JBL Studio 530, any good?

I just received my pair on Friday. In the past I have not enjoyed horn loaded speakers at least the ones I have heard. If you listened with eyes closed you would not think the tweeter was horn loaded. The highs are detailed and together with the mid/woofer imaging is excellent.

Bass is good but I am sure the woofer will break-in more. Bass is surprising considering the driver's size. I also own Mobile Fidelity OML1 speakers and bass sounds very comparable. Of course the Studio 530's do not have the bass of my Monitor Audio RS6's. My room is small with the speakers positioned in front of the short wall at 12 feet. The controlled directivity of the horns, I think, creates a more accurate sound due to less side wall reflections.

Early reactions are violins sound better through this speaker than my others. Imaging and soundstaging are excellent. Individual instruments are focused and have a sense of space and air between musicians. Female vocalists singing in harmony are easier to follow individual voices. Listening to large scale classical music what you may miss in the bass is made up by the large, deep and layered soundstage.

I found the speakers work for me best on 22 inch stands. I followed JBL's suggestion of wider placement and 40-60 degrees of toe-in. I did need to remove the grill and use the small plastic panel to maintain the geometry of the horn. The speaker is more transparent without the grill covering the mid/woofer. All in all a surprisingly good speaker for $600.

Check this out...

http://www.whathifi.com/review/jbl-studio-530