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bigstereo
05-02-2006, 02:34 PM
Guys,
Just asking your opinion. I know that most of you are into the higher end of the JBL line but right now I don't have the means to go down that road. I have 4311's that I'm in love with.
I have just purchased these L50's off ebay last night. They look to be in great shape. Even the grills are nice.

I think I already know the answer but here goes. I paid 267.00 with shipping for these. Do you think that is too much? I can justify it to myself but just wondering what you guys think. Would any of you have paid that kind of price for a nice pair of L50's. Pics from the ebay auction below.

RJ

grumpy
05-02-2006, 02:56 PM
They appear to be in really nice condition. Consider the panache of what you can buy new
for $267... and I'd say you did ok. :) -grumpy

majick47
05-03-2006, 03:30 PM
bigstereo your L50 components/cabinets/grills look very nice and the price seems quite reasonable to me. Most jbl 3 way (4311 etc) now go for $400+ on ebay.

boputnam
05-03-2006, 04:32 PM
Yea, they appear gorgeous - well looked after. :applaud: Price seems very reasonable. That's the irony - you won't match that performance at 2x the price for anything "new".

I got a pair for my daughter, and she won't part with them. They give her just enough low-end so she can rattle that collection of shot glasses... :o:

I like them fine!

rockecat
05-03-2006, 04:42 PM
I think you will like them I have a pair I purchased new and spent $260.00
about six month's ago to have them re-coned. I think they are one of the few speakers I have heard that the grills make a huge difference ,when you see the back of them I think you will understand I prefer the grills off.

Mine have been in several rooms throughout there life and to me they sound best just a few inches off the ground and from a wall slightly toed in. :applaud:

edgewound
05-03-2006, 04:46 PM
You made a good buy. You can't buy that build quality new for less than $1,000.00 today.

BTW...that carpet is just begging for a Pinot Noir spill.:D :p

bigstereo
05-04-2006, 04:23 AM
Thanks for your comments and opinions guys.:thmbsup:
The L50's will be here tommorrow, per fedex tracking. I'm very anxious to receive them (hopefully with no shipping damage) and plan on taking the Northidge e100's out of the loop and into storage. Here's how I plan on integrating the L50's into my mix of audio soup:
Front pr 4311/PL400-2
Rear pr L50/Onkyo Integra M504

No center or sub at this time, I have them don't feel that they would work well with what I currently have in the loop. Center is too small, sub is kind of junky. Plus I took it to work and use it with a BPC receiver and a pair of Boston A40's for tunes whiles I'm wrenching.

Adcom GTP 600 surround pre-amp
Hodgepodge of sony and pioneer cd and dvd players
Sansui 9090db is covered up and resting at the present time.
Dual 622 needs to go to the shop for cartridge and set-up/adjustment. I will leave this up to a professional.

I realize that I will not be getting true surround with no center channel speaker but my preamp allows me to route the center channel through the fronts. Once I get a nicer and bigger center channel speaker that matches the others better I will have 5.1. I want a bigger sub also.
I am more concerned with music listening quality than TV sound right now. I can't wait to open two more boxes of vintage JBL sound tommorrow. I'm stoked dudes, and dudettes. LOL.
RJ:dj-party:

Regis
05-04-2006, 07:01 AM
Nice looking speakers and a great deal too, especially for under $300. The JBL sickness can only be fed, by getting more JBL's.... (sigh...):D

bigstereo
05-06-2006, 09:21 PM
:die: UPS
L50's came yesterday. One had two corners on top smashed and all the grill pins broke off, the other had one smashed corner on top. Dammit!

RJ

Titanium Dome
05-07-2006, 07:26 AM
Really sorry to read that. How well were they packed?

bigstereo
05-07-2006, 02:01 PM
Two layers of large bubble wrap and some newspaper and magazines on top and in bottom of the boxes. I don't know, they probably would have made it ok if UPS would refrain from throwing things around. Seller is filing a claim. This the first time I've been through something like this. My 4311's came through with a small dent in one speaker cab which was probably there already, and they were in plastic garbage bags surrounded by peanuts in the boxes. Two other pairs of speakers, amps, receiver, and amp case all made it without a single blemish. I think most of those were shipped by Fedex though.

RJ

johnaec
05-07-2006, 04:55 PM
And what happens when you drop a speaker cabinet on bubble wrap - the bubbles POP!! :banghead: 'Next time you have someone send you speakers, tell them to pack them like this: http://audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=10246 or you'll take your business elsewhere.

I still can't believe people that think bubble wrap is the magic solution to any packing problem... :biting:

John

hjames
05-07-2006, 06:37 PM
Two layers of large bubble wrap and some newspaper and magazines on top and in bottom of the boxes. I don't know, they probably would have made it ok if UPS would refrain from throwing things around. Seller is filing a claim. This the first time I've been through something like this. My 4311's came through with a small dent in one speaker cab which was probably there already, and they were in plastic garbage bags surrounded by peanuts in the boxes. Two other pairs of speakers, amps, receiver, and amp case all made it without a single blemish. I think most of those were shipped by Fedex though.
RJ

Thats completely worthless! Seller should send you a complete refund and then pay return shipping if he wants his mangled junk back. I sold a set of JBL bookshelf monitors and bought 2 sheets of 1" thick pink building foam. I cut pieces of it to completely surround each speaker, put boxes around that (one speaker per box, puhlease!), then shipped them from Virginia to Cal via FredEx and they arrived quite nice. Anything less and the seller is just stating that he's got his money and doesn't care what you get. Bubble pack is fine for CDs or DVDs from Amazon, but not a heavy JBL speaker.

rockecat
05-07-2006, 07:15 PM
I tend to agree ,it is really easy to blame the shipping company but the packaging really makes the difference. The last I bought off E-bay the seller really went out of his way and did a fantastic job. Bubble wrap will not take the handling of heavy material, also mine were shipped in dish pack boxes , they are very heavy duty and take a very extreme effort just to push them in.

bigstereo
05-08-2006, 12:24 AM
I never said that I thought that bubble wrap was adequate for shipping heavy items. I was merely stating how they were packed. I do however believe that the shipping companies could exercise a little more care in the way they handle the packages. Okay, a lot more care. What the hell do they get paid for? To get it there with a 50/50 chance that it will be destroyed upon arrival? If I did my job that way I'd last about two days before I was out the door. Next time I'll ask the seller to pack with rigid foam. Even if I have to pay extra for materials. Guys I appreciate all your comments and opinions.
I'm not going to post anymore on this thread, I think we've wasted enough of LH's valuable space on this matter. My speakers are not as nice as they once were but they still sound good and I can fix the grill pegs. Live and learn I guess.

Zilch
05-08-2006, 01:31 AM
There are also several threads here outlining how to repair the crushed cabinet corners.

Another option is to watch for some parted-out ones locally, or at least close enough where you can go get them. Contact any seller that's listing the components. They may be planning on tossing the cabinets.

I'm really sorry that happened to you. Same deal here. I no longer trust that speakers, that's drivers OR systems, are gonna get here safely unless the sender REALLY packs them well.

I perceive that the carrier claims adjusters take considerable pleasure in writing "Denied - inadequate packaging" over and over again....

johnaec
05-08-2006, 07:25 AM
I never said that I thought that bubble wrap was adequate for shipping heavy items. I was merely stating how they were packed.I hope you weren't interpreting my comment as blaming you - I was definitely blaming the seller!

John

majick47
05-08-2006, 08:23 AM
I'm sorry to hear the L50 were damaged and I count my blessings that all my speakers arrived undamaged. With each transaction I made it very clear to the seller that the speakers had to be packaged like they were going to be air dropped from 1,000 feet and all complied with heavy duty packaging. From the description of the packaging the seller deserves some very serious NEGATIVE feedback.

bigstereo
05-08-2006, 02:17 PM
The seller has refunded 150.00 to my pay pal account. All is well. For all you hockey fans out there, GO SABRES!

:applaud: RJ

bigstereo
05-08-2006, 02:26 PM
I hope you weren't interpreting my comment as blaming you - I was definitely blaming the seller!

John

John,
No way dude, not at all. There has been happy ending to all this anyhow. I hate to see any JBL's get damaged whether they be L50's or K2's, but I got a little over half the cost back so I'm ok with it now and I'll leave a positive feedback for the seller.

RJ

mech986
05-08-2006, 03:02 PM
Your seller did the honorable thing and worked out an equitable settlement so that both of you can move on.

I had the same situation with an Apt amplifier shipped, Fed Ex did the packing and it was completely inadequate for the task. Having the digital camera at the ready to document how things were packed and how they looked upon initial unpacking and inspection goes a long way to getting sellers and shippers to own up to their indescretions.

I'm very happy for you, hopefully the L50's will sing well while you plan their eventual ding repairs. :D

Salud!

Regards,

Bart

rockecat
05-08-2006, 06:58 PM
That is great news you and the seller worked thing's out and that is good business.:applaud: