems to be your method of operation.

Do you have anything positive to add to this thread or this site?

 

Sorry. My fault for responding to a troll. Which I could edit or delete some posts but apparently that's not possible.