K2 S5800 and K2 S9800SE on sale

[4313B]

The OM says these can be placed very close to the back wall, stating 2-3" is adequate, allowing enough room only for connections........ how is that possible as a rear ported design? why wouldn't standard coupling conventions apply here?

Having the port on the back of a loudspeaker means that you theoretically have to have the loudspeaker at least a port diameter's width away from any flat surface. If you have a 3" diameter rear port then it should theoretically be at least 3" away from a back wall. I believe that the K2-S5800 uses two 2.75" diameter ports to tune a 4.5 cubic foot volume to 30 Hz. At one point it appears those flared ports are just 2" in diameter.

If rear ported loudspeakers have to be backed right up next to a wall for whatever reason then you are probably better off stuffing the ports and using a subwoofer.

One argument for rear porting is that it marginalizes any internal reflections exiting the port. Another argument is that it doesn't visually impact an otherwise perfectly finished baffle. It also decreases the relative efficiency of the port with respect to the drive unit.

[washnak]

Hi all: My first name is George. Sorry for the tardy reply, but I just got back from Reno where I was at a gun show for two days. Another of my hobbies is collecting antique firearms. I don't want to hi-jack this thread, but I'm a mature adult who is definitely open to any and all suggestions. If you think it would be better to start a new thread, let me know and I would be happy to do so. Maybe we could call it "Help George place his speakers". As for the room, yes, it's open on two sides with one wall essentially all windows. The picture is deceiving. the left speaker is placed 18" from the wall (such as it is between the two windows) and right speaker is 15" from the wall. Both are toed in to the blue arm chair which is my listening position. I would welcome and consider any suggestions that you may have to improve the listening performance of my system. I do appreciate all of your help.
EDIT: I forgot to add that I'm also running a Velodyn 12" 200 watt subwoofer, that is placed under the table between the two couches.

[hjames]

Having the port on the back of a loudspeaker means that you theoretically have to have the loudspeaker at least a port diameter's width away from any flat surface. If you have a 3" diameter rear port then it should theoretically be at least 3" away from a back wall. I believe that the K2-S5800 uses two 2.75" diameter ports to tune a 4.5 cubic foot volume to 30 Hz. At one point it appears those flared ports are just 2" in diameter.

If rear ported loudspeakers have to be backed right up next to a wall for whatever reason then you are probably better off stuffing the ports and using a subwoofer.

What about biting the bullet (on lesser models, of course) and using a hole saw to put a new port on the front of the speaker, and using the "plug" the hole saw creates to plug the rear port? Not on a K2, of course(!!!), but just in general ...

[Amnes]

What about biting the bullet (on lesser models, of course) and using a hole saw to put a new port on the front of the speaker, and using the "plug" the hole saw creates to plug the rear port? Not on a K2, of course(!!!), but just in general ...

That could cause phase problems.

[pos]

I don't think this could cause any phase problem. At these frequency the radiation in 360° anyway, so the direction of the port does not matter: it is a pusling sphere. And the wavelength are so long that the distance with the woofer does not matter much either.

[Slare]

EDIT: I forgot to add that I'm also running a Velodyn 12" 200 watt subwoofer, that is placed under the table between the two couches.

I won't critique your positioning setup because it seems like you are doing the best you can with room and furniture constraints. I do think it is a little humorous to have such wonderful speakers setup with only one good listening position, but the king of the castle is the king, after all.

What I will say is that it is probably high time to ditch the velodyne sub for 100% of your music listening. It may still have a tiny bit of usefullness for movies, but should be completely removed for music duties. Even the highest end velodyne is a mud factory compared to what you just bought.

[richluvsound]

I won't critique your positioning setup because it seems like you are doing the best you can with room and furniture constraints. I do think it is a little humorous to have such wonderful speakers setup with only one good listening position, but the king of the castle is the king, after all.

What I will say is that it is probably high time to ditch the velodyne sub for 100% of your music listening. It may still have a tiny bit of usefullness for movies, but should be completely removed for music duties. Even the highest end velodyne is a mud factory compared to what you just bought.

Agreed..... I have never heard one that convinced me . To me the music always had a synthetic quality to it .
... The last one heard was in and B&W, Gryphon, Esoteric rig ...in my opinion, it ruined 70K worth of quality 2 channel audio .

Rich

[hwirt]

Hello George, thanks again for the response and pictures. My post in regard to your room (open sides, window location etc.) was not meant as a critique just an observation. All that really matters is if you are happy with your setup and I see now that the "blue chair" is the official listening position.

I'm sure your going to be enjoying these fine speakers for many years and no doubt will be experimenting with different locations and furniture arrangements. The speakers look great and I like the horn location which appears to be at the ideal height (ear level) for the seating positions.

Your McIntosh equipment also looks really nice and I wonder which model amplifier and preamp you have in your rack? Oh and BTW I agree with Slare in thinking that the Velodyn sub is not up to the quality level of the rest of your equipment.

[HCSGuy]

A pair showed up here Friday, I just got around to opening them - they're both bobble-heads . Not as bad as KCM's -it looks like the threaded insert just got bumped loose - there's sawdust floating around and the holes will need to be filled, but no chunks where it's visible. I'm assuming there are no replacements, so I get the decision to fix this pair or return them. Kudos to my friend, whoever you are, who spent a whole 45 minutes designing the box for this, as well as your pal who decided to support the head with one threaded insert into MDF and a second adjustment screw to hold it in place. It's probably good that few of these sold, as the dealers probably had to check each one on arrival. Lastly, I like that you have to peel off the array emblem on the horn to get to the screw to remove and reattached the threaded insert - very disappointing. Can you buy the emblem separately? - no parts seem to be available from JBL Parts.

[Titanium Dome]

Wowee! That's just appalling. No wonder they discontinued them. Can you imagine shipping them all the way from China?

It's good that they're salvageable. I'd do the same, but what a pain for a NIB item.

[4313B]

A pair showed up here Friday, I just got around to opening them - they're both bobble-heads . Not as bad as KCM's -it looks like the threaded insert just got bumped loose - there's sawdust floating around and the holes will need to be filled, but no chunks where it's visible. I'm assuming there are no replacements, so I get the decision to fix this pair or return them. Kudos to my friend, whoever you are, who spent a whole 45 minutes designing the box for this, as well as your pal who decided to support the head with one threaded insert into MDF and a second adjustment screw to hold it in place. It's probably good that few of these sold, as the dealers probably had to check each one on arrival. Lastly, I like that you have to peel off the array emblem on the horn to get to the screw to remove and reattached the threaded insert - very disappointing. Can you buy the emblem separately? - no parts seem to be available from JBL Parts.

Dude... I'm confused... Why these when you have what you have?

I don't have any spare emplems, sorry. You can call Crown and see if they can get you some. All you need to do is provide them with the S/N of the loudspeaker(s) that is/are broken.

Can you imagine shipping them all the way from China?

Um, no... I don't buy my JBL's from China so it isn't an issue for me. Thanks for asking though.

[BMWCCA]

Lastly, I like that you have to peel off the array emblem on the horn to get to the screw to remove and reattached the threaded insert - very disappointing. Can you buy the emblem separately? - no parts seem to be available from JBL Parts.

Sorry for your problems. I'd be pissed!

I believe the emblems are available. Believe it or not, having to peel and replace those badges every time the system got moved was what caused me to pause back when I had the opportunity to buy the $3900 pair of Array 1400s two-years ago. I believe at that time the badges were available at about $35 each. The whole thread is interesting, including comments from two forum members who have since passed, but here's a link to the post with the part number for the 1400 as quoted by JBL: http://www.audioheritage.org/vbullet...l=1#post232392

[KCM]

A pair showed up here Friday, I just got around to opening them - they're both bobble-heads . Not as bad as KCM's -it looks like the threaded insert just got bumped loose - there's sawdust floating around and the holes will need to be filled, but no chunks where it's visible. I'm assuming there are no replacements, so I get the decision to fix this pair or return them. Kudos to my friend, whoever you are, who spent a whole 45 minutes designing the box for this, as well as your pal who decided to support the head with one threaded insert into MDF and a second adjustment screw to hold it in place. It's probably good that few of these sold, as the dealers probably had to check each one on arrival. Lastly, I like that you have to peel off the array emblem on the horn to get to the screw to remove and reattached the threaded insert - very disappointing. Can you buy the emblem separately? - no parts seem to be available from JBL Parts.

Wow, sorry to see that Actually, they look exactly like mine. I'm really glad now that I didn't just let them ship replacements via UPS. I'm still holding out for motor freight shipment, and still waiting on more information regarding that process.............

What would you use to fill the holes if you keep them ?

[JeffW]

Man, 4 out of 4 busted for you guys...I must be the luckiest guy around!

[4313B]

Man, 4 out of 4 busted for you guys...

Sounds about right. Went through the same debacle with just the horns by themselves. Same with just the drivers by themselves. I can't imagine having Harman ship the whole thing all put together.

But hey, it's free shipping and you get what you pay for. Some reassembly required.