- Thread Starter
- #21
What were some of better ones you heard? If you dont mind me asking
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If you had to pick a speaker...
- Thread starter Beanman
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Look hard at the Focal Chora 806, Crutchfield has them for 600/pr. They don't dig as deep as the others, but you have 2 subwoofers, so that's not a concern. I have not heard these speakers personally, but from everything that I have heard and read, the top end and midrange is first class. As far as the JBL's go, skip the 130 and go to the 530, it will save you the upgrade cost. We're in an expensive game, my friend -- you wanna sit at the table, you gotta pay the money.
- Thread Starter
- #23
Do you have personal experience with the 530?
TimW
Major Contributor
Right now I'm running Ascend Acoustics CMT-340 SE2 and getting the best imaging I have ever heard. This is in a wide room with plenty of space from speakers to side walls so that is probably a big influence. However I have tried JBL Studio 530, Bay Audio Jam Monitor, and Philharmonic AAM+ speakers in the same room and none of them imaged as well. The Philharmonics had decent imaging but the tonality was too far off to enjoy. The Studio 530s have excellent tonality and a great center image but the sound stage is narrow and therefor there isn't much going on with imaging. There have been other speakers including some DIY using Dayton DC28F tweeters that had great imaging but I can't currently compare their sound. I owned the original LS50s at one point in a different space, the imaging wasn't anything special as far as I am concerned.
cavedriver
Addicted to Fun and Learning
I would do what I did- order all three on Amazon and listen to them and pick your favorite and return the others (free shipping and returns with Prime) 
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Yes, but it was very limited. I went to the Magnolia dept. of my local Best Buy and heard them there, about 10-15 minutes. I compared them to the LS50. Listening dead center to both, about 10 ft away. The LS50's won out -- but not by much. I remember the 530's being very clean and clear (and they can get LOUD!) JBL has been around a long time, they certainly know how to make a speaker.
cavedriver
Addicted to Fun and Learning
btw, despite what I said above about Amazon, for the price of the LS/50's I would buy Philharmonic's BMR monitors. I've heard them A/B'd and the BMR's won. Better bass frequency range (significantly), no strange dips in the midrange (look closely at the klippel for the LS/50, you can hear them next to a better speaker), flatter voicing, and transparent highs.
i haven't heard anything as good as the bmr monitor at under $3000... of course my experience is limited to a couple dozen speakers in the $1500-3000 range...
- Thread Starter
- #29
I have heard they are wonderful. Watched several reviews on them. I love my Revels and not trying to duplicate or beat their sound. Would just like to find a good bookshelf for $1000 or under. Preferably $500 or less. That's what drew me to the jbl a130 and 530, the focal 806, and kef ls50.
Dennis may have a (not so) "mini" in the less than $1000 range soon...
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You may have thought the tonality was off, but not off form accurate.
TimW
Major Contributor
I was introduced to your brand with the Pioneer based AAM. I think those speakers sound very accurate and are only really lacking in bass extension and output capability. As I later saw in Amir's measurements, those speakers are very accurate. During listening he even remarked that he was "greeted with some of the best mid to high frequency presentation I had heard."
I compared these Pioneer AAMs to first gen KEF LS50s in my room and actually preferred the AAMs. This is why I jumped on the opportunity to get the new AAM+ when you were offering them as a kit. I found the AAM+ to have deeper bass extension and a more sparkly top end but I was disappointed to find the midrange not to my liking. Some things in that region sound recessed while certain notes just jump out as if the response is uneven.
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