JBL Stage A130 Review (speaker)

[abdo123]

Are there other ways to reduce those resonance or counter the effect of the resonance? Would more dampening work? Would grill on take away a bit of those peaks? Or would just a simple reduction of the treble knob smooth things out a little?

You have to test these things out but the point of these speakers is to either use them as they are or use EQ.

not really spend 500$ to make them behave better. Better spend that money on a MiniDSP device. Even the 2*4 cheapo could work for this.

 

[MarkWinston]

You have to test these things out but the point of these speakers is to either use them as they are or use EQ.

not really spend 500$ to make them behave better. Better spend that money on a MiniDSP device. Even the 2*4 cheapo could work for this.

Guess Ill just have to keep searching for a good budget speaker for my room then. The a130 was almost flawless for iys price but I know I couldnt stand that 5db hump at 1k for too long.

 

[pjug]

Guess Ill just have to keep searching for a good budget speaker for my room then. The a130 was almost flawless for iys price but I know I couldnt stand that 5db hump at 1k for too long.

There is a simple crossover mod discussed earlier in the thread that will bring down that hump. See posts #322 and 342. It is very simple if you can do a little soldering.

 

[Hiten]

probably a silly thought...

what if we spray a thin coat of appropriate material to small area of tweeter diaphragm
(1) we will loose some overall output level of tweeter ?
but..
(2) the 15k peak resonance would be moved further up where audiblity will be less and music content is also less in most music genres ?

not recommending but just to discuss.
regards

 

[Presently42]

probably a silly thought...
(2) the 15k peak resonance would be moved further up where audiblity will be less and music content is also less in most music genres ?

My investigations have shown, that the 15 kHz peak is barely a peak at all - and that removing it worsens treble extension. I've chosen to ignore it, as AB testing of filters removing it and not were preferentially wonderfully inconclusive: I can hear the difference, but neither is better than the other. Perhaps that's an effect of my room. I'd like to take some quasi-anechoic measurements of my speakers à la napilopez; and see, if mine don't exhibit a different fr up there

 

[MarkWinston]

My investigations have shown, that the 15 kHz peak is barely a peak at all - and that removing it worsens treble extension. I've chosen to ignore it, as AB testing of filters removing it and not were preferentially wonderfully inconclusive: I can hear the difference, but neither is better than the other. Perhaps that's an effect of my room. I'd like to take some quasi-anechoic measurements of my speakers à la napilopez; and see, if mine don't exhibit a different fr up there

The 15k hump isnt really a problem at all though, in fact that might give a nice airy sparkle to the top end. The 1k hump is problematic, when I auditioned the speakers in a showroom it made it sound thin and kinda grainy compared to all the speakers next to it, namely the Wharfedale 12.2, Dali Spektor 2, Q A 3030i and Mission LX3 MKII. That hump sticks out like a sore thumb, killing an otherwise wonderful sounding speaker. Im quite ol skool, I listen mainly to CDs and Blurays and I dont have an eq, the best Ive got is the treble control on the amp, which may or may not help, or totally change the top end.

 

[abdo123]

(2) the 15k peak resonance would be moved further up where audiblity will be less and music content is also less in most music genres ?

the 15k peak is not audible, there is barely any musical content at all there.

 

[Ralferator]

Is there a way to get rid of those 2 bumps or make it better without eqing e.g plugging the port, grill on, etc?

you could try out this crossover modification
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...s/jbl-stage-a130-review-speaker.18260/page-17

 

[MarkWinston]

you could try out this crossover modification
https://www.audiosciencereview.com/...s/jbl-stage-a130-review-speaker.18260/page-17

Honestly, Im totally shit at things like that. Lol!

 

[MarkWinston]

Does anyone have any thoughts on this JBL Stage A130 vs Wharfedale Diamond 12.1 i have narrowed my choices down to these two (to a lesser extent also Mission LX-2 MK2).

I'm leaning towards the Wharfedales at the moment only because i think they look better but they seem to be very evenly matched otherwise. I intend to use them on my desk, relatively close to a wall.

Thanks for any thoughts

What did you get in the end? I was looking at these exact same speakers, just the larger versions of them, Wharfedale 12.2 and Mission LX3 MKII. I too lean towards the 12.2 as they sound the most smooth and great bit of higher end clarity too, unlike the Diamond 225. The LX3 MKII is very mids focused (in a very good way) and clear highs but not as warm as the Warfes. Reason I have yet to get the 12.2 is because Ive seen no tests on them.

 

[Ralferator]

Honestly, Im totally shit at things like that. Lol!

It's pretty easy - maybe you could ask a friend for help

 

[Spkrdctr]

It's pretty easy - maybe you could ask a friend for help

If you EVER wanted to try your hand at modding something, this is the time to do it. It is very easy. If you started and had any questions, many people on here would help you out, It is very, very simple. It "could" be done with electrical tape which I would NOT recommend, but it is on that level of difficulty.

I say, go for it!

 

[375HP2482]

Guess Ill just have to keep searching for a good budget speaker for my room then. The a130 was almost flawless for iys price but I know I couldnt stand that 5db hump at 1k for too long.

Stand it?

Unless you're listening for it, it's not that obvious. Subtle and not unpleasant. If that bothers you, you probably aren't getting much enjoyment out of music anyway. This speaker gives as much musical pleasure as can be expected in a small bookshelf unit while freeing up more $$ for content.

I dialed in APO EQ to flatten it; switching that equalizer ON and OFF is a "meh" experience.

You won't find a better small woofer.

 

[MarkWinston]

Stand it?

Unless you're listening for it, it's not that obvious. Subtle and not unpleasant. If that bothers you, you probably aren't getting much enjoyment out of music anyway. This speaker gives as much musical pleasure as can be expected in a small bookshelf unit while freeing up more $$ for content.

I dialed in APO EQ to flatten it; switching that equalizer ON and OFF is a "meh" experience.

You won't find a better small woofer.

Ive listened to the a130 in 3 different setups (showrooms) and all of them have a thin shrill in the vocals. Is the hump from 800hz - 2.1khz causing that? If its not, what do you think is causing that thin almost shouty vocals? Could it be the 15khz spike, which I seriously doubt? It also cant be the mismatching of components as I heard the same attribute in 3 different setups. That was the main reason that stopped me from buying it on the spot, besides that mahogany colour which I dont like. There are no black ones here, you guys overseas took all the good stuff. If I could identify what is causing what I heard and solve it, I would snap a pair up the first thing in the morning as one of the showrooms is just 3kms away from me. When the sales person put on other speakers like the Mission LX3 MK2 and the Wharfdale 12.2, that thin sound just isnt there. Do you notice such a characteristic with yours when playing cd?

 

[Presently42]

Indeed, I'd blame the resonances as ~ 900 Hz and 1.4 kHz - the apparent one at 15 kHz doesn't seem to be particularly important.

Forgive me if you've already mentioned this, but why can't you simply eq those resonances away? Using my own or another's eq profile will leave you wanting nothing more from speakers!

 

[MarkWinston]

Indeed, I'd blame the resonances as ~ 900 Hz and 1.4 kHz - the apparent one at 15 kHz doesn't seem to be particularly important.

Forgive me if you've already mentioned this, but why can't you simply eq those resonances away? Using my own or another's eq profile will leave you wanting nothing more from speakers!

My system is rather old school, an SACD player and a bluray player connected straight to an amp and then to the speakers. I sometimes use my phone's bluetooth to play some regular aac tracks but thats about it. I do not have an eq, physical or software, and all I got are the treble and bass controls on my amp. Heck I dont even have a DAC. Lol!

 

[abdo123]

@MarkWinston Where do you live? the mohagany version has much higher WAF and i would love to do a fair 'exchange' with you if you would rather have a black version.

 

[MarkWinston]

@MarkWinston Where do you live? the mohagany version has much higher WAF and i would love to do a fair 'exchange' with you if you would rather have a black version.

Im from Malaysia but Im currently living in Thailand with my wife. All I can get is the mahogany one here for 8900 baht. My whole system is black and I intend to keep it that way. Hahaha!

 

[abdo123]

Im from Malaysia but Im currently living in Thailand with my wife. All I can get is the mahogany one here for 8900 baht. My whole system is black and I intend to keep it that way. Hahaha!

Do you think you can get any of your resellers to ship internationally?

 

[MarkWinston]

Do you think you can get any of your resellers to ship internationally?

It is possible, but shipping will most probably cost more than the speakers itself. Ill ask them later in the am. Where are you at btw?