The OFFICIAL JBL Owners Thread - Page 425

The Denon 4311 is so powerful compared to what I am used to, that I don't need an extra amp to be satisfied (as of now). I can't use front wide speakers due to my room setup, or I would have gotten an external amp to go 11.1

I feel like I'm missing out not using Audyssey DSX for height speakers, so that's next up on the list. I have an extra pair of JBL 130s that I moved to my room that I'm going to add. Just need to find a good wall/ceiling mount at a good price.

I see that someone finally bought that PC600 that's been on ebay for $699.00.

I realized that zone 2 only uses analog inputs and I only do HDMI via my gpu and Jriver. I had to make a decision, either get another avr with pre-outs and a power amp (Im done playing the avr wattage games) or use my computer as a preamp and get an internal / external DAC, then go right to a series of power amps.

After looking at a bunch of different options, the one thing that was clear was that avr's are the cheapest source of multi-channel power for less than full range surrounds on the market, including pro-amps. So I reluctantly decided I'll purchase an AVR with pre-outs to power the surrounds. I looked at power amps and after going back and forth on it and looking at the $$ / per amp channel, I ordered an Emotiva XPA-3 today. Between the cost of the pro-amp, the fact that I wouldnt have been happy without a decent bump box (even though I probably wouldnt have needed one) and knowing I'd end up doing the fan mod, I just didnt want to deal with it and the cost was within $100.00 - $150.00 of a 2 channel Emotiva. I figured that a consumer amp may not be any better than a pro-amp, but I doubt it would be any worse, plus no fan noise and a longer warranty.

I'll probably go with an Onkyo TX NR709 for the AVR since I get can get it new for 530 shipped. I'll still let my computer do any digital audio & video processing and use the AVR as a DAC and as close to a dumb amp as possible.

Kind of amusing, but when I was talking to the Emotiva representative, he was pretty shocked that the HK didnt have preouts and even went so far as to go onto the HK website and look at the back plane himself. Although, I've noticed that in 2011 / 2012 offerings, more and more AVRs in the sub $1,000 MSRP range are going that route.

I am doing my best not to drink the Emotiva Kool-Aid, especially before I even get the amp, but I was pretty impressed with my experience. I was deciding between 2 x UPA-1, XPA-2 and XPA-3 and after finding out my speaker models for the system and my priorities, they recommended the XPA-3. I inquired about the XPA-5 and since it was only $200.00 more, but stated that I was already on a really tight budget and spending more than I had hoped too. They didnt even try to up-sell me. They said that the XPA-5 was a great value for the price, but for what I want the XPA-3 is more than adequate. Had this been any other industry, I would have just thought of it as good service for a company that depends on repeat business, but in the audio industry, i cant remember the last time someone didnt try to appeal more to my credit card than my good sense. Anyway, it was a refreshing experience, regardless of how the product turns out to be.

Now, I just have to go try and sell my HK AVR-3650. Luckily, I got it cheap and will let it go cheap, so I should be able to afford the Onkyo without too much trouble.

Thanks for the help. I'll report back in a few weeks with an update.

Yes, the last two series of HK AVRs (six total), only the 3600 had preouts, and you can not overlay L7 on DD. My old HK635 had preouts and overlaid L7.
HK has certainly low balled the AVRs in recent years.

New: JBL Studio 190 3-Way Floorstanding Speaker for $197 + free shipping
World Wide Stereo offers the JBL Studio 190 Floorstanding Speaker for $258.01. Coupon code "DNEWS190" cuts it to $197. With free shipping, that's the lowest total in-stock price we could find by $252, although we saw it for $7 less in December. It features a 1" tweeter, 4" midrange driver, two 6.5" woofers, frequency response of 45Hz to 22kHz, maximum power handling of 200 watts, gold-plated binding posts, and more.
Note that this deal is for a single speaker.

HarmanAudio has posted a number of clearance auctions on L-series gear via their eBay store.

very tempting since I still have the cosmetically damaged one they never asked to have back. I just don't need 7.1 and the wife would kill me...not that that ever stops me from impulse buying.

All I can find is one L8400P, a pair of L830s, a pair of L820s, an LC2, and an LC1, were there more? Not to balk at the highest recent frequency of these showing up, but it's not much to choose from (ah for the glory days and more loose cash).

Side note, my original L8400P has crapped out, tries to get out of stand-by, chirps, and goes back to sleep and tries again repeatedly as long as it's receiving signal. Any idea what the fix will be with Harman? I'm still under warranty, so I'm just curious if this will mean shipping the whole unit back to them or getting them to ship me a new plate amp or some such that I install.

They gave you the speaker for free?

If I click JBL (left column) only 1 L series shows up??? Must look at whole Harman store to see All the L speakers.
Shoot, just increased the competition ha ha.

Yeah, I did that and it's only one L880 and another pair of L830s deeper than my prior list (done the same way). I'm curious if rdgrimes saw more b-stock there than is listed now. They futz around with the store sometimes deleting items listed and relisting them for no apparent reason.

Has anyone experienced vibrating from the LC2? I've had my L series setup for awhile now. Just recently got a new receiver and now I'm hearing resonance from the LC2. I can actually see and feel the top wood piece moving. Can this just be pried off and reapplied?


Think I just 'fixed' or hid the problem. Audyssey multi-eq set the crossover for my front to 40hz and the center to 50hz and my svs sub to 120hz. Changed all the speakers to thx standard of 80hz and the sub to 90hz. Don't get the resonance anymore....

I really was surprised at first, but after looking at AVRs from Denon, Pioneer and Yamaha under the $1,000 USD range, they all seem to be doing this. Onkyo seems to be one of the few that still has pre-outs on lower price models, but they have their own set of issues.

I ordered an Onkyo TX-NR709 from crutchfield today. I could have gotten it a few bucks cheaper on amazon, but I wanted the 60 day return policy with the cheap return shipping. I think I'm still in denial that I cant afford to forgo an AVR. I found some cheap power amps around (can't be any worse than whats in the Onkyo), but cannot figure out how to get my HDMI signal from my GPU to the amps at a cost competitive with an AVR (including the cost of the surround speaker amps themselves).

Oh well...my AVR 3650 is on fleabay, Audiogon and craigslist so hopefully it will sell for enough to cover the cost of the Onkyo, or most of it. Either way, next week I should be able to evaluate whether the upgrade to the XPA-3 was worth it.

Yeah, the CSR told me that they would get back to me on what to do with the damaged speaker and they never did.

The auto-on circuits on some Infinity and JBL ES series subwoofers (and also other brands) have failed at times. Your situation appears consistent with auto-on failure (usually a capacitor in the circuit).

You need to talk to JBL on how they best think your situation should be handled (i.e., whether you can ship just the plate amp back for repair).

I prefer to put my subwoofers on surge protectors that I turn off when I have no need of the subwoofer. I hope this extends the life of the auto-on circuits.

What happens when you change the switch from 'auto on' to 'on'?

You know, I thought I had remembered a switch for the auto-on settings, but there's only a master power switch (on/off; and the phase and LFE/Normal switches). When I shut if off, the red LED drains slowly and goes out, flip it back to "on" and it goes through the same failed wake cycle as long as its receiving signal.

@wwinkler: Thanks for the insights, that's exactly the kind of info I was looking for. Here's hoping it's a simple fix.

I'll keep the thread apprised of the resolution.

At least it still chirps at you, doesn't that make you feel all warm and happy?

I do love the chirp. I wish my whole rig had an "arming" phase where exciting things happened like the L8400s.

What happened on HKs latest Ebay offereings? All of the sudden several good offereings were cancelled. (IE there were L820s, LCI, LC2, and a few others)

Not the first time they've done that. Who knows...........

Too bad that black L8400P is not in the auction. That would complete my blk/ch/blk/ch/blk etc arrangement. Just kidding, kinda...
The L890s with a 40hz crossover using 1 sub sound better than 80Hz and 2 subs for music.
Rigged up all the sources via 5.1 analog thru a component video switcher (has 6 RCA jacks for each input). Years ago at a garage sale I found a Monster car audio 15ft 6 channel cable. The majority of the cable is 1 piece that branches out into 2 then 6 RCA at each end. That's what runs between the switcher and AVR.
I refuse to send audio over HDMI so all my old HK AVRs still sing. 1 HK is in 7.1 analog direct from a BD player. The old HTPCs aren't used much anymore. Well, the best one fried and tripped a 20A breaker. Nothing like coming home to a dark room and the smell of burnt electronics! But no worries, it was in a steel server case inside a steel AV cabinet. Guess 7 years was all that PS could take. Took everything with it but the hard drives which was all I was concerned about. All the media was safe on external HDs as other stuff should have been. Used the remaining HTPC to record the bizarre 6:12Hr Daytona 500. Over 50Gb.
What was I talking about? (gotta stop eating those chocolate covered coffee beans at night.) Oh yeah, really enjoying these JBLs.

Give the L890s enough power and they will easily sing down to 28 htz, w/o a sub. When I first bought a pair in '06, I had them connected to a Parasound 220w amp in a 3200 cuft room. I was impressed as to how much bass they put out in that large room.

I'm think of picking up a pair of L890s to replace my S312s. I'm concerned as to how the L890s and S312s bass compare to each other. They are in an open area (kitchen/dining & great room) of my house that is ~650sqf with cathedral ceilings.

I have an older AVR (from 2001), a Kenwood Sovereign VR-4700 that does 120W/ch that I drive the S312s with right now, so I should be OK on power. I'm thinking of getting an Onkyo TR-NX809 or something similiar in the near future.

I think you'll find them to be comparable in the LF octaves. However, the L890 has considerably better MF and HF performance which far outweighs any LF differences. Go for it, and feed them as much power as you can afford.

Yeah, I'm definitely looking for the MF and HF performance gain. I have alot of 24bit/96KHz topnotch Vinyl rips that I would love to hear/put to their full potential. Plus Blu-ray movies would benefit as well, but mostly it's for the music.

As rg mentioned, more power the better. I ran my L890s with a Parasound HCA2205A, and they put out a lot of bass. The L890 does have a impedance dip, that drops to less than 3u.

BTW, I owe you and RD props for the guidance on powering my L890s, and setting them up in stereo. They seem to be happy with a bit more power from a new 1U pro audio amp. With your data I made sure the Amp could handle 2 Ohm. Heh, maybe I should have bought the more powerful cousin to this amp but heat and noise must be kept under control due to proximity to seating..

I respectfully have to disagree with my friend, rdgrimes. We've blind A/B'ed these two models in a well treated room. There were VERY MINOR differences in presentation. Unless there is some aesthetic or damage reason for making a change, you'd be wasting your money.

I ran a QSC1450 700w@2 Ohm for a couple of years until the volume controls became "crackly". Went back to the HK525 AVR and it still sounds pretty good.