JBL 7 Series vs. Genelec The Ones

[Kain]

I've read some comparisons of the two in various threads sprinkled around but wanted to get into a more "dedicated" discussion regarding this. For those who have heard and compared both of these speakers, what were your impressions and which did you prefer? I'm more interested in the 708i/708P vs. 8361A. Are the Genelecs worth the vastly higher price over the JBLs?

Edit: Also, how are Genelec subwoofers?

 

[RobL]

I have 8361A’s and I also have a pair of 705P’s. Both are excellent imo. I haven’t heard 708P’s but they share the same compression driver (with a smaller waveguide of course). The 8361’s play noticeably deeper, and seem to my ears to portray voices more naturally but they are also calibrated via GLM so not really apple to apples. 708P’s will play 7dB louder and 4 hz lower than my 705P’s so are definately more in line with the 61’s specs. Whether the ‘61s are worth double the price of the 708’s is really a case of diminishing returns. You will definately not get double the performance. You will get incremental improvements in some areas. You do get a state-of-the-art loudspeaker backed by a company renowned for reliability and long term support of their products though.

 

[tifune]

I've owned 708p and 8331/41/51. The 708s are a better value, unquestionably. To this day I don't fully understand why they're so great but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them in any almost scenario, aesthetics aside.

Personally I don't see subwoofers as optional at almost any price point, but without more specifics of your listening habits & environment it's hard to know for sure. 708p + sub(s) can easily be just as engaging as 8361, with $ to spare.

Genelec subwoofers are nice but absolutely not worth the $. I managed to score a (very) scratched & dented 7370 for only $1950 and I'm still returning it. GRADE is handy but you'd have almost all that info from the 8361s alone.

 

[AudioJester]

Yeah, then you look at kali in8 and Kali sub. If it is loud enough for your listening space, half the price again and more than good enough.

The point source experience from the Genelec Ones is the big difference to the JBL and others for me. Some are sensitive to it, some not so much. Unfortunstely the only way to really compare is to listen.

 

[Pearljam5000]

Id go for the Genelecs for reliability alone

 

[Zzzzz...]

For those of you that have heard both, did you notice much difference in the size of the sweet spot / dispersion characteristics?

 

[Tom C]

I expect relative pricing between the two to be very different in Dubai vs. EU or USA. I’d think price advantage goes to JBL in USA, but all things considered may well go to Genelec in EU. What is the situation in UAE?
I am in USA, and went with JBL, and am very happy with my choice. Never heard Genelec, but have been put off by the price premium in my country.
I believe some time ago, member @Thomas savage (UK) bought a 708P, had an unpleasant experience, and ended up returning the defective unit he received in frustration. After-sale support from the seller, ease of procurement, product cost, and ease of repair can potentially vary greatly from one locale to another, and make all the difference in ownership experience when things start to get real.

 

[RobL]

For those of you that have heard both, did you notice much difference in the size of the sweet spot / dispersion characteristics?

I’ve only heard the 705p and 8361a in the same position in the same room. Both are tonally similar (8361 plays much lower and louder, of course) and I can’t really notice much difference with the horizontal dispersion, the “sound stage” is similar. When I first got the 8361’s I was a bit disappointed in their (what I thought was) narrow sound stage. Turns out I had unknowingly changed my rme adi2 to mono.

When listening from 3.5m the 8361a does project a somewhat wider and taller sweet spot.

 

[Kain]

The prices in Dubai are roughly around the same prices as the US.

By the way, if you have powered speakers all around (even the overhead speakers), how do you go about connecting the overhead speakers to a power socket?

 

[Tom C]

Your choices are to have an electrician install outlets near the speakers, vs. poke holes in the wall to run an extension cord behind the wall, vs. use a mounting of some type to attach the cord and the extension cord to the ceiling and wall to run it wherever you want it to go.
I haven’t tackled ceiling mounted speakers yet, but did have to wire ceiling mounted projector and powered screen, and chose to just run the cords along the surfaces of the ceiling and wall. Not neat looking, but I really wanted to avoid the dust from cutting wallboard, and then having to patch and paint the whole room.
Also, my wife was frustrated at first with the number of remotes required to control the room. By using triggered outlet strips, where turning on or off one device (in my case the projector) activates or deactivates the several additional outlets in the strip, everything can be turned on or off with just one button push. I had to cascade several strips together to cover all the speakers, AVR, Blu-ray player, Apple TV, etc., but it works well enough that she enjoys using the room now.

 

[Trell]

When I first got the 8361’s I was a bit disappointed in their (what I thought was) narrow sound stage. Turns out I had unknowingly changed my rme adi2 to mono.

You’re not the first one to do that, nor the last.

On the ADI-2 DAC/Pro remote button 1 defaults to mono but you can change that to something else. My impression is that is the usual way mono is enabled for an output.

Recall that the DAC/Pro remembers many settings, like mono, on per output.

 

[Kain]

Your choices are to have an electrician install outlets near the speakers, vs. poke holes in the wall to run an extension cord behind the wall, vs. use a mounting of some type to attach the cord and the extension cord to the ceiling and wall to run it wherever you want it to go.
I haven’t tackled ceiling mounted speakers yet, but did have to wire ceiling mounted projector and powered screen, and chose to just run the cords along the surfaces of the ceiling and wall. Not neat looking, but I really wanted to avoid the dust from cutting wallboard, and then having to patch and paint the whole room.
Also, my wife was frustrated at first with the number of remotes required to control the room. By using triggered outlet strips, where turning on or off one device (in my case the projector) activates or deactivates the several additional outlets in the strip, everything can be turned on or off with just one button push. I had to cascade several strips together to cover all the speakers, AVR, Blu-ray player, Apple TV, etc., but it works well enough that she enjoys using the room now.

Thanks.

Are all Genelec The Ones self-powered or can you get them with the amplifier being external to the speaker?

 

[Trell]

Thanks.

Are all Genelec The Ones self-powered or can you get them with the amplifier being external to the speaker?

The power supply and amplifier are part of the monitor and cannot be separated from it.

 

[Pearljam5000]

Thanks.

Are all Genelec The Ones self-powered or can you get them with the amplifier being external to the speaker?

You can take out the amp from 1237/8
as they are more "professional "

 

[Alice of Old Vincennes]

Your choices are to have an electrician install outlets near the speakers, vs. poke holes in the wall to run an extension cord behind the wall, vs. use a mounting of some type to attach the cord and the extension cord to the ceiling and wall to run it wherever you want it to go.
I haven’t tackled ceiling mounted speakers yet, but did have to wire ceiling mounted projector and powered screen, and chose to just run the cords along the surfaces of the ceiling and wall. Not neat looking, but I really wanted to avoid the dust from cutting wallboard, and then having to patch and paint the whole room.
Also, my wife was frustrated at first with the number of remotes required to control the room. By using triggered outlet strips, where turning on or off one device (in my case the projector) activates or deactivates the several additional outlets in the strip, everything can be turned on or off with just one button push. I had to cascade several strips together to cover all the speakers, AVR, Blu-ray player, Apple TV, etc., but it works well enough that she enjoys using the room now.

Running extension cords in ceiling is dangerous. Do it the right way.

 

[Kain]

Running extension cords in ceiling is dangerous. Do it the right way.

What is the right way to do it? By the way, I have a concrete ceiling (as with the rest of the walls in the room).

 

[sarumbear]

Thanks.

Are all Genelec The Ones self-powered or can you get them with the amplifier being external to the speaker?

All Genelec The ones have integral amplifiers that cannot be separated.

 

[sarumbear]

Running extension cords in ceiling is dangerous. Do it the right way.

Why?

 

[AwesomeSauce2015]

What is the right way to do it? By the way, I have a concrete ceiling (as with the rest of the walls in the room).

Hire an electrician to run outlets to the speaker locations, and use the manufacturer-supplied power cable to connect to the outlets, or, use the passive speakers and have the amps located centrally with rated speaker wire running to the speakers.
Alternatively, just get a realllly long power cable for the speaker and run it to an outlet that already is installed in your room, though I can't recommend this due to liability.

Personally, I'd say if you are doing a multichannel setup, then use the passive speakers and amps.

 

[Tom C]

Running extension cords in ceiling is dangerous. Do it the right way.

Yes, you are correct. I didn’t think through that part of the reply very well. You’d want to use something specifically and properly designed for the situation, and for household current running behind a wall that would mean a licensed electrician installing an outlet according to code.
But I don’t think that means you can’t use a powered speaker on the ceiling. Just do it properly. Passive is probably easier, especially for DIY.