Jbl L-350 Vs. Klipsch K Horns

[casuall]

I currently am running a pair of Klipsch Cornscals(Cornwalls w/ lascalas squaker & crossovers)powered by 2 Bryston 4B's bridged(800 WPC).I've allways wanted a little more.I found a pair of K Horns close by & pretty much decided to get them.The next day,I found on Ebay a pr. of JBL L-350 jumbo spkrs.From what the person said,they're L-300's w/ an extra 15" woofer(just put JBL jumbo speakers on the ebay search & they'll come up)My ? for everyone is how do the JBL-350's stack up against the Klipsch K Horns.I've put the same ? up in the Klipsch forum.I'm waiting for the responses.Any help & opinions are greatly appreciated.Thanks,Tim.

[Mr. Widget]

You've certainly come to the right place for opinions.

I had a pair of early '70s vintage K-horns in my house through most of the Spring of this year. Overall I enjoyed them, but I didn't find them as musically accurate or as detailed as I would like. The part that I found most annoying was the upper bass lower mid transition. I found them to be rather indistinct sounding at best and flat out resonant at worst. The sound quality depended on the music that was playing. Perhaps it was my room, windows behind the speakers in each corner, but I never got any deep bass out of them either. The other disappointment was the one time I really opened them up. The sound was rather unpleasant. My wife even commented on it. She is used to my occasional brief bursts of concert level playback through my regular system. Her comment was, "What is wrong with those speakers?"

As for the super JBLs? I'd be extremely cautious about any "improved" JBLs. Most yahoos don't really have a handle on speaker design and will toss in a bunch of good parts and make a so-so system... though they are typically thrilled with them, that isn't always the case for other listeners. I did look up the auction and based on the schematic and overall weight of the system, I'd only be interested in this pair as a parts only offering.

Since you are already accustomed to the Klipsch sound, you may like the K-horns better than the "franken" JBLs. On the other hand, I think a Cornwall with the larger K-400 horns covering the mids would likely be the best of all vintage Klipsch speakers.


Widget

[BMWCCA]

What is implied in the above comments but was maybe not made crystal-clear to an uninitiated JBL fan is that JBL didn't make the L350; someone created it from JBL components and gave it the creative nomenclature.

The ironic aspect is that the topic has been brought up here previously. You can do a search for those results. Though it is made clear that this in nothing more than a DIY with JBL components, the very fact that it was discussed and is now a search-able model designation on this site may have added to the Ebayer's claim's credibility.

[richluvsound]

Hi Tim,

what a coincidence ! There is a pair of 350's on eprey at the moment . At $2,500 I couldn't resist.................. LOL.

thanks for the heads up ! Call me an old sceptic


Rich

[Andyoz]

Hi Tim,

what a coincidence ! There is a pair of 350's on eprey at the moment

Rich, that's the pair Tim mentioned in his original post...

[Maron Horonzakz]

That 350 is just as valid as Westlake useing JBL of TAD components

[Mr. Widget]

That 350 is just as valid as Westlake useing JBL of TAD components

You are kidding right?

When Westlake or George Augspurger design a monitor there is a ton of R&D and decades of experience behind the design. These "JBL L-350s" appear to be boxes with some nice parts in them.


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[Maron Horonzakz]

You mean you dont have as much expierence???? I think your just as knowlegable. You cant tell a book by its cover. Could any body tell the difference of my Paragons or a factory one by a picture??? Or a Speakerlab Khorn from a factory one by a photo.. I would encourage a audition before buying.

[Mr. Widget]

I would encourage a audition before buying.

Agreed!

However, typically that isn't possible in the eBay world. In this case the query was posted by a potential buyer in Maine and the speakers are in Washington. When no audition is possible, I always err on the side of caution.

Beyond that, there was some additional data. They posted a pic of the schematic which was none too impressive and mentioned that the speakers weigh in at under 100lbs. That is too light for a well built well braced dual woofer system.


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[Maron Horonzakz]

Under a 100lbs what a light weight,, Without knowing what really on the inside better pass.,,,, Knowing what was on the inside of the Khorn,,, the horn cabinet was worth more than the contents,,, Go figure.