Your best JBL find

[capo72]

Hi all, 1st post just joined the forum and i've been doing alot of reading. I'm a Klipsch freak and i'm usually on their forum.
Anyway My aunt manages a large storage facility and she ends up with alot of delinquent storage units. She always saves the electronics and speakers and gives them to me.
Sunday I visited her and came home with a pick-up truck load full of equipment. The most interesting thing being a pair of JBL c38's one cabinet is in pretty rough shape, the other is decent with a few veneer chips and scratches. They have the d123's and 075's in them. I have not listened to them yet because i've been sorting through the other stuff. Got a couple of Pioneer silver face late 70's receivers also. I'll probably mess with them tonight and snap some pics.
Nice forum you have here, maybe i'll stick around a while!

Jeremy

[Titanium Dome]

Congrats on your good fortune. All my aunts ever gave me were lectures and cod liver oil.

We'd love to see pictures.

[SEAWOLF97]

pair L100 - $4
pair L26 - $10
pair L36 - $5

all only needed grill cloth replacement

all at GW

[capo72]

Here are the pics of my newly aquired c-38's. I tried them out last night, and the bad news is both 075 tweeters don't work. I pulled them out and checked with ohm meter and they both have open voltage. They also appear to be corroded around the outside ring (magnet?) it's a white powdery substance.
So where is the best place to obtain diaphrams? I see a seller on e-bay has them for $34 each. Are the aftermarket ones any good? Does JBL still sell them? Thanx for any info.

Jeremy

[Mr. Widget]

Very cool find... yes the diaphragms are still available from JBL. Replacing diaphragms in the JBL ring radiators is a little tricky. You may want to have them professionally installed. Using original JBL diaphragms (the best way to go) and having them installed will cost you in the neighborhood of $200-$250. The pair of diaphragms alone will cost around $200.


Widget

[Zilch]

Capo, those are very beautiful, and will clean up nicely.

The powdery corrosion is common with age. It's oxidation of the plating, and will wipe off.

The 075s can be restored "as new" with new diaphragms and cleaning the parts.

I use a ScotchBrite metal polishing pad on the metal parts.

[ironman]

Bought first pair JBL's in '78 - L-110's, with a JVC amp. and turntable as a package deal at a local hi fi shop. The
set up was returned when some guy whose tax return didn't add up to what he thought it would be. The L-110's were inscribed with numbers for police ID if they were ever stolen. I think I paid $ 900.00 for the whole set up. Hey, I was 24 and had "the fever" (for anything JBL) after hearing my best friends new Jubals (I think they were Jubals). My grandmother had passed away and left me $1,200.00. My father went ballistic when he heard how I was planning to spend the money - quite the family squabble at the time (sorry dad). After I got my way I brought the entire set up directly to mom & dads so they could actually hear what I was raving about. Up until then I think the highest end they had heard was a Sears cabinet unit. I just knew this set would blow their minds ! My mom shared with me that her Ford Pinto "sound system" sounded great to her. Anyhow, I get the thing set up, speakers angled just right for the sweet spot - wires stretched across their floor and I say "mom, get your favorite Tom Jones album, dad sit right in this chair here and close your eyes !" They both listen for a bit and my father says "very nice" but I can tell hes impatient to get back to what he was doinfg before JBL Revere stormed in the door. My mom responds "I still say I get a great sound from my little car stereo". I'm dumfounded..."did you listen ? did you close your eyes and just listen ? Didn't it sound like he was standing 10 feet in front of you singing ?" Within 10 minutes I had it all back in the boxes and heading for my apartment. On the ride home I couldn't help wonder if their age had some how affected their hearing. It was either that or they just didn't want to admit I made a wise purchase ! What did food, car insurance/payment, rent, clothing etc., mean if I had JBL's ? I lost them not 2 years later in a "break up" with my live in honey (I bought them at the same time we moved in together). She kept them until this past Christmas (25 + years later) when she decided the rotted surrounds meant they were junk - "no honey, don't toss 'em, I might be able to do something with them... " About 6-7 months before (last spring ?) I bought a pair of L-112's on ePay figuring the L-110's were history years ago...how was I to know ? I think I paid $175. for 'em - nice shape 'cept for the "inverted" mid dustcaps and no grilles (since have bought nice grilles). Lat summer I paid waaaaay to much for a pair of L-40's - I wasn't happy about the deal but they were in good shape - I think they cost me, all said and done, about $150.00. Well, after reading about everyone elses "Goodwill" finds etc., I began the daydream of walking into a Salvation Army and finding 4343's find for $15.00. I don't have this kind of luck so I never figured it could happen to me. I also live in an area where it is very unlikely that I'm going to find "high end" anywhere in 100 miles radius ! Then I started thinking maybe I'm just too negative - why not me ?
Several times in the last year I had the occassion to drive by the local Salvation Army (15 miles south of me)
and I made it a point to stop in. This is where I get overly optimistic ! My heart rate picks up as I pull into their lot, by the time I'm in the door and heading to the back room I've picked up my pace because I just know if I don't get back there quickly 6 other people are going to push their way past me to get to those JBL's back there that I just know are awaiting me with that $15. price tag ! Sure enough I see speakers, a head board partially blocking them, sh*t, the grilles are facing away from me - get closer quick ! The finish doesn't look exactly right, now I also notice that they are taller and too narrow I think for them to be JBL but hey, the headboard could be causing them to look that way - at last I'm upon them, I spin the one clsest to me and IT FEELS LIKE I'M SPINNING A BOX PACKED WITH STYROFOAM ! DAMN, they're Panasonics ! Back out the door feeling like the idiot that doesn't belive that "theres no such thing as a free lunch". I sulk back into my car, look at my watch to see how much time I've just wasted and head back onto the highway. I remember buying a lottery ticket for the first New York State Lottery and waking up the next day anxiously looking for my ticket to see if I was the one to win a cool 1 million ! When I discovered that I hadn't picked not a one (numbers) correctly that same feeling crept over me - a**hole, did you REALLY think you'd win a million just like that ?
I've checked back with Salvation Army a few times since - always the same luck. At least I've now got my head in the right place before I pull in to the parking lot.This past spring I attended a retirment luncheon for one of my staff. I had to park a block away from the restaurant in a space directly across from a junk shop. After the luncheon I headed to my car, noticed the shop and said
to myslef "what the hell, I have a few minutes". I head through the shop that is arranged in a horse shoe configuration. The entrance door is one of two - the other door is blocked off. I'm making my way up the first row and see nothing but pure junk electronics but note some nice old albums still sealed in cellophane. I picked up several I liked. As I turn the head of the horseshoe I spy a single speaker standing standing ontop of something that looks like a blue felt box. I can see that it looks like it could be a quality speaker but, it figures, only one ! I get to it and notice that the box it is standing on is really just another speaker with some kind of swirly blue grille cloth. As I get closer I see a very small orange tag - down boy, nah, it can't be ! Then bingo I'm close enough to see its "JBL". Ok, what JBL ? And what is the one its standing on ? I note the L-50 tag and quickly pull off the bottom grille - JBL again and matching at that ! As I'm picking through my mental roll a dex of every model I've read about on this site I start looking quickly for the price tag - I want my ducks in order before the clerk comes over and we start the horse trading. I see that they need surrounds and one grille is missing. I find the tag and it says $40.00. Before I know it the clerk is along side me asking if I'm ineterested ? I say " I see your asking $40.00 but, as you can see, these speakers are shot - look all around the bigger speakers". She says, yes, she sees it and then "I just figured someone could use them for parts or something". I say "I like seeing if I can get old things working again but they aren't worth more than $30. to me, the beat up speakers and all...and I see this one is missing the cover". She yells back over her shoulder "hey Mary, wasn't there a cover around here for this bottom speaker ?" I hear "yeah" and I'm already scowering the place for the missing grille. Then I see, over against the organ in the corner a blue patch of something. I start scooting in between her and the speakers when I remember I need to close the deal before the dude coming down the aisle behind me spies
my find. I say "I'll give you $30., hows that ?". She says
"OK". Done deal. When I get closer to the blue patch
I see that it is indeed the matching blue grille. Why it was so far from the speakers I don't know and really don't care. I pulled my car up to a now vacant spot and get 'em out to my car one at a time wondering now if they are even worth the $30. Screw it I say to myself, I just had my first JBL "find" and for $30. for anyhting JBL in this good shape how could I have gone wrong ? As I drove away I got a big sh*t eating grin on my face and realzed I just had a ball ! I was alone, no matter, no one I know these days would even understand - I knew you all would !

** of course I got home, got to this site and after a little bit of refreshing my memory on what drivers they were, year etc., realized what I had. Maybe only L-50's but it still made my day !

[jackiegeorge]

i found a pair of l36 at a garage sale for $10.00 with the owners manuals hang tags and warranty reg. cards. what was wrong with them they needed new foam around the woofers. one year later i refoamed them and what a great pair of speakers they are. i love them

[JohnK]

An oooold Klipsch horn loaded with old grey Hartsfield components.

[John]

I would love to share some of my JBL finds with the forum but fear some would hate me Or flash me the

[Titanium Dome]

I would love to share some of my JBL finds with the forum but fear some would hate me Or flash me the

OK John, it's all and envy after a fashion, so tell us your story.

You know you want to.

[Fred Sanford]

A couple of my stories are in the "New Blood" thread, but there's a second pair of L100s coming my way for free in about a week, which puts me at:

4333As (2)
L100s (4)
L110s (2)
L46s (6)

TR225s (2)
Altec 8256 (1)

E140 (1)
E120s (2)
2135 (1)

Bonus points for anyone familiar with these:
8120 (1)
8110 (2)

Urei 6260 power amp (1)

...and all, with repairs & replacement parts, still just under $1,000 cash invested.

je

[spwal]

i hate you guys.

[Fred Sanford]

I enjoy tallying & re-telling the actual cash outlay for my gear, but the investment is actually life-long (and the repairs take time & effort, or barter of some sort). Even if all you're looking for is bargains, you've got to get the reputation of taking in orphans in order to be brought orphans in baskets, then you've also got to be good to the fine folks that supply you with goodies.

So much of what's come through my doors is of lower quality than the JBLs, and almost all of the JBLs have been thrashed to near-trash before they get here. It's all good, it's all fun, I learn a lot and a huge chunk of it goes to charities- beginner musicians, friends, community theaters, youth groups, etc. I just keep the ones that make me smile most.

je

[hello9821]

my best find is a pair of JBL L65 Jubals with original manual. Paid $50 on CL!

plus I have a line on a pair of Aquarius Q's (L120) that i will be looking at this saturday if the weather improves.