S3900 is better than S4700???

[Dave_72]

Hi guys, I have had my S4700's for about 5 months now. I too was a little disappointed in their performance initially, however after hours and hours of just letting these this just run in the back ground it's only in the last month they have woken up.
Woken up is an understatement! They are everything I had loved when I first auditioned them last year. I have never had a pair of speakers hide they secrets for so long, breaking in I mean. Verdict?
they rock!!, downside, my neighbours hate me, what is the most impressive aspect of these things? The bottom end! They do weighty instruments so well, I.e bass guitar and kick drum.
Presence, sound stage, dynamics, all very impressive!

That's exactly my experience. Anyone considering the S4700s should keep that in mind. Meaning be prepared for a long break in period.

But once they're broken in, the do in fact, rock.

You nailed it, S4700. Kudos.

[Dave_72]

Always a good policy.

People say all kinds of things, you need to decide for yourself what sounds best or more accurately which compromises you prefer.

Yep!

And why care anyway?


Widget

Thanks, Mr. Widget for your kind words.

[Dave_72]

Why?S4700 is so good,and even better than 4365,you should happy with it,just enjoy it.

You're right. Thank you.

[fpitas]

It has to do with your room acoustics and not your cables. I have had Cardas cables and now I have Supra ply 3,4, not much difference in the performance, if you ask me. But, when I treated my room acoustically, a whole new world open up. Same speaker, but more punch/tight in the bass and clean hights.

Yes, the listening room is a major ingredient, and different types of speakers interact in different ways with the room. That makes any speaker review sort of a moving target.

[AS-21]

Only yesterday a group of 4 of us spent some time in a high end audio shop evaluating a number of different speakers. They pretty much gave us the liberty of trying out whatever we wanted - as long as we wanted - without a salesman present. There was a used pair of S4700s on the floor which looked barely used and noticing the $20K price tag, we decided to give them a whirl expecting great things. Unfortunately all 4 of us found them rather lackluster which was quite opposite our expectations. YMMV. Perhaps needed more break-in time?

[4313B]

Perhaps needed more break-in time?

I really don't know... there is absolutely nothing wrong with any of the transducers. They are used in multiple systems to great efffect. The 2216Nd is the current darling at JBL, apparently everybody who is anybody loves it.

But hey, the 4365 is full of some of the best transducers on the planet and look what people say about it.

[martin_wu99]

Please describe more how they have woken up! My 4365 are 2 months old now, and are getting better all the time, but I hope there is more to come. Initially voices were sounding thin, but that is gone now.
I will try to make DIY silver speaker cables later on. I have monoblocks, so i only need short speakercables. I have a friend who is a goldsmith, and can get me pure silver.
For signalcables, I will use Canare or Belden xlr from blue jeans cables, I think. Any one tried those?

From my experience,silver speaker cables is not suitable for JBL speakers,silver cables usually are bright and delicate,but JBL speakers are bright enough.
we usually chose KIMBER 12TC,PAD VENUSTAS,Shunyata,TiGLON MGL-SP1,MIT, Van Den Hul Inspiration and so on.
Again,as somebody say,room acoustic processing is major thing.

[martin_wu99]

Only yesterday a group of 4 of us spent some time in a high end audio shop evaluating a number of different speakers. They pretty much gave us the liberty of trying out whatever we wanted - as long as we wanted - without a salesman present. There was a used pair of S4700s on the floor which looked barely used and noticing the $20K price tag, we decided to give them a whirl expecting great things. Unfortunately all 4 of us found them rather lackluster which was quite opposite our expectations. YMMV. Perhaps needed more break-in time?

You did not tell us which gear you used to drive S4700

S4700 is not so easy to drive,especially when match with McIntosh,it sounds not good i personally think

[Mctwins]

You did not tell us which gear you used to drive S4700

S4700 is not so easy to drive,especially when match with McIntosh,it sounds not good i personally think

Here you go again with your McIntosh, maybe McIntosh made in China dosen't sound good It has nothing to do with what kind of amp you are running the S4700 as long you have enough power to drive them. Last time I heard S4700 sounded good, as expected. Don't remember what kind of amp it was, maybe Levinson. About cables, look what's inside the speakers, you will be suprized what cables is used here, nothing fancy at all...even High-End speakers.

[Mctwins]

Just read the specs of the S4700, it says 300Watts(RMS), it means that one can use 600Watts of amp power and run continous in 300Watts, if this dosen't open up the S4700, the I don't know what will. Lend me a a pair of S4700 and I will let them sing when connected with one Crown MAi5000 amp

[AS-21]

We tried them with both current model McIntosh MC 402 and vintage MC 240.

No offence intended towards any partisans or owners of the S4700- they simply left us feeling rather disappointed. Perhaps a lack of break-in time may have played some role- I cannot say. YMMV.

[badman]

Martin, this is another of several threads where you're taking people's rankings as gospel. They are not. Reviewers, users, who cares, an absolute "rank" is stupid. Speakers are a very personal thing and it's natural for some people to prefer one over another. It's like a jigsaw puzzle- the listener is one piece, the speaker is another, and the room a third, and the amp/system a fourth. One speaker might fit the puzzle better, even if the other speaker has a "bigger" piece (more potential when optimized). Rankings are meaningless at a completed speaker system level. Now, for tweeters being evaluated for a specific platform, there might be an absolute best.

[Dave_72]

We tried them with both current model McIntosh MC 402 and vintage MC 240.

No offense intended towards any partisans or owners of the S4700- they simply left us feeling rather disappointed. Perhaps a lack of break-in time may have played some role- I cannot say. YMMV.

No problem. You're entitled to your opinion. Yes, probably a lack of break in time, I suppose. As well as placement and the room. The amps sound ok. Not exactly sure on all of this as I wasn't there, however.

I have found that these speakers are a bit finicky. They need a long break in time, and proper placement is a must. They sound best well away from the side walls, and very little toe-in, imo. I have them about 2 feet from the back wall, and surprisingly bass is deep but not boomy.

Anyway, when you were there did you listen to the K2 9900s? Just curious.

[Dave_72]

Here you go again with your McIntosh, maybe McIntosh made in China dosen't sound good It has nothing to do with what kind of amp you are running the S4700 as long you have enough power to drive them. Last time I heard S4700 sounded good, as expected. Don't remember what kind of amp it was, maybe Levinson. About cables, look what's inside the speakers, you will be suprized what cables is used here, nothing fancy at all...even High-End speakers.

Well, I agree with Martin somewhat. I don't personally subscribe to the notion that all amps and cables sound the same, if that's what you're getting at. There are differences. sometimes subtle differences, sometimes big differences. It's all about synergy.

[Mr. Widget]

Rooms, placement, source, amps, cables, etc., etc. all affect the system's performance... even though we routinely hear a speaker or some other component at a HiFi show, a stereo shop, or a friend's house and draw conclusions about the sound of what we've heard. Realistically how valid are those conclusions?

I've seen and heard the 4700s only once in a very uncontrolled setting and would never suggest I had a clew as to how they sound.


Widget