S2600 purchased-help

[tom1040]

Hello all,

I am new to this forum. I spend some time @ audiokarma as well. I would welcome some comments and suggestions on my recent purchase of JBL S2600 speakers. I currently have Infinity Kappa 8.1 ( two pair ) driven by a Yamaha MX-1000 and an Onkyo M-508 ( bi-amped ).

My questions:

1) would this be considered an upgrade ( in your opinion ), and
2) would these amps sound okay with the JBL's or should I be looking for tube amps.

My pre is either a Yamaha CX-1000 of Onkyo P-388F ( depending on my mood ).

Thanks for your answers.
Tom

[oznob]

Hi Tom, welcome to the forum! You bought a great pair of speakers that I'm sure will impress you! It is critical to take some time with set-up and placement to get the best out of them. Member Titanium Dome has a pair and helped me get my S3100's dialed in. They are the the larger version of your new speakers. I think the titanium compression driver will deliver much better and more accurate performance than those plastic tweeter/mid things on the Infinity's. You may even experience real bass performance!:yes: Your amps etc. should work very well with the 2600's. In the future, you may find upgrading your components will benefit your musical enjoyment. Some people really like tube amps with the big horns, it's a matter of taste and experimentation. I think you can take comfort knowing you have a fantastic pair of speakers to build around.:thmbsup:

[Mr. Widget]

Hello all,

I am new to this forum. I spend some time @ audiokarma as well. I would welcome some comments and suggestions on my recent purchase of JBL S2600 speakers. I currently have Infinity Kappa 8.1 ( two pair ) driven by a Yamaha MX-1000 and an Onkyo M-508 ( bi-amped ).

My questions:

1) would this be considered an upgrade ( in your opinion )Depends on your listening habits, SPL demands etc. I am sure we could find a large group who would prefer the Infinitys and a large group who would go for the JBLs. I am not really familiar with your Infinity system, but I did a google search and it looks like a fairly serious speaker.


Widget

[tom1040]

Thanks for your observations. One more question, if you do not mind. In reveiwing the technical specs on the S2600 & S3100 I find that the Freq. Response for the S2600 shows a 2 Hz difference than the S3100 even though the S3100 has a larger (15" vs. 12") woofer. Can this be right?
S3100=32Hz to 20Khz (-6db)
S2600=30Hz to 20Khz (-5db)

Thanks again for your responses.
Ts

[tom1040]

Could someone give me their personal insights as far as placement is concerned? I have a 30' by 12' foot room w/8 foot ceilings. Are they better served being put on a box or something to lift them off the (hard wood) floor. There is not alot of info on these-are they somewhat rare?

[Mr. Widget]

I find that the Freq. Response for the S2600 shows a 2 Hz difference than the S3100 even though the S3100 has a larger (15" vs. 12") woofer. Can this be right?
Sure, it can be right... but those figures are practically meaningless. The two systems will sound different from each other and their low end extension is not really much of an indicator.

Don't get caught up in the specs.

You should probably get the owner's manual for your speakers and follow the setup procedure, these two systems along with the original Everest are rather unique in their stereo presentation. You should set them up as suggested by JBL before really evaluating them. I think the manual is available on-line from JBL or it may already be on this site. As you are finding out, these speakers are fairly rare. They were sold mostly in Japan.


Widget

[Earl K]

Here's the S2600 ( S3100 ) Owners' Manual . (http://manuals.harman.com/JBL/HOM/Owner%27s%20Manual/S2600-3100-om.pdf)

:)

[oznob]

http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=18618&highlight=S3100

There is a more complete owners manual in post #13 of this thread. Please let us know when they arrive and pics are always great!:yes:

[tom1040]

Thanks for all your help. I hope these sound good. I am sure they will but I bought them without listening. My fault if I do not like them. Thanks again.

[lovethatsound]

Can you "flip" them, or did you pay market value?

;)

[oznob]

http://audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=8373

You may find this an interesting read.

[tom1040]

That was interesting. Thanks. By the way, what woud FMV be for a NIB S2600 speaker?

[oznob]

Can you "flip" them, or did you pay market value?

;)

I know the seller and, as long as there are no shipping disasters, he is getting a like new pair in the factory boxes. For what I believe he paid for them, which is none of my business by the way, I think he has made a safe investment!:yes:

[oznob]

That was interesting. Thanks. By the way, what woud FMV be for a NIB S2600 speaker?

I hesitate giving values especially on something as rare as the S2600's. Considering they are getting over $4K for L300's, well, that's all I got to say about that!

[Titanium Dome]

Member Titanium Dome has a pair and helped me get my S3100's dialed in.

Well, I think you did all the work.

Anyway, congratulations Tom on this excellent purchase. It would be helpful to know the room you will place them in.

In general terms, consider placing them about 9-12 feet apart near the midpoint of a wall with your primary seating opposite, keeping them toed-in toward your primary listening area. If the short walls in your room are less than 12' wide, then use the longer walls. Move the S/2600s closer/further apart changing the toe in accordingly. Keep at least 12" between them and all walls. IMO 18" is better, and 22"+ is best. At some point, they will suddenly be exquisite.

Having them on walls that are too short keeps them too close to boundaries, despite the horn's unique shape. At least my S/2600s are best when freed from the constraints of boundaries. Let them shape their own sound rather than letting the room strangle them with its.

These are demanding speakers, but with some patience and dedication, you will be rewarded. Just remember, you have a roughly $5000 (1995) pair of speakers there, which you couldn't buy new today for less $6900, if you could find them. Of course, the irony is that new retail and market value are so far apart that no one would ever give you even $2500 for them used. Shoot, I got my immaculate pair w/boxes, etc. from a JBL engineer for $1200.

If your room is less than 11 x 16, sell them and keep the Infinity Kappas.

Good luck and enjoy!

[oznob]

[quote=Titanium Dome;206349]
If your room is less than 11 x 16, sell them and keep the Infinity Kappas.

I can't speak on the Kappa 8.1's but I have a lot of experience with the Kappa 9's! Bass is decent, mid-range good, highs can get very painful, provided the EMIT tweeter isn't blown that is! A very good friend of mine has a pair and he is on about his fifth or sixth tweeter repair, not to mention the mid repairs! Now, granted, he does crank them a bit using Adcom 565 mono-blocs, but they have never sounded very good to me.:no: The highs just overpower the rest of the speaker's performance IMHO. He did come over a couple of days ago and listend to the S3100's. He wouldn't admit he liked them better than his Kappa's but he did stay very late enjoying the music, and the pale ale!

[tom1040]

Thanks for your insights. One more question and I will leave it be. Can these speakers be bi-amped w/o the use of a outside crossover? In other words, can I take off the shorting straps and bi-amp them with my Onkyo M-508 & Yamaha MX-1000?

Thanks again!
Tom

[oznob]

[quote=tom1040;206406]Thanks for your insights. One more question and I will leave it be. Can these speakers be bi-amped w/o the use of a outside crossover? In other words, can I take off the shorting straps and bi-amp them with my Onkyo M-508 & Yamaha MX-1000?

Thanks again!
Tom[/quote

Yes, no need for an external crossover.

[tom1040]

Sorry to bring up an old thread.....but...I would like to know a little bit more about bi-amping these. I read somewhere that there is some kind of 'choke' on the woofer that allows for true bi-amplification. Can anyone expand on that idea with specifics?

As always, thanks for any and all suggestions.:)

By the way, I am now using the following gear:

Onkyo M-588F amp
Onkyo P-388F pre
Marantz SA-8001 cdp