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Thread: JBL Century Gold pricing

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    Senior Member martin2395's Avatar
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    JBL Century Gold pricing

    Can anyone explain to me why the Century Golds are going so cheap second hand?

    I saw them numerous times priced <€1000 and they still take a few days to sell, why is that, are they inferior to other models?

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    RIP 2021 SEAWOLF97's Avatar
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    MSRP was $5,000 a pair new.

    replacement parts unobtainable ?
    Some kind of happiness is measured out in miles

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    Senior Member martin2395's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by SEAWOLF97 View Post
    MSRP was $5,000 a pair new.

    replacement parts unobtainable ?
    That's the point!

    Yes all of the units are unobtainable but still, many other speakers, vintage or not contain unobtainable parts too.

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    Senior Member BMWCCA's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by martin2395 View Post
    Can anyone explain to me why the Century Golds are going so cheap second hand?

    I saw them numerous times priced <€1000 and they still take a few days to sell, why is that, are they inferior to other models?
    That's still a lot of money for a 3-way "bookshelf" system based on a 12-inch woofer. Name some others that bring more!?

    Problem is many think they're ugly and gaudy if not pretentious. Too much emphasis on the bling, to my eyes and in my house. Rarity is one thing, aesthetics another. Rare and ugly gets you an Edsel; still collectible but not worth as much as a Thunderbird.

    http://www.jbl.com/images/media/CENTURY_GOLD_OM-1.pdf
    ". . . as you have no doubt noticed, no one told the 4345 that it can't work correctly so it does anyway."—Greg Timbers

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    RIP 2021 SEAWOLF97's Avatar
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    1000 Euro equals
    1295.17 US Dollars

    about 1/3 of their new cost.

    I buy many JBL's that haven't even held that much resale. Have never & most likely never will hear a pair.
    Besides NLA replacement parts, there are lots of other fine 3 way, 12 inchers available for much less cost.

    Would also wager that my recently acquired 120Ti's would rate in the top quartile of that group, and they
    can be had for a lot less.

    But if you are filling a show house, well ... maybe the CG is your answer.

    The CG's drivers sure look familiar, but JBL changed the model numbers to unique names.
    Some kind of happiness is measured out in miles

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    Quote Originally Posted by BMWCCA View Post
    That's still a lot of money for a 3-way "bookshelf" system based on a 12-inch woofer. Name some others that bring more!?

    Problem is many think they're ugly and gaudy if not pretentious. Too much emphasis on the bling, to my eyes and in my house. Rarity is one thing, aesthetics another. Rare and ugly gets you an Edsel; still collectible but not worth as much as a Thunderbird.

    http://www.jbl.com/images/media/CENTURY_GOLD_OM-1.pdf

    Yeah, but how do they SOUND?

    Actually not a lot of money really, all things considered. Look at where nondescript standard issue L-100 prices have been going the past year and a 1/2 and don't overlook shipping. Just a sample:

    http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_odkw...+l100&_sacat=0

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    Senior Member martin2395's Avatar
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    I have to admit that the looks are not exactly to my taste too, the Century Golds have a kind of 'gypsy' finish

    Though I think that all the CG's drivers are unique, I have never seen JBL use the Century 1200 basket anywhere else.

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    Quote Originally Posted by BMWCCA View Post
    That's still a lot of money for a 3-way "bookshelf" system based on a 12-inch woofer. Name some others that bring more!?
    I'm sure I could, easily if I tried, (but remember I am in the Northern California market)

    My question is how many 3-way book shelf systems based on a 12 inch woofer come with a factory built and installed biased network?

    I have mulled over these for a long time. Soon, the point of no return will be reached and I might as well forget it (at anything even resembling sane money)

    I wish badly that I could hear a pair. I am not so intrigued with them as to just buy them "ears unseen" however I don't have that sort of discretionary money

    I have also read in several places that very few pairs of these were made and that for some inexplicable reason when you do find them they are often in pretty bad shape.

    This however is just a vague recollection

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    Senior Member grumpy's Avatar
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    Could try a nice used pair of LSR32s and charge couple for less

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    Dang. Amateur speakerdave's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by grumpy View Post
    Could try a nice used pair of LSR32s and charge couple for less
    +1
    "Audio is filled with dangerous amateurs." --- Tim de Paravicini

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    A million posts bitching about service parts (un)availability for ages now, but is this heading towards new record setting territory?
    http://www.ebay.com/itm/281428157079?fe_1_5
    Not really the topic but related in my mind when talking up (or down) the virtues of all the vintage (discontinued) models

    Thought about it after researching your suggestion of trying some LSR32s and coming across this ancient JBL bashing troll's thread from 2008 by coincidence. I share it as to the connection with the ongoing and worsening parts scene. Has it been THIS long!?:
    http://www.audioheritage.org/vbullet...R6332-speakers

    OP on this one had it easy if this ePay closing is any indicator of the pace of where things are going, fast!

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    Dang. Amateur speakerdave's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by martin2395 View Post
    I have to admit that the looks are not exactly to my taste too, the Century Golds have a kind of 'gypsy' finish

    Though I think that all the CG's drivers are unique, I have never seen JBL use the Century 1200 basket anywhere else.

    The woofer was also used in the 4425 MkII; the mid range is the same as the LSR32/6332 (I think--the descriptions are very similar). I'm not sure about the tweeters. Is it an 052 or 053 ti with lipstick?
    "Audio is filled with dangerous amateurs." --- Tim de Paravicini

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    Dang. Amateur speakerdave's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Wagner View Post
    A million posts bitching about service parts (un)availability for ages now, but is this heading towards new record setting territory?
    http://www.ebay.com/itm/281428157079?fe_1_5
    Not really the topic but related in my mind when talking up (or down) the virtues of all the vintage (discontinued) models

    Thought about it after researching your suggestion of trying some LSR32s and coming across this ancient JBL bashing troll's thread from 2008 by coincidence. I share it as to the connection with the ongoing and worsening parts scene. Has it been THIS long!?:
    http://www.audioheritage.org/vbullet...R6332-speakers

    OP on this one had it easy if this ePay closing is any indicator of the pace of where things are going, fast!
    We don't care about that jerk. We forgot about him a long time ago. Why are you more influenced by one wacko than all the other user/hearers of a speaker?
    "Audio is filled with dangerous amateurs." --- Tim de Paravicini

  14. #14
    Dang. Amateur speakerdave's Avatar
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    The ideal of perpetual open stock on replacement parts for a speaker system comes from the designer/ engineering side of the business, I believe, as articulated by Henry Kloss long ago. Sadly, by the end of the sixties, two of the labels he had been associated with (Acoustic Reaearch and KLH) had been conglomeratized, after which the ethic changed to marketing, model ramification (with frufru) and discounting to death, and by the end of the seventies, the third, Advent (this is all unaided memory). Open stock on replacement parts got lost real early in this evolution (?). This is far from atypical. Looked at from this perspective, JBL has an absolute sterling record on that ideal. That doesn't mean 100%. It means a remarkable record of supporting successful designs.
    "Audio is filled with dangerous amateurs." --- Tim de Paravicini

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    Senior Member martin_wu99's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by martin2395 View Post
    Can anyone explain to me why the Century Golds are going so cheap second hand?

    I saw them numerous times priced <€1000 and they still take a few days to sell, why is that, are they inferior to other models?
    Many people think that Century Golds are JBL failure pruducts
    46 lover

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