Help me identify my vintage JBL speakers.

[Brian C.]

Hi everyone, I would like to start of by saying that this is my very first forum post on any forum ever… So please if i do something wrong i am terribly sorry and it most likely wasn’t meant to happen.

Now that that’s out of the way. I need help identifying my JBL speakers. As far as i can tell by markings it’s a C36, however i can’t seem to find any c36 or c35 with the same speaker configuration. At the back it features a metal plate which says “ James B Lansing Sound Inc. TYPE C36 | ENCLOSURE”(picture attached). The speakers them self still have a nice mesh covering but using my flashlight i was able to see the actual speaker units, unfortunately because of the mesh front i was unable to take any clear pictures of the speakers themselves, but i will try to describe them to the best of my ability : at the top it seems to have 2 small speakers within 1 ‘circle’ (i’m not sure what to call it) , in the middle / a little down there is a speaker that seems to be roughly 10 inches in diameter. And at the very bottom there is a small rectangular hole which doesn’t cover a lot of the bottom so it isn’t all that wide.

I also took the size of the cabinets in case that has a role to play : H69cm ; W44cm ; D37.8cm .

I’m looking to use these speakers as studio monitors in a professional music studio, from what i have heard they sound amazing and would do a perfect job. The reason for this request is mainly just my curiosity not being able to hold back.

Anyway i hope any of this actually helps for the searching and i hope someone knows :).

Kind regards,
Brian.

[robertg]

If you look at the bottom of the speaker there should be a slot where you can slide out the grill. A picture without the cloth covering the drivers would be make it easier to identify whats in it.

[Brian C.]

If you look at the bottom of the speaker there should be a slot where you can slide out the grill. A picture without the cloth covering the drivers would be make it easier to identify whats in it.

i’m sorry if this is a stupid question, but since these speakers have ran for a long time in my family i want to be very careful, how do i remove the front mesh exactly?

[Brian C.]

If you look at the bottom of the speaker there should be a slot where you can slide out the grill. A picture without the cloth covering the drivers would be make it easier to identify whats in it.

after looking up about the slot to remove the front mesh i found out that my unit somehow simply does not have it. (Picture attached)

[robertg]

The back must be able to come off them.

[jbl4ever]

Hello BrianC, and welcome to the LH site. I had a pair of these over 40yrs ago. My C36 cabinets had a removable back panel. In your first picture it shows a screw and washer I believe this is your way in.
My grilles could be removed after the back panel was taken out. My C36 front grille was attached from inside the cabinet with some screws. I do not know if yours is the same. For the components used in your speakers JBL had quite a few different loads for them. The library on this site has lots of great info for you. Top of the page look for the library tag an click on. Here is their link for your speakers just lok for the drivers that were used in your C36
http://www.lansingheritage.org/images/jbl/catalogs/1957/page8.jpg

[Brian C.]

Hello BrianC, and welcome to the LH site. I had a pair of these over 40yrs ago. My C36 cabinets had a removable back panel. In your first picture it shows a screw and washer I believe this is your way in.
My grilles could be removed after the back panel was taken out. My C36 front grille was attached from inside the cabinet with some screws. I do not know if yours is the same. For the components used in your speakers JBL had quite a few different loads for them. The library on this site has lots of great info for you. Top of the page look for the library tag an click on. Here is their link for your speakers just lok for the drivers that were used in your C36
http://www.lansingheritage.org/images/jbl/catalogs/1957/page8.jpg

Good to know! I will try to open it up later. I’m also wondering whether or not these speakers are rare and what they might be worth, but i guess that question will only be answered after i open them up and see what’s inside.

[Brian C.]

So i opened up the speakers and found this inside. Hopefully someone knows what this is exactly.

[BMWCCA]

I have no idea what you have, but they're certainly not JBL. :dont-know:

[Brian C.]

I have no idea what you have, but they're certainly not JBL. :dont-know:

exactly what i was thinking. Any idea if the cabinet it self is worth anything?

[speakerdave]

I wouldn't dismiss those drivers out of hand. RCF is an established brand, that woofer looks substantial (and the frame is painted) and the crossover doesn't look like nothing. None of it looks like cheese.

[BMWCCA]

exactly what i was thinking. Any idea if the cabinet it self is worth anything?
The C36 cabinet, also known as the Viscount, should have four legs on the bottom which is one of the short sides. Judging from the condition of yours from what we can see of the veneer and the chopped up access holes, you'd have to give them away in the US. How much they're worth in your country would depend on the interest of the few who might want them. I find them too small to let the D130 perform as well as it can, which is fairly marginal as a woofer anyway. With those speakers you have I have no idea if that's an improvement in sound over a JBL 030 system, or not. But since the value of the common 030 in the C36 is based more on condition and nostalgia than sound or performance, I'm still going for giving them away with no expectation of monetary gain. Hopefully you acquired them for free, too.

[speakerdave]

I wouldn't dismiss those drivers out of hand. RCF is an established brand, that woofer looks substantial (and the frame is painted) and the crossover doesn't look like nothing. None of it looks like cheese.

I would suggest you post them on websites favored by rockers, maybe Gear Slutz-- I'm sure there are others I don't know. Someone will know all about them. The drivers look more like sound reinforcement or MI than hi fi to me.

[Brian C.]

The C36 cabinet, also known as the Viscount, should have four legs on the bottom which is one of the short sides. Judging from the condition of yours from what we can see of the veneer and the chopped up access holes, you'd have to give them away in the US. How much they're worth in your country would depend on the interest of the few who might want them. I find them too small to let the D130 perform as well as it can, which is fairly marginal as a woofer anyway. With those speakers you have I have no idea if that's an improvement in sound over a JBL 030 system, or not. But since the value of the common 030 in the C36 is based more on condition and nostalgia than sound or performance, I'm still going for giving them away with no expectation of monetary gain. Hopefully you acquired them for free, too.

yeah the speakers themselves are really good, i’ve used them for music production quite a lot now and they sound better than any under $500 monitor.

i didn’t buy them as well, my grandparents gave them to me after they bought it from a well known nightclub / discotheque.

i’m not going to sell or give away anyway since i will be using them in my new music studio, but the only reason i asked is sheer curiosity :)

[Brian C.]

I would suggest you post them on websites favored by rockers, maybe Gear Slutz-- I'm sure there are others I don't know. Someone will know all about them. The drivers look more like sound reinforcement or MI than hi fi to me.

great i’ll have a look around :)