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JBL HDI-3800 Floorstanding Speaker Review

Sal1950

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I'm personally of the opinion that the 3800s horn/waveguide top end will be able to deliver
a more detailed, low distortion treble than the Revel's. JMHO
YMMV
 

Helicopter

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I'm personally of the opinion that the 3800s horn/waveguide top end will be able to deliver
a more detailed, low distortion treble than the Revel's. JMHO
YMMV
3800 look fine to me technically too and I would include them on the short list in the specific category. I have heard good things about them here. They look way better aesthetically than Revels to me too.
 
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Sal1950

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I love my 3600s, the 3800s would just have been a bit too large and visually overwhelming in my small space. Specially since I have 5 of them. LOL
In any case you really can't go wrong with either, simply a matter of taste.
 

Helicopter

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I love my 3600s, the 3800s would just have been a bit too large and visually overwhelming in my small space. Specially since I have 5 of them. LOL
In any case you really can't go wrong with either, simply a matter of taste.
Any trouble buying an odd number?
 

nick-v

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The newly announced Studio 6xx Line uses a similar looking waveguide. The Studio 698 looks like a budget HDI-3800, maybe they even perform similarly :)
The 698 is a 3-way design instead of a 2 1/2 way. It might actually have some advantages at the expense of output.
 

More Dynamics Please

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Though they may have a passing visual similarity, for the price differential I'd expect a quality advantage in drivers, crossover and enclosure construction resulting in a noticeable performance advantage for the HDI series over the Studio 6 series.
 

Sal1950

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Any trouble buying an odd number?
I actually just simplified my post, I have 4 3600s and the 4500 center channel. ;)
But I don't imagine you'd have an issue with singles during normal times.
In today world of Covid, parts shortages, etc, who knows.
 

SMOKEYoriginal

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Revel Performa F208 and Focal Aria 948 are a couple great speakers that are positioned in a similar market space. I have 948s and the undistorted bass is really nice for cello and organ. A powerful amp will compliment them well. I am running Hypex NC500MP. The 948s were fine with normal.and even fairly weak amps before I upgraded.
Hey, thanks for the recommendation. Is this the one you are talking about AMP ? But I assume I need a dual channel, right (for 2 speakers) ?
 

tuga

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I'm personally of the opinion that the 3800s horn/waveguide top end will be able to deliver
a more detailed, low distortion treble than the Revel's. JMHO
YMMV

The tweeter starts peaking in the upper treble to produce a ginormous breakup peak at the top of the audio band, and distortion starts shooting upwards above 9kHz. Pity, or I might consider giving them a go.

1021jbl.lab1.jpg

index.php
 

Sal1950

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The tweeter starts peaking in the upper treble to produce a ginormous breakup peak at the top of the audio band, and distortion starts shooting upwards above 9kHz. Pity, or I might consider giving them a go.
How much musical info do you believe is above 15k and can you even hear anything up there?

"Distortion seems very well under control:
Amirm"

index.php
 

tuga

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How much musical info do you believe is above 15k and can you even hear anything up there?

"Distortion seems very well under control:
Amirm"

Hi-Fi News measurements:

JBL HDI-3800
THD 100Hz/1kHz/10kHz (for 90dB SPL/1m) 0.2% / 0.2% / 2.0%

Revel F208
THD 100Hz/1kHz/10kHz (for 90dB SPL/1m)0.3% / 0.1% / <0.1%
 

Sal1950

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Ya lay down your money and you buy your ticket. ;)
 

mightycicadalord

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People who think problems above 15k don't matter are crazy. I'm 33, I do a lot of mix work, that stuff up there is important and tracks that have issues up there are obnoxious. My hearing may start to decline at 16k but I can definitely still hear how nastiness above it can bleed down into frequencies below it. The issues shouldn't shouldn't ignored just because you don't think there's much content up there (there is).
 

Helicopter

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Hey, thanks for the recommendation. Is this the one you are talking about AMP ? But I assume I need a dual channel, right (for 2 speakers) ?
My amp is a unique custom job. That amp uses the same circuit board as my amp, so performance should be about the same. You would need one of the amp you linked for each speaker. It is only one channel of amplification. If I were buying a pre-made Hypex amp, I would look at Buckeye amps and Boxem Audio amps, both members on the forum here. The NC502MP is a 2 channel module with similar performance to running 2 NC500MP single channel modules. Hypex NC400 is also a great module.
 

SMOKEYoriginal

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My amp is a unique custom job. That amp uses the same circuit board as my amp, so performance should be about the same. You would need one of the amp you linked for each speaker. It is only one channel of amplification. If I were buying a pre-made Hypex amp, I would look at Buckeye amps and Boxem Audio amps, both members on the forum here. The NC502MP is a 2 channel module with similar performance to running 2 NC500MP single channel modules. Hypex NC400 is also a great module.
Thanks :)
 

Regor

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What the heck happened above 10khz? That looks really...like there is a whole other super tweeter on a different curve up there.
That >15kHz behaviour looks to be very measurement position specific. My in 9 point room measurements around my listening show some evidence at one location. The heavier black trace is the average of 9 measurements.
 

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archerious

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I think I'd chose Revel F208 in this price range, even though I like the aesthetic of the JBL slightly more(and I'd like it a lot more if the waveguide matched the main speaker finish).
I'm debating.

I can get the Revel F208 shipped new from a good dealer in my state for $4600 + tax, but with the sale on the HDI-3800, a pair is $3850 + tax.

Not sure if the Revel F208 are worth the $850 difference.

Especially when the F226Be are around $6000 a pair from most dealers.

Trying to look at the ideal speaker setup under $7000.

Auditioned some speakers at Magnolia (no other audio stores near me) and didn't really like the Kef floor standers (didn't care for Kef R3 either).

I do like my Revel M105 and my brother in law's Wharfedale Linton's, but I want my speakers to have more detail, better imaging, and a larger soundstage.

Neutral with a little extra brightness is what I like, too neutral like what Kef R3 sounded like to me just comes across as dull.

Almost same experience I had with Kef R5 and R7 at Magnolia, somewhat dull, too neutral.
 

Sal1950

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I can get the Revel F208 shipped new from a good dealer in my state for $4600 + tax, but with the sale on the HDI-3800, a pair is $3850 + tax.
Neutral with a little extra brightness is what I like, too neutral like what Kef R3 sounded like to me just comes across as dull.
This is a hard call, I debated the same before I got my HDI-3600s.
All I can say is that if you want to get something a bit more less "dull" sounding you might really enjoy the 3800s.
I find mine offering an incredible balance between highly detailed and bright.
Obviously my owner bias is showing.
YMMV

See my system in my signature link.
 
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