JBL 705P Studio Monitor Review

[BostonJack]

Neumann KH120, no dsp. Maybe with the KH750DSP for the lower regions and additional tweaking.

For anyone who is interested in sound and recording measurements: There is an ebook with some 80 studio monitors measured (pdf, 8.90 Euros).

This was exactly my question. I've been mentally stalking the Neumann KH 120A for a while now and I'm curious how they compare.
Ultimately I would purchase a single subwoofer and use them in a relatively small space 10'x12' (3m x 4m, roughly). Midfield.

Would you please elaborate on your opinion, what comparisons you've done, etc.? Thanks.

 

[q3cpma]

This was exactly my question. I've been mentally stalking the Neumann KH 120A for a while now and I'm curious how they compare.
Ultimately I would purchase a single subwoofer and use them in a relatively small space 10'x12' (3m x 4m, roughly). Midfield.

Would you please elaborate on your opinion, what comparisons you've done, etc.? Thanks.

If you're interested by the KH120A, you should also consider the Genelec 8030Cs. I've made a thread to gather comparison data here: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/neumann-kh120a-or-genelec-8030c.11109/

 

[carlob]

JBL 708P Measurement Data: https://www.sausalitoaudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/JBL-708P-Charts.pdf

 

[maty]

I was just writing the same thing and was going to make screenshots of the graphics.


Well, the other link, to complete yours:

[PDF] https://www.sausalitoaudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Interpreting-Spinorama-Charts.pdf

Brand B = JBL 708P

 

[QMuse]

JBL 708P Measurement Data: https://www.sausalitoaudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/JBL-708P-Charts.pdf

There is something very wrong with those 2 directivity indexes. As ER and SP are so close together but relatively far from LW 2 directivity indexes should be much closer to each other than they are on this graph.

 

[maty]

Interpreting “Spinorama” Charts - by Manny LaCarrubba
[PDF] https://www.sausalitoaudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Interpreting-Spinorama-Charts.pdf

https://www.discogs.com/artist/462347-Manny-Lacarrubba


Brand B = JBL 708P

 

[beefkabob]

UPS delivered my three 705p about an hour ago. I had a 708p as a left channel and 705p as right. Up to -10 with a sub, the speakers sounded almost the same. Above that, the 705p begin to feel strained with medium-heavy bass music. With bass heavy music, the 705p simply cannot keep up. They clip at -8 or so and up, even when crossed over at 60hz with a 24db slope. The bass just doesn't sound as good. Fluttering from the port. Some resonances. Probably -12 is where I'd run these. I'd cross these over at 80hz at least. They sound much nicer crossed at 100hz. I haven't tried 80hz yet. Meanwhile, the 708p sound fantastic up to 0db, but seem happiest stopping maybe at -5db.

One of the three speakers has noticeable hiss. That one's going back.
With a long AES run (like 25' per cable) I get no sound from the FIRST speaker in the chain. The second still plays. A shorter cable between the speakers solves the issue. Never had this problem with the 708p. Obviously the first speaker gets the signal, so I'm not sure why it fails that way.

Pumped Up Kicks - rock - both are great
Ghosts 'n' Stuff (NERO Remix) - mid-heavy bass - 708p clearly better at higher volumes
U Guessed It - f-up your speakers bass - 705p cannot handle except at lower volumes

So for twice the money, the 708p are clearly better some of the time, and the same most of the time, depending on volume and musical preference.

May as well have fun while the world burns. amiright?

 

[Joachim Herbert]

I've been mentally stalking the Neumann KH 120A for a while now and I'm curious how they compare.

The KH120 replaced a pair of Genelecs excellent 1029A, which served on my desk for almost ten years. I used them with a KRK 10s subwoofer for about two years and replaced this combo with the Neumanns essentially for their smoother treble and better bass extension. The 120 also is as quiet as can been, while the Genelecs produced an audible hiss at my listening distance of 80 to 100 cm. The initial plan was to use the Neumanns without subwoofer.

Though the 120A has remarkable bass capability I recently added the 750dsp. Three reasons mainly: They were on sale (about 1000 Euros), they add digital input plus full fledged dsp capability to the whole setup and they provide well defined, low distortion, reasonably high output from 20 Hz on. (Neumann claims 105,0 dB SPL at 3% THD in 1 m between 50 Hz and 100 Hz).

I did consider Genelecs 8030/8040 but found myself to like looks and treble of the Neumanns better. They also measure pretty well.

I use a pair of Adam S3V in my living room.

 

[richard12511]

How would you rank these speakers in comparison to the Ascend Sierras? The objective measurements look about equal to me, or maybe slightly worse(harder to eq?), but your subjective impressions seem way more positive than they did in the Ascend review. I've been interested in picking up a pair of 708p for a few years. I have 305ps that I use in my office and I think they sound wonderful.

 

[DSJR]

On a slight tangent here, may I ask about the room temperature when testing? All these speakers have flexible cone surrounds and I was wondering how they'd respond to room temperature changes? Fifty five degrees is very cold (for this old bod anyway) and a typical domestic/studio temp may well be fifteen degrees higher than this or more. If there's a change, how might this be observed?

 

[QMuse]

On a slight tangent here, may I ask about the room temperature when testing? All these speakers have flexible cone surrounds and I was wondering how they'd respond to room temperature changes? Fifty five degrees is very cold (for this old bod anyway) and a typical domestic/studio temp may well be fifteen degrees higher than this or more. If there's a change, how might this be observed?

I wouldn't worry about that.

 

[stevenswall]

F10 of 40dB from eyeballing quickly. Looks like that means JBL quotes frequency response as the F10 point even on professional gear. Time to measure the JBL M2... I wonder how they fixed the issues with the 7 series which seems identical but smaller, with obvious problems like that crossover dip which is not present in things like an 8331/41 which is a scaled down 8351. Guess it's cheaper so that's the compromise they chose to make though.

...But even with the "cheaper" excuse, price to performance wise, the 5.1 score on a Kali IN-8, and a 4.7 on this... With an older brand that has more resources and hopefully more engineers, and more than double the price, I expected a lot more.

I need to listen to the JBL 7 series in a different room now though to see if that changes my mind. In a partly treated demo room comparing them to other monitors by Focal, Adam, Neumann, and JBL, the 705 set I listened to sounded like the tweeter was working very hard and couldn't quite make all of the tones it was being asked to make. Maybe it was the reflection off of the desk, or maybe the strings and vocals I was listening to were playing around the cancellation area?

This model also hisses a little above my limit, and more than the $100 Harman Kardon Soundsticks I had in college and didn't notice. As much as I love Harman's research, and Revel seems great, the more I see about JBL, and the more I listen to their speakers, the less I like them as a company.

 

[stevenswall]

what would you recommend? The 705P or the Neumann KH80DSP?

Look for the score on the KH80. It's higher than the JBL, so unless you want the JBL for a reason other than perceived sound quality, I'd go for the Neumann. Also, the KH80 doesn't seem to have that 10dB dip in any measurements I've seen.

Oh, and if you don't mind hiss the IN-8 has better vertical dispersion and also lacks that JBL dip, and should be able to play louder than the Neumann if that's what you need.

The most confusing part of this review was the subjective impressions... I was expecting "A slightly flawed speaker that doesn't stand out much below, in, or above its price bracket." On a report card considering it's JBL, I'd expect "Could do better. Will be expelled soon if this behavior persists, considering the massive amount of time and money invested and the average returns."

 

[Pio]

With the owner's permission, I can send one of his 705p back and keep the other for comparison. Was really looking forward to clearing up the clutter around the house though.

Amir, whatever you need brother...

 

[Pio]

It is one of the reviews that I really looked forward to. Thanks @amirm and the kind owner sending it in

Can't wait to send more stuff!!!

 

[D700]

On a slight tangent here, may I ask about the room temperature when testing? All these speakers have flexible cone surrounds and I was wondering how they'd respond to room temperature changes? Fifty five degrees is very cold (for this old bod anyway) and a typical domestic/studio temp may well be fifteen degrees higher than this or more. If there's a change, how might this be observed?

I am surprised Amirm hadn’t mentioned this before, I would have assumed a baseline, at least something generally agreed to as room temperature or climate controlled whatever that is. Humidity, air pressure temperature...how is it a fair test otherwise?

unless one could show measurements for each speaker with those variables controlled and tested: ”speaker A performs same at 70 as 55“

To me this could/would invalidate the testing done to date.

...but I don’t have a $100k gizmo in my garage, so others may feel differently.

 

[GabrielZM]

Data here seems quite close to what I found in Harman:
same dip around 750hz

 

[amirm]

I am surprised Amirm hadn’t mentioned this before, I would have assumed a baseline, at least something generally agreed to as room temperature or climate controlled whatever that is. Humidity, air pressure temperature...how is it a fair test otherwise?

We had a whole (argumentative) thread on temperature already. All the speakers have been tested at around 55 degrees F. When the weather gets warmer, I can re-test a sample and see if there is a difference. We live just a few feet above sea level so that is your pressure. Humidity is rather high in winter (around 70%).

Subjective testing is done indoor at temps in low 70s (F).

I bet sample to sample variation is far more than any temperature effect.

 

[GabrielZM]

nevermind... Amirm already notice that and place the same original graph in the review

 

[LDKTA]

Look for the score on the KH80. It's higher than the JBL, so unless you want the JBL for a reason other than perceived sound quality, I'd go for the Neumann. Also, the KH80 doesn't seem to have that 10dB dip in any measurements I've seen.

Oh, and if you don't mind hiss the IN-8 has better vertical dispersion and also lacks that JBL dip, and should be able to play louder than the Neumann if that's what you need.

The most confusing part of this review was the subjective impressions... I was expecting "A slightly flawed speaker that doesn't stand out much below, in, or above its price bracket." On a report card considering it's JBL, I'd expect "Could do better. Will be expelled soon if this behavior persists, considering the massive amount of time and money invested and the average returns."

You may be putting too much faith into the score card and while it serves it’s purpose, it isn’t going to tell you or anyone else what loudspeaker to choose over another. Preference is inviolate and arguing preference is a lost cause. “...perceived sound quality...” I’m not sure if you’re joking... You must not realize that the dip is inaudible. Don’t forget about transducers either. Your comment reminds me of the guys that debate over the SINAD of instrument grade DACs. You're confused about Amir’s subjective impression simply because you’re overanalyzing and misinterpreting the results.

Why is vertical dispersion so important? Of course the IN-8 is going to have a better vertical dispersion, it uses a coincident driver. Prioritizing vertical dispersion over horizontal dispersion doesn’t sound like the best idea. Loudspeaker design is all about design tradeoffs and minimizing those tradeoffs to the point of little to no concern.

Personal bias: I own the JBL 708s. I’ve also played extensively with the KH80s and they are solid for what they are.
P.S. — We’ve spoken on social media. I am the guy that told you to purchase the Genelec 8260As.