I'll bring my camera home tomorrow. It's currently at the office.
I had not planned on buying new speakers but a local shop had them for 50% off, so I could not resist. I have concluded that my room is not large enough for the 2213/H9800 combination. One of the enclosures serves as a turntable stand for now..............
2213 + 2435HPL w/aquaplas + H9800 (Matsj edition)
Well.... maybe not.
But bring a stack of CDs, you're invited!
I took today off, but listened extensively yesterday and even had a couple of customers come by. The response has been pretty universal... they are an amazing pair of speakers. Both of these guys are avid audio geeks and have owned a ton of gear, one has owned several speakers in this price range and is tempted even though their width is a challenge for his room. Each listened for a couple of hours and obviously weren't anxious to leave.
As for their massive size, I must say it again: "The JBL Everest DD66000, a speaker you can get used to!"
Widget
OMG Widget, fantastic. Is that the same room where I heard Project Widget?
Same room... when was that 3-4 years ago? The clutter is now gone... . I believe I only had the Project Widgets running in some form of limp mode at the time. I was never able to get them dialed in here, both due to equipment shortage and the physical layout of the room. That said, these beasts sound pretty darned good here.
Widget
OK Widget
you are one of the few who have heard both the E2 and 9900. How do they compare to your ears ?
and pricewise ? (since I don't really shop this strata of speakers)
is the 1400 even in the same ballpark ?
us groggy 'philes wanna know ...
Some kind of happiness is measured out in miles
With luck, perhaps you could make it out here again during the Everest's tenure... looking like it might be a longer and longer one with each passing day.
Balanced? I can believe that, but unfortunately my current preamp doesn't offer that option... and at present I am in no position to change that as you might well imagine.
Widget
I think those are excellent questions.
Since JBL compares their products to the competition at each price point and only releases a product when their professional listening panel prefers the new JBL over the competition in a double blind comparison that should guaranty that moving from the $12K 1400 Array, to the $44K K2-S9900, to the $60K Everest DD66000, it should be a clear step up each time.
In my far less scientific but perhaps more meaningful listening sessions here at home, I have been lucky enough to enjoy all three of these marvelous speakers... and all three are marvelous. JBL is not the sole source of fantastic loudspeakers by the way, but these three are all really great speakers. The Everest is absolutely the best, but listening is subjective and we don't all have the same goals, so it's compromises may make it less of the stand out for some and more of a stand out to others. What it offers is absolute effortlessness and transparency. The speaker is simply not there getting in the way of the music. Like its two siblings they are all voiced quite neutrally, but because of it phenomenal dynamic capabilities it seems to be almost completely invisible. But like all loudspeakers, I suppose like everything made by man, there are compromises. The deep extended bass is missing. The imaging is a bit more diffuse than some would like. The forward nature of the sound might not appeal to everyone... and then there is the physical and practical. These speakers simply won't fit in every space and they are so damned expensive that very few can actually afford them. But that is it... if you can get past the physical and the cost, there are few if any speakers that really do what they do. As I type this I am constantly interrupted by the music. It is so compelling that I get sucked in and am transported to the studio or the performance hall. It is really phenomenal... and it puts a really big grin on your face.
The K2-S9900s were here almost two years ago for about a month so I am going from memory. I did have the 1400 Arrays concurrently as I do today so I can use them as something of a benchmark. In many ways the K2s are very similar to the Everests. Now when they were here I had a TOTL Mark Levinson system on loan... a vastly better (how do you define vastly... certainly much better) system than the one I own and am currently enjoying. That said, I do not remember the openness and transparency of the upper range (vocals, guitars, piano etc.) to be as much better than the 1400 Array as I have experienced with the Everests. The K2s were absolutely more transparent and more dynamic than the 1400 Arrays, but it seemed more incremental. Could this be that my current system is limiting and the Everests free it up to perform at it's best? It could be many things... but as best as I can compare, the K2s were certainly more sensitive, more dynamic, more diffuse in their imaging like the Everests, and absolutely in need of a quality sub. The Everests most certainly can be enjoyed with no sub... I could not say that for the K2s. Of course if you listen exclusively to music that has no deep bass then no sub is needed. On the plus side, the K2's form factor means it can work in almost any room. Properly mated with an exceptional sub, or two, it will likely give the Everest a run for the money. I don't think it'll ever have quite the same ability to offer up the massive acoustic onslaught in quite the same way that the Everest is capable of, but in many ways it is similar.
Now, the 1400 Arrays... Well, how can a $12K loudspeaker be a bargain? It is plain and simple, they are maximizing most of the data points on the compromise list. They are simply not as good as the Everests or the K2s, but they are close and their sound is just damned compelling. I don't think any speaker can please everyone, but the 1400 arrays are simply an amazing loudspeaker that image well enough to satisfy the "audiophile" and dynamic enough to satisfy all but the, "I must have a fully horn loaded system" set. They aren't as dynamic and effortless as their two bigger and more costly siblings, and they do need a big amp, but they are really, really good. I'd put them up against almost any loudspeaker made. They won't best everything, but they won't embarrass themselves either.
Widget
Are you asking me to get grumpy to help me load up the K2s, the ATIs, the 990, the balanced interconnects, and the Monster Z Series cables, and bring them up to your place for a three-for-all?
No freaking subs, no frickin' vinyl, no damned disks, no c-s tubes, just lossless files from your iPod through the Wadia to 990's DAC to fully balanced outputs...
Hope you've got a pallet jack or forklift.
Out.
They make for an outstanding upgrade from an L220/L222, 240Ti, or L250/250Ti.Now, the 1400 Arrays... Well, how can a $12K loudspeaker be a bargain?
$12k just happens to be the upgrade cost.
Then and now:
LE14H 1980 $200.00 each
LE14H-3 2012 $325.00 each (but you can't just buy them at will anymore)
LE175 1980 $240 each
LE85 1980 $285 each
175ND-3 2012 $250 each (but you can't just buy them at will anymore)
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