JBLs at Brick and Mortar HiFi Shops

Over the years, there have been many complaints about how you cannot find JBL speakers in traditional hi-fi stores these days. Of course, the state of affairs with traditional brick and mortar stores of all types is a contributing factor, but with JBL there is also the direct competition between Harman/JBL and their dealers.

In an old 4341 thread one poster brought up the JBL Studio 590 speakers. These are objectively pretty good speakers which are fairly compact for a full sized speaker and pretty reasonably priced… but Harman obviously doesn’t want dealers to demonstrate and sell them. They would rather sell them factory direct.

Currently they are offering them at $399 each with free shipping! https://www.harmanaudio.com/STUDIO+5...fzJupIZBhxUOGM


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Originally Posted by Mr. Widget

Of course, the state of affairs with traditional brick and mortar stores of all types is a contributing factor

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Yeah this was a real shame. I really hated when Fry's went out of Business. This mostly just leaves BestBuy for me, which seems more concerned with selling Cellphones, TVs, Laptops, and overpriced accessories such as $25 HDMI cables.

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Originally Posted by Mr. Widget

In an old 4341 thread one poster brought up the JBL Studio 590 speakers. These are objectively pretty good speakers which are fairly compact for a full sized speaker and pretty reasonably priced… but Harman obviously doesn’t want dealers to demonstrate and sell them. They would rather sell them factory direct.

Currently they are offering them at $399 each with free shipping!

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I've never personally felt that a "Dealer demonstration" was a good way to audition speakers. The dealers have every incentive to portray them in a way that shows off their strengths while hiding their weaknesses. They may sound quite different once setup in your own home. When buying them directly, what is really nice in addition to the free shipping is the free returns. That means that you are fully able to "audition" them in your own home, with your own electronics, listening to your own music, even using your own EQ/DSP settings if you prefer, with essentially no risk beyond the physical labor and time involved. I was able to get a refurbished pair for ~$750 a few years ago, which thankfully arrived without so much as a fingerprint on them, but I probably would have gone the new route for $800.

I don't know that I would necessarily call them "compact", or even "fairly compact", unless you are comparing them to something like an L250. About the only thing that can be claimed about them is that they are "sort of thin". This side-by-side comparison with my L150 and L100T (neither of which are tiny) puts things into perspective. The 590 is at least a foot taller than the L150.

http://gotnorice.com/590_Rack_thumb.jpg

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Originally Posted by Chris Brown

I don't know that I would necessarily call them "compact", or even "fairly compact", unless you are comparing them to something like an L250. About the only thing that can be claimed about them is that they are "sort of thin". This side-by-side comparison with my L150 and L100T (neither of which are tiny) puts things into perspective. The 590 is at least a foot taller than the L150.

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There's that... but it is all a matter of perspective.

For me if there are no 15" woofers involved, it is a "compact system". :D


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The JBL consumer and JBL Luxury Group dealership situation is best described as fickle.

I called the JBL importer and asked for a dealership in my region. They said the nearest was Len Wallis in Sydney 1000 km away. No Luxury Group installers either. They said JBL was a split brand in that not all of their dealerships carried the whole range.

My impression is that JBL Luxury is an elite brand in the Harman stable. But if mum and dad are buying Jnr a pair of JBL Lansing headphones are JB Hifi (Lows) then how do they link and associate the JBL Consumer range with the JBL Luxury Group?

The problem is Harman doesn’t have a marketing communication plan like a consumer awareness In-Store to link each JBL range with its other target markets.

What’s appropriate is an In-Store merchandising booth to showcase the JBL profile with taster of each range.

This was the feedback l provided the Harman Luxury Group HQ in the UK when l requested an understanding of the JBL Synthesis Tech support. They said they were appreciative of my feedback.

Frankly Harman would do well to open more of this own JBL franchise super stores a bit like Apple.

Get the kids in the ground floor and the rest is history.

They could have several floors or more in a city retail centre covering Consumer Lifestyle, JBL Luxury Group, Cinema Sound, Pro Musician SR, Broadcast & Studio, Pro install sound - Clubs and commercial, and Pro PA.

Staff it with sales specialists from JBL Northridge or trained by Northridge and I think they would smash it out of the ball park with that kind of synergy.

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Originally Posted by Mr. Widget

...For me if there are no 15" woofers involved, it is a "compact system". :D


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This. :bouncy:

Make sure to let us know when the HDI series goes on sale.