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jleblanc
10-28-2003, 07:51 PM
Hello!

new to the forum, and kinda new to older JBLs. My old boss had a pair of 4343s... damn those rocked. But anyways...

I picked up a pair of "Decade 86" speakers at a garage sale for an obscenely low price. They needed new surrounds, which I am getting done now, but otherwise they are nearly perfect. dark blue cloth grills in excellent shape, oak wood. One of them is labeled "Decade 86 Model L86" and one is just an "L 86" they have a 10" driver (the 125A) and a small tweeter, I forget the particular model number, but it's the common plate-mount one with the round front. They seem to be the same drivers as the L26, and the same high-freq. adjustment knob,but I can't find any reference to the L86 online really. They're also ported underneath the 10" driver, like an L26.

Anyone know much about these? What year are they probably from? What are they worth in nice shape?

I'm really looking forward to listening to them, hopefully I can pick up an old amp from the same era (Marantz maybe?) to get an authentic sound.

Thanks!

4313B
10-28-2003, 07:55 PM
I only know about the Decade L16, L26, and L36.

The L86 was in the same era as the L15, L96, L112, and L150A.

*****

http://lansingheritage.org/html/jbl/reference/price-lists/1970-1999-prices.htm

Decade Series -
http://lansingheritage.org/html/jbl/specs/home-speakers/1974-decade.htm

L86 -
http://lansingheritage.org/html/jbl/catalogs/1982-home.htm

jleblanc
10-28-2003, 08:05 PM
OK, I'm seriously smoking crack here...
:eek: :banghead:
I hadn't looked at the speakers for a while, and I remember thinking they were "L86" and "Decade 86" but I went and looked at them again and they're actually L26 and Decade 26!

Wow, I'm an idiot. So I guess I have a pair of L26s... what's the difference between the "decade" and regular ones?

4313B
10-28-2003, 08:11 PM
Marketing

jleblanc
10-28-2003, 08:23 PM
That's what I figured. I'm really looking forward to getting these things fixed up.

These things are proof that it pays to run around to garage/estate sales on a saturday morning, you never know what you'll find! Maybe some day I'll find some 4343s laying around for $10 a pair... I can dream, can't I?

Thanks for all the help.

scott fitlin
10-28-2003, 08:26 PM
Finding a pair of 4343,s for 10 bucks! What a dream, almost a wet dream!

But you never know, it does pay to scrounge through garage sales, sometimes you come across the darndest things.

GordonW
10-29-2003, 08:36 AM
J, be happy, I think you're gonna like them. I know I liked mine, especially hooked up to a medium-size tube amp...

Regards,
Gordon.

L88P
11-15-2003, 09:19 PM
:hyp: Woooo, thought I lost one of the kids for a minute.