JBL L112

cmy330go
cmy330go Posts: 2,341
in Vintage Speakers
So picked up a pair of these for my father. I had never laid ears on them before, but just remember how fondly he spoke of them as I was growing up, and how he has forever regretted not buying them when he first heard them. 3 decades later he's finally getting them. I really didn't expect too much, but upon first listen... DANG! Sure they aren't perfect, but I'm shocked at how many things they do well. This is only my second vintage speaker purchase. The first was the Sansui SP-1700s you see peaking out from behind. I have to admit that though neither of these are anywhere near as accurate as many most respectable modern speakers, they do have a very appealing sound with certain recordings, and they remind you that there is nothing wrong with playing around with the tone controls.

It's been nice, both taking a trip down memory lane, and also being reminded that it doesn't take tons of cash to get some serious listening enjoyment. Looking forward to seeing him take his first listen.2iz1qhz4zjlt.jpeg
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HT
Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

2 CH
Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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Comments

  • Nightfall
    Nightfall Posts: 10,086
    They're in very good shape, it seems, to boot. He'll be very happy.
    afterburnt wrote: »
    They didn't speak a word of English, they were from South Carolina.

    Village Idiot of Club Polk
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  • cmy330go
    cmy330go Posts: 2,341
    Yea they are in pretty great shape. They do need the pots cleaned, which seems like it will be a hassle, but other than that I'm quite happy with them.
    HT
    Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

    2 CH
    Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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  • lawdogg
    lawdogg Posts: 455
    Nice buy, they look mint. I am a recent believer of vintage JBL, I picked up and recapped / refoamed a pair of L26's which sound amazing. Also, that's a real nice setup you have there! Are you using the tubes as a pre-amp or as a power amp?
    <3 my 3.1TLs

    I will fix your shifted magnets for free. :)
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  • cmy330go
    cmy330go Posts: 2,341
    lawdogg wrote: »
    Nice buy, they look mint. I am a recent believer of vintage JBL, I picked up and recapped / refoamed a pair of L26's which sound amazing. Also, that's a real nice setup you have there! Are you using the tubes as a pre-amp or as a power amp?

    Thanks. The setup is actually mostly the wife's idea. We recently moved into this house, and didn't really have a need for a formal dining room, so she chose to turn it into a social/music room. She wanted a vintage look, hence the gear. Actually the preamp, and tube integrated are just there while I'm having a Sansui 2000x reconditioned. The tubes are currently just power since there are no tone controls on the the tube integrated. So the Crown is on preamp duty.

    The L26 looks like an interesting speaker. Can't say I've even seen the 2-way before. I'd imagine they're probably a little smoother than these 3-way designs.
    HT
    Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

    2 CH
    Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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  • westmassguy
    westmassguy Posts: 6,850
    Very nice. The Aquaplas Woofers were re-foamed at some point. DeoxIT will take care of the Pots.
    Home Theater/2 Channel:
    Front: SDA-2ATL forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/143984/my-2as-finally-finished-almost/p1
    Center: Custom Built forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/150760/my-center-channel-project/p1
    Surrounds & Rears: Custom Built forum.polkaudio.com/discussion/151647/my-surround-project/p1
    Sonicaps, Mills, RDO-194s-198s, Dynamat, Hurricane Nuts, Blackhole5
    Pioneer Elite VSX-72TXV, Carver PM-600, SVS PB2-Plus Subwoofer

    dhsspeakerservice.com/
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  • lawdogg
    lawdogg Posts: 455
    edited December 2015
    cmy330go wrote: »
    Thanks. The setup is actually mostly the wife's idea. We recently moved into this house, and didn't really have a need for a formal dining room, so she chose to turn it into a social/music room. She wanted a vintage look, hence the gear. Actually the preamp, and tube integrated are just there while I'm having a Sansui 2000x reconditioned. The tubes are currently just power since there are no tone controls on the the tube integrated. So the Crown is on preamp duty.

    The L26 looks like an interesting speaker. Can't say I've even seen the 2-way before. I'd imagine they're probably a little smoother than these 3-way designs.

    Happy wife happy life :smile: That's fantastic. How do you like the sound through the tubes as opposed to solid state?

    Yes the L26 has a wonderful sound. JBL did make a 3-way version called the L36. I've never heard it, but I've read people's opinions preferring the L26. Worth a listen if you ever stumble across any.

    By the way nice avatar. Do you run in the spec series? Nice to see a fellow gearhead.
    <3 my 3.1TLs

    I will fix your shifted magnets for free. :)
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  • leftwinger57
    leftwinger57 Posts: 2,917
    They look very nice and good luck.. If I had my choice of a vintage JBL would be the Century 100 w/ the off set style speaker layout.
    2chl- Adcom GFA- 555-Onkyo P-3150v pre/amp- JVC-QL-A200 tt- Denon 1940 ci cdp- Adcom GFS-6 -Modded '87 SDA 2Bs - Dynamat Ext.- BH-5- X-Overs VR-3, RDO-194 tweeters, Larry's Rings, Speakon/Neutrik I/C- Cherry stain tops Advent Maestros,Ohm model E

    H/T- Toshiba au40" flat- Yamaha RX- V665 avr- YSD-11 Dock- I-Pod- Klipsch #400HD Speaker set-

    Bdrm- Nikko 6065 receiver- JBL -G-200s--Pioneer 305 headphones--Sony CE375-5 disc
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  • msg
    msg Posts: 10,020
    edited December 2015
    Nice acquisition. That's a really cool thing you've done for your Dad, given that he missed them in the old days.

    The first vintage JBLs I heard were the regular L100's similar to what Lew mentions. Beautifully smooth across a vintage Sansui I heard them on. I'd love to try some of these at some point, but I had to step off the vintage train. It was maddening the lack of local opportunities, and then the ridiculous prices for poor quality gear whenever stuff did pop up.

    They made some little modular angled bracket/stand things for these - at least, for the L100's. Bet you could find them for those ones too. You can get then on eBay. Imho, getting them on these brackets and off the floor really sets them off. There's supposed to be some benefit to the angle as well but I can't remember what it is.
    I disabled signatures.
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  • msg
    msg Posts: 10,020
    msg wrote: »
    ...the ridiculous prices for poor quality gear whenever stuff did pop up
    sorry, I meant condition here, not quality.

    I disabled signatures.
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  • boston1450
    boston1450 Posts: 7,638
    ^^^^ Sure. Now send me those stands for that mistake :)
    ..
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  • cmy330go
    cmy330go Posts: 2,341
    lawdogg wrote: »
    By the way nice avatar. Do you run in the spec series? Nice to see a fellow gearhead.

    I haven't ran a race yet, but am working towards it. Was planning on racing this past summer, but we suddenly bought a house, and I spent all summer working on getting into it. A buddy and I went through the 3-day Skip Barber course at Road Atlanta last winter, and are planning on doing the advanced course in the near future. Hopefully things will work out this summer.
    HT
    Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

    2 CH
    Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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  • cmy330go
    cmy330go Posts: 2,341
    msg wrote: »
    Nice acquisition. That's a really cool thing you've done for your Dad, given that he missed them in the old days.

    The first vintage JBLs I heard were the regular L100's similar to what Lew mentions. Beautifully smooth across a vintage Sansui I heard them on. I'd love to try some of these at some point, but I had to step off the vintage train. It was maddening the lack of local opportunities, and then the ridiculous prices for poor quality gear whenever stuff did pop up.

    They made some little modular angled bracket/stand things for these - at least, for the L100's. Bet you could find them for those ones too. You can get then on eBay. Imho, getting them on these brackets and off the floor really sets them off. There's supposed to be some benefit to the angle as well but I can't remember what it is.

    Yea. Reasonably priced vintage gear is really sparse here too. I actually had these shipped from some used audio shop in CA. Probably paid too much for them, but I'm OK with it.

    I'm just planning on building some matching stands for them. I'm sure getting them off the floor will help to tighten up the lows, and broaden the stage. Really quite shocked at how well they image even where they sit.
    HT
    Mits WD-65737, DirecTV, Oppo DV-970HD, XBOX ONE, Yamaha RX-A1030, Parasound Halo A23, Rotel RB-985, Music Hall MMF-7, Parasound PPH-100, LSi-15, LSi-C, LSi-FX, LSi-7, PSW-1000, Monster HTS2600

    2 CH
    Parasound Halo P3, Parasound Halo A21, Sutherland Ph.D, VPI Classic 3 w/ 3D arm & Soundsmith Aida Cartridge, Arcam CD72T, B&W 802 S3, Monster HTS2500,
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  • msg
    msg Posts: 10,020
    cool. eh, I can't fault you for that, I'm in the same boat and have done similar. not really much choice really when the stuff's out of geographic range. unlike that @boston1450 guy above... people practically beg him to take their vintage stuff off their hands for free :)

    these are the stands I've seen used with the L100's. they look really nice sitting in some plush carpet.
    which reminds me, I need to get back on track for some stands for my Monitor 10's...

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    I disabled signatures.
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  • leftwinger57
    leftwinger57 Posts: 2,917
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    give Pumpkinman a P/M on his design for his and my M7 stands. Very simple, neat and to me set at the perfect angle for quality listening. I posted them yeterday but if they come out again here they are
    2chl- Adcom GFA- 555-Onkyo P-3150v pre/amp- JVC-QL-A200 tt- Denon 1940 ci cdp- Adcom GFS-6 -Modded '87 SDA 2Bs - Dynamat Ext.- BH-5- X-Overs VR-3, RDO-194 tweeters, Larry's Rings, Speakon/Neutrik I/C- Cherry stain tops Advent Maestros,Ohm model E

    H/T- Toshiba au40" flat- Yamaha RX- V665 avr- YSD-11 Dock- I-Pod- Klipsch #400HD Speaker set-

    Bdrm- Nikko 6065 receiver- JBL -G-200s--Pioneer 305 headphones--Sony CE375-5 disc
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