Jbl L86

[rdgrimes]

I recently got a pair of these. All I can say is that I am seriously impressed. For a small cab 8" speaker they are truly amazing. These have the original "mystery material" surrounds and still really crank out deep and clean bass.

The only real drawback is the absence of MF and HF level adjustment. They tend to be a little over-bright, though some modest EQ will balance them easily. Over-all an amazing sound. These would really benefit from an updated 8" heavy-weight woofer, but the light-weight stock drivers are impressive as-is. They also don't object at all to being fed 350+ WPC from my old Carver, producing a good 1/2" excursion at times.

Anyone needing a compact pair for stereo or surround duty could do a lot worse than finding a pair of these. These are some real gems. If I wasn't looking at them I wouldn't believe the sound was coming from a small speaker.

[brutal]

I agree. Amongst the myriad pieces of Yamaha and JBL, I have a pair hooked up to a little CR-820 and they sound rather nice. I picked them up off CL for, I think, 80 clams.

[SEAWOLF97]

I recently got a pair of these. All I can say is that I am seriously impressed. For a small cab 8" speaker they are truly amazing.
Anyone needing a compact pair for stereo or surround duty could do a lot worse than finding a pair of these. These are some real gems. If I wasn't looking at them I wouldn't believe the sound was coming from a small speaker.


you've got a 3rd on the above.....they are really sweet on hf & mf ....with a good sub,,,,,well I could live with them.(but they prolly wont displace the 250ti's)

got a pair yesterday and been demoing them with vinyl today :D ...sound fine with a 110wpc Denon receiver...

Do they all have "twist-lock" posts ? or is there an "A" version ?

http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=259185&postcount=177

[rdgrimes]

you've got a 3rd on the above.....they are really sweet on hf & mf ....with a good sub,,,,,well I could live with them.(but they prolly wont displace the 250ti's)

got a pair yesterday and been demoing them with vinyl today :D ...sound fine with a 110wpc Denon receiver...

Do they all have "twist-lock" posts ? or is there an "A" version ?

http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=259185&postcount=177
AFAIK, they only had twisters. I think they were only made for a few years, approximately the same time frame as the L96.

One of their strong points, I think, is the lack of L-pads to muck things up.

Watch those plastic surrounds, they get brittle and deformed and cracks are hard to see.

[SEAWOLF97]

One of their strong points, I think, is the lack of L-pads to muck things up.

Watch those plastic surrounds, they get brittle and deformed and cracks are hard to see.

they are a shade bright..but toned 'em down with EQ ...took a really good look at the surrounds..still soft and no breaks, wud have bet AGAINST that.

have had them up abt 4 inches all day, but just raised them 18 on different stands and they really opened up..:bouncy:

[rdgrimes]

Mine are living at my dad's house, running on his little 40WPC stereo receiver, and he loves them. I like them a lot better with 250W+.

[AmericanPie]

A few months ago I bought a real nice pair off Epay; this was the first pair of speakers I've purchased from a long distance so I was a little concerned about the risks of shipping. Fortunately the seller did an outstanding job of packing and they arrived in near-mint condition, as advertised.

Right now I'm powering them with my wife's old AIWA system (only 35wpc) and they sound great. I''m looking forward to eventually opening them up a bit with more power. They seem to be great speakers for a moderate-sized room but I would think if you have a larger room and want more bass, you'd really need to move up to a 12".

How does the L86 bass performance compare to the L96 with its heavier, 10" woofer?

[shaansloan]

Right now I'm powering them with my wife's old AIWA system (only 35wpc) and they sound great. I''m looking forward to eventually opening them up a bit with more power. They seem to be great speakers for a moderate-sized room but I would think if you have a larger room and want more bass, you'd really need to move up to a 12".

How does the L86 bass performance compare to the L96 with its heavier, 10" woofer?

I have a set of L86...they are really nice in a small apartment living room or similar sized room.

I have a set of L96 and the bass really open up with them to serve much larger room especially 250 wpc capacity....house rocker..

I have a set of L112 and yet another step up to more full bass....going to 300 wpc...neighborhood rocker....

Both L86 and L96 and very musical rich sounding speakers....just fabulous, every bit what you would expect from JBL quality. The L112 is every bit as musical, though one might be inclined to say the L96 is just a bit better balanced and warm.

For the price point, these are stupendous speakers....easy to restore, parts abounding.

Shaan