JBL 4344 for led zeppelin & John Coltrane

[loman69]

Hi all,

I was very happy with my Mcintosh MA6900 intergrated amp and vintage L100.
The vocal was so real but not punchy and dynamic for my Led Zeppelin and Blue Note CDs.
Finally i got my dream JBL speaker, 4344.
I would like to know that an external crossover and bi amp is a must to 4344?
I heard 4343 with Cello preamp + Accuphase channel divider +2 Accuphase amp(one for high and one for low).
The bass is well controlled but i didn't like the vocal.

I never listen to classical but Classic Rock and Jazz..........

Recommendations are highly appreciated.

Cheers,

Joel

[jblnut]

Hello and welcome !

I recommend that you keep listening to jazz and avoid classical at all costs .

But seriously, what are you looking for a recommendation on ? Amps ? xovers? biamping?

jblnut

Hi all,

I was very happy with my Mcintosh MA6900 intergrated amp and vintage L100.
The vocal was so real but not punchy and dynamic for my Led Zeppelin and Blue Note CDs.
Finally i got my dream JBL speaker, 4344.
I would like to know that an external crossover and bi amp is a must to 4344?
I heard 4343 with Cello preamp + Accuphase channel divider +2 Accuphase amp(one for high and one for low).
The bass is well controlled but i didn't like the vocal.

I never listen to classical but Classic Rock and Jazz..........

Recommendations are highly appreciated.

Cheers,

Joel

[loman69]

Hello jblnut,


The bass is too mellow now(Mcintosh MA6900(200W x2)can't feed them? ),
i am wondering to build another system(bi map/mono block, whatever) for the 4344........

my current system:
Meridian 588
Mcintosh MA6900
JBL 4344

[Steve K]

Hi,

Try raising your 4344s on bases, about 20 centimeters or so. That should tighten up the bass response.

Also, with the Mac 6900, you can add another amp which probably should be rated at least the same or higher than the 6900's 200wpc, then direct the 6900's main output to an active crossover unit, from whence the highs go back into the 6900's amp-in and the lows go to the 'new' amp. I used to have this kind of setup myself some time ago with a 4343, and it really opened up the mid/high frequencies while tightening the bass.

SK

[SUPERBEE]

Yes.....


Get those speakers up on some stands and try a nice MAC tube amp

[Robh3606]

Hello Joel

Welcome to the forum. I agree I would get them up off the floor a bit as well. 200 watts should be plenty to drive them. I have used as little as 100 watt amps to drive the 2235's and they were fine with this. In my current biamp set up with 4344 clones I have 300watts on the 2235's and 100watts up top. I used to use a JBL M552 but now use a JBL DX-1 crossover to biamp them. Mine are on short stands on wheels so I can move them without breaking my back! Nice set up!!!!


Rob

[loman69]

Thank you very much for your reply.......

The attached photo show a metal stands especially made for 4344/4343 by Japanese........
They look nice but the price is sky high.......nearly US$600 which i can have another pair of L100:dont-know


would like to know more about 4344 combination

Cheers,

Joel

[Edwards]

One of the biggest mis-conceptions in the Speaker world, is that bigger must there-for mean better.

My experience is that each speaker is made to work very well in a room with a given size. I have listened to the flagship Wilson Alexandia sound poor in a room too small. Not knowing what the rest of your room looks like, I can not say for sure that is the case. But you really need to ask if these speakers may be too large for your room? Was the L-100 experience that you had in the same room?

As for getting these speakers off the floor?, it think before you do that you may need to move them off the back wall a foot or so, to give them room to breathe. Your L-100's may not have been pushed against the wall?

I have never listened to these speakers, so I can not comment on the Bi-Amp, options but this can get really tricky. I would stick with a good quality single amp.

Ed

[Robh3606]

Hello Joel

Looking at you speakers again you may want to try some toe-in on them. You also want to get the 2405 as close to you seated ear height as you can. When I did the stands and cabinets I set them up so the slot was at ear level. It can make a big difference to the presentation. The slot does well horizontally but gets very directional above 10K in the vertical axis. If you do a stand up sit down test you can easilly hear when you are outside the window. Edwards is right it can't hurt to try them off the wall a bit. When mine are up and running they have a good amount of space arround them. Especially with an open stair case behind them. Keeps them almost 4' off the back wall.

Hello Edwards

But you really need to ask if these speakers may be too large for your room? Was the L-100 experience that you had in the same room?

Looking at his room I doubt that's the case. Most control rooms in studios are really not all that large to begin with and that was the intended home. He looks like he may have more room than I do and mine are fine. They measure well, sound good and don't have you running for the door.

Rob

[loman69]

Hi Edwards,

yeah you speak the truth.
when i moved to a bigger flat with my L100,
the sonic different was huge!

I will try my best to deal with these big monsters(luckily they are hot item in far east second hand market,)i can't go back when i steped into "the road of big speakers"

Hi Rob,

Is it your DIY system?
I heard that the Crown amp(cheap and cheerful, i love them ) are great with JBL, isn't it?



Cheers,

Joel

[loman69]

photo hut:

JBL in Japanese way........

[joe]

let's see if we can agree on some sounds that we have both heard so we'll know if our perceptions are roughly equivalent.


on L100
led zeppelin 4 " black dog" the vocals sound a little shrill when plant screams "HEY, HEY" I don't believe this is a fault of the speakers ....

Same album "when the levee breaks " the harmonica sounds a little shrill this may be the speakers.

Same album ! "when the levee breaks " the drums make a gratifying THUMP but you can also hear the "skin" on the drums , I hope you know what I mean because it is very tough to describe.

The 4344 should have more thump than the L100's , maybe not as much skin ?? both woofers in question are aquaplassed which is , I believe, a prime source of the THUMP in a round about way ( by adding mass to the cone E145 don't thump as much but is very quick)

Your bass content seems mellow ?? what does when the levee breaks sound like to you thru those speakers ?

[Zilch]

The 4344 should have more thump than the L100's , maybe not as much skin ??

L100 bass is voiced for artificial "thump" enhancement. They're different from studio monitors; see below.

Cant find the 4344 curve, but the real 43xx studio monitors are generally flat down there.

[loman69]

is it a good match?
Mcintosh MC2500 + JBL 4344.........