JBL L26 vs JBL 4313

bolero

bolero

Super Member
just picked up a pair of 4313's to complement my L26's

the 4313's have a sublime mid & hi range, they really do have a lot of detail and sound fantastic!!

I am surprised at the lack of low end though, it sounds very rolled off compared to the L26's, which have a nice full low end with a lot of deep range. the L26's don't have nearly as refined mids & hi's though

I am almost tempted to put the 126A woofer from the L26 into the 4313 & see what happens. seems like it would be the best of both worlds?


does anyone else have 4313's? is this normal?


the 4313 driver has a much smaller surround than the L26, and visibly less cone movement/stiffer


the fellow I bought the 4313's said he refoamed them with a JBL refoam kit, I am wondering if it was an aftermarket or OEM as the compliance seems to differ. can you still get the OEM's?

I am also pumping some reggae through the 4313's to see if the surrounds will loosen up. but visibly the 4313 woofer looks much less substantial than the L26, so maybe it is just a design thing? I should probably check to make sure they are in phase, since they had work done to them

I realize the 4313 was designed as a pro monitor, the L26 a home speaker, so perhaps there is some boominess built into the L26. it sounds VERY good though, on the low end. couple pics:

L26 woofer: ( not mine, googled image )


l26.jpg




4313: ( not mine, googled image )


muy4gCe.jpg
 
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bolero said:
just picked up a pair of 4313's to complement my L26's

the 4313's have a sublime mid & hi range, they really do have a lot of detail and sound fantastic!!

I am surprised at the lack of low end though, it sounds very rolled off compared to the L26's, which have a nice full low end with a lot of deep range. the L26's don't have nearly as refined mids & hi's though

I am almost tempted to put the 126A woofer from the L26 into the 4313 & see what happens. seems like it would be the best of both worlds?


does anyone else have 4313's? is this normal?


the 4313 driver has a much smaller surround than the L26, and visibly less cone movement/stiffer


the fellow I bought the 4313's said he refoamed them with a JBL refoam kit, I am wondering if it was an aftermarket or OEM as the compliance seems to differ. can you still get the OEM's?

I am also pumping some reggae through the 4313's to see if the surrounds will loosen up. but visibly the 4313 woofer looks much less substantial than the L26, so maybe it is just a design thing? I should probably check to make sure they are in phase, since they had work done to them

I realize the 4313 was designed as a pro monitor, the L26 a home speaker, so perhaps there is some boominess built into the L26. it sounds VERY good though, on the low end.
Click to expand...

Shouldn't the L26 have the 125A driver? The 126A is a 12-inch driver used in the L65.

Could be the highs and mids on the 4313B are just stronger than the 2-way L26? I have the L96 and L26. Similar pairing, but my L96s were reconed by the factory. Many will tell you there are no "factory" surrounds as JBL sells only re-cone kits, not surrounds. Any separate surround is "non-factory" so your ultimate satisfaction is in the hands of a supplier. Some go just by dimension and others seem to know what best matches original JBL parts.

Certainly the monitor aspect of the 4313B may come into play and maybe just listening to the 4313B for a week or so and then switching back to the L26 might give your ears a rest and re-set your brain!

I have the similar 127H-1 in my L80Ts with the bigger edge roll and the L96 will outperform them using any metric. I think most will tell you the 4313B is one of the best 10-inch 3-ways ever made by JBL, if not the best.
 
ah, yes that was a typo, it is 125A sorry

I have deduced that only 1 of the 4313's may have had a recone, and it has noticeably less bass than the other.

however one of the speakers is a 4313, and the other is a 4313B :scratch2: so there may be something in the design, different woofers? although I read they are identical except for cosmetics.

so: 4313B has more bass than the 4313, which has been reconed/refoamed


I found the 4313 spec sheet at JBL/Heritage, it appears to roll off bass sharply below 40Hz so it may just be a characteristic of the 4313. I couldn't find the freq chart for the 125A/L26


thx for the reply! :thmbsp:
 
Specs on the B seem about the same though I don't see the woofer listed by a model number here:
https://www.jblpro.com/pub/obsolete/4313b.pdf

JBL Studio Monitor application charts show the LE10H in the 4313B and LE111A in the 4313. LE10H is what's in my L96s. Have you checked the drivers? Sounds like your AlNiCo driver may need a recharge?
 
The LE111 used a noticeably stiffer suspension than the LE10H. It also had a lighter-weight cone (thinner Aquaplas coating).

It is possible, that when reconed, someone may have used an overly-stiff spider. If so, then the woofer would be quite limited in bass output. If this is the case, it might be good to just find another LE10H, to match the other speaker.

The 4313 should sound every bit as good (better, IMHO) than the L96. Cabinet design and size is virtually identical, and the 4313B has a superior crossover design. Also, the LE10 has a 3" voice coil, while the 125A in the L26/L356 only has a 2" voice coil. Flux density is MUCH higher in the LE10- this results in much better "controlled" bass in the 4313B, than in the L26/L36.

Speaking of crossover- it would be worth a look, to see if they have the same crossover. There are some differences between 4313 and 4313B, IIRC. If they are not the same, I would recommend converting the 4313 to the configuration of the 4313B...

Regards,
Gordon.
 
JBL 4313 has the typical JBL Monitor curve, very flat from the limit of it bass, in this case 50 HZ and extending to above 20,000 hz with a slight peak in the 16 khz 1/3 octave. If place at the junction of two surfaces and moved toward a corner the bass can be extended but at the cost of imaging. Who want the perceived sound emanating from the floor or the ceiling. Ear height is the preferred position so the 4313 might sound a little thin without the bottom octave and a half. But then as most audiophiles have discovered is you can live without bad bass successfully as opposed to having large amounts of masking, sloppy, distorted, and uncontrolled bass.
 
GordonW said:
The LE111 used a noticeably stiffer suspension than the LE10H. It also had a lighter-weight cone (thinner Aquaplas coating).

It is possible, that when reconed, someone may have used an overly-stiff spider. If so, then the woofer would be quite limited in bass output. If this is the case, it might be good to just find another LE10H, to match the other speaker.

The 4313 should sound every bit as good (better, IMHO) than the L96. Cabinet design and size is virtually identical, and the 4313B has a superior crossover design. Also, the LE10 has a 3" voice coil, while the 125A in the L26/L356 only has a 2" voice coil. Flux density is MUCH higher in the LE10- this results in much better "controlled" bass in the 4313B, than in the L26/L36.

Speaking of crossover- it would be worth a look, to see if they have the same crossover. There are some differences between 4313 and 4313B, IIRC. If they are not the same, I would recommend converting the 4313 to the configuration of the 4313B...

Regards,
Gordon.
Click to expand...
Stuff like this surprises me less and less now. And really hit home with my Pioneer S-710 and S-910 speakers. Both have the same mids, similar spec tweeters and different woofers, BUT only the VC. I believe only 1/2" diameter difference, but that difference makes a huge difference in bass response. Not only deeper, but tighter as well. Both have identical stamped frames and same cones (material and size). Oh yeah, magnet structure IS notably larger with the 910 woofer, so I should say VC and magnet structure size make all the difference. Cabinet volumes are very close.

Having larger VC really does make a difference.

Had a pair of L26, sounded pretty good to me, but on the bright side, likely due to needing a mid to smooth things out a little. But good for a 2-way.
 
Understand that there is no official JBL refoam kit. JBL never sold such a thing -
they typically recommended a recone, which is crazy expensive when all that is wrong is that dumb foam surround decayed ...

That said, the point is that changing the foam can result in changes to the behaviour of the woofer -
depending on where the foam surround came from. Not all JBL 10s respond the same way ...

Also, like BMWCCA said - its possible that the Alnico woofer was driven hard and has lost some magentism ...
find a good shop with JBL experience and have them check it, and, if needed, remag the driver.
 
GordonW said:
The LE111 used a noticeably stiffer suspension than the LE10H. It also had a lighter-weight cone (thinner Aquaplas coating).

It is possible, that when reconed, someone may have used an overly-stiff spider. If so, then the woofer would be quite limited in bass output. If this is the case, it might be good to just find another LE10H, to match the other speaker.

The 4313 should sound every bit as good (better, IMHO) than the L96. Cabinet design and size is virtually identical, and the 4313B has a superior crossover design. Also, the LE10 has a 3" voice coil, while the 125A in the L26/L356 only has a 2" voice coil. Flux density is MUCH higher in the LE10- this results in much better "controlled" bass in the 4313B, than in the L26/L36.

Speaking of crossover- it would be worth a look, to see if they have the same crossover. There are some differences between 4313 and 4313B, IIRC. If they are not the same, I would recommend converting the 4313 to the configuration of the 4313B...

Regards,
Gordon.
Click to expand...

hey everyone, thanks again for all the great info! :banana:

I have been waiting for my membership approval over at JBL/Heritage forum so I could ask a similar question...but I think there is no need, you guys have nailed it!

there are a couple local speaker repair options, that are very experienced. I will have them assess the 4313's. and maybe keep my eyes peeled for another LE10H

..and I will check out the crossover circuits


cheers :thmbsp:

ps I just finished reading "the unfair advantage" by Mark Donohue....fantastic book!!
 
hjames said:
Understand that there is no official JBL refoam kit. JBL never sold such a thing -
they typically recommended a recone, which is crazy expensive when all that is wrong is that dumb foam surround decayed ...

That said, the point is that changing the foam can result in changes to the behaviour of the woofer -
depending on where the foam surround came from. Not all JBL 10s respond the same way ...

Also, like BMWCCA said - its possible that the Alnico woofer was driven hard and has lost some magentism ...
find a good shop with JBL experience and have them check it, and, if needed, remag the driver.
Click to expand...


Old post, great info!
 
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