L-36 or L110

[Bob Nowak]

Hi guys, need some help deciding between the L36 and the L110. This will be my first purchase of some vintage JBL's. I was set to buy the L110's, but now a pair of clean L36's have surfaced. The price difference is only $50.00. Which would you guys choose? My music choice is mainly rock. I would appreciate your opinions. Thanks Bob

[BMWCCA]

I don' t own either but from the opinions of others I recall the L36 never won any prizes for the integration of its three drivers and many preferred the 2-way L26, or at least thought the L36 to be not worth the extra bucks. The L110 seems to be closely related to the well-reviewed L96, which I do own, and the revered 4313B. In general the 10-inch 3-ways of that later era get high marks for their tweeters, the LF drivers, and the overall integration. If it's the L110A then even better.

I'm assuming the L110 was the more expensive? If not, no question. If so, what percentage of the purchase price is the price bump? If they're both good deals, buy both and decide for yourself and sell off the loser . . . if you can get yourself to do it.

[SEAWOLF97]

I have owned both, and the L-26 also. Phil may be referring to my comparison of the 26 vs 36.

Waiting to be refoamed this winter is a pristine pair of L-110's. I heard them demoed needing foams (ie: not at their best) and would easily recommend them over the L-36.

[Chris Brown]

L110 easily.

The L36 is the older of the two. It has a sound signature that is similar to the L100 in that it has a very pronounced upper midrange hump and somewhat rolled off highs due to having a paper-cone tweeter. The 125a in the L36 is decent for what it is, but really not even close to the LE111A in the L110.

The L110 uses the 033 tweeter and the LE5-10 midrange, same as the L150. The 033 is a very nice tweeter to listen to, providing treble that is a clear step above the older paper-cone tweeters while also coming off as slightly softer and less fatiguing than the later Titanium dome tweeters. The LE5-10 in the L110 is essentially the same as the LE5-6 in the L36, as all even-numbered LE5 mids between -6 and -12 are acoustically identical and interchangeable (-8 and -12 have silver face instead of black). Despite this, the L110 does not have the same upper midrange peak that the L36 does.

I would say that the only good things about the L36 are that it comes in a fairly small package and that it can be an easy/cheap way to get that nostalgic L100 style sound if that is your goal. The L110 is the better speaker.

[LRBacon]

L110. I own both and prefer the L110. No listener fatigue, you can listen to them for hours on end. If possible I would buy the L110A's. They will have an "A" and an "H" die stamped or printed after the serial number on the foilcal. Actually the L36 cabinet is larger than the L110.

Larry

[RLock]

I have had L110's since 1980, my only complaint is the 033 tweeters are unprotected and easily damaged. Irresistible to little fingers and sometimes the big ones they get pushed in all too often. Once pushed in they sound scratchy (IMO) and need replacement; the domes are fairly extinct to my knowledge. However, 033's do pop up on eBay fairly often if it does happen.