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JBL L80T vs Boston A-150 and DCM Timewindow.

89grand

89grand

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I have a line on some JBL L80T's and was curious how they'd stack up to the Boston A-150's, which I like well enough, but aren't my favorites, and the DCM Time Window which I do like quite a bit.

I'm just a bit concerned that the L80T might be overly bright, and I do not like overly bright speakers, but I've never heard them obviously so maybe I'm wrong. Basically I don't need any more speakers that are just the equal of what I already have, but I'll look into the L80T further if they should be better than what I have now.
 
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Of those three, I'd pick the timewindows (assuming they're the original series version).
The JBLs and (to a lesser extent) the Bostons are ear gougers to me.
 
Yes, the Time Windows are the first series that just say "Time Window" on the back, not 1A or anything. They are great speakers. I find the Bostons a little hot and prefer the TW's. If the JBL's are even more hot, I may not like them, but they seemed to be loved by most people, then again, a lot of people like the A150's so...
 
My understanding was that the L80T was considered one of the best of the JBL consumer speakers of that period and some even prefer them to the L100T. Gordon has said they would be his third pick behind the L250ti and L120ti. They are cheap enough that I couldn't really lose if I buy them. I going to meet up with the guy in a few hours and check them out.
 
There have been very few JBL speakers that I care for - I've heard no JBL-made speaker systems (including their large monitors) that I could stand to listen to for very long. I have heard very carefully designed and crafted DIYs using JBL drivers and horns (and driven by very carefully designed DIY electronics) that sounded very good... but I am just an Altec kind of guy when it comes to the big guns.
 
I happen to own this model. And I run it on a tube amp. I can't say that it sounds "bright" at all?

Room placement is a pita. You really have to spend a lot of time finding the right spot. But when you do it, it will reward you. I do not find the JBLs brighter than the Bostons?

A lot of R&D went into the design of these speakers including their crossovers and (there are upgrades for T3ing the units). The JBL is a full range speaker. Deep powerful bass, decent vocals, articulate fast and clean highs. And this from someone who loves "warm" speakers. Are the JBLs warm? No.

But with "tubes" they can sound very very good and can handle most kinds of music. Those titanium tweeters are among the "best" thing JBL ever came up with! And I am not a big fan of most metal domes.

Match the JBLs with "warm" amplification and your problems are gone.

I've never heard the DCMs (but from reading, I would assume that they would be the first pick here).

Finally, this series of JBL was when JBL still designed, built and assembled everything from start to finish! Something to think about!

But, in the end, you really need to listen to them. And "rooms" also have negative effects on these. Actually, they can sound quite dull and lifeless in certain rooms which is the exact "opposite" of brightness??

cnh2
 
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89grand said:
My understanding was that the L80T was considered one of the best of the JBL consumer speakers of that period and some even prefer them to the L100T. Gordon has said they would be his third pick behind the L250ti and L120ti. They are cheap enough that I couldn't really lose if I buy them. I going to meet up with the guy in a few hours and check them out.
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I thought that they were the best of that line, but I didn't sell the L20s. The L80s were much more cohesive than the 100s, with tighter bass, easier to place in a room, and better imaging, probably due to the narrower cabinet. The L60 imaged the best, but the off axis midrange wasn't too hot. You had to really point them right to hear it. All in all, the L80 was the "it" in the line. In the later generation L series, the L5 and the L1 were the "its" as well. I've never listened to an L20 to see how it would stack up.
 
I just got home with them. The cabinets have some issues with the veneer in several spots, and they were re-stained some dark color, but it actually doesn't look THAT bad. The drivers are all intact, and the woofer surrounds are decent, they may need replacement down the road in a year or so. The grilles are fairly trashed too. I figured for $120, I really couldn't go wrong.

I've only listened to a few songs, but I'm liking them so far, and they aren't as bright as I expected, they sound pretty well balanced. I'll see after some more listening.
 
That's a nice price for those. I bought mine refurb many years ago for a lot more than that! If you have any "tubes" around, hook them up.

Enjoy!

cnh2
 
I have two-pair of the L80T. They sounded fine but I always liked the L96 better and blamed it on the titanium tweets. Then I got some L80T3 crossovers off Ebay and what a difference! Now they are nearly the equal to the L96, though still not quite, but a fine speaker for the money.

There are many JBL fans who prefer the 10-inch three-ways to the 12-inch ones. I have the L96, L80T/3, 4412A, and L112 and find the 10-inchers a bit easier to place but when the twelves are in the right spot, I prefer them. But that's just me! :dunno:
 
I don't have any tube amps, I'm playing them with my AudioSource AMP Three 150wpc amp. The dynamics are excellent, Mack The Knife sounded incredible.

With people parting these out, I'm hoping to maybe find some better cabinets, but these look acceptable from a distance.

One thing I always liked about the Bostons over the DCM's was that the dynamics were better, although I thought nothing else was. These JBL's have better dynamics than the Boston's and actually sound better balanced, with considerably better bass and actually less bright sounding overall. These sound BIG, quite loud too. The Happiest Days of Our Lives by Pink Floyd is totally kicking ass on these as I type this.

I'll keep an eye out for some T3 crossovers as well.
 

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My buddy in Phoenix emailed me about these last night. I told him they were worth that price for just the sum of the parts. But those dark cabinets, I couldn't deal with. I'd rather have the original Oak color. Still, a good deal. He didn't want them as they wouldn't touch his big Altec's that he loves. (not Valencias or anything with the 811 horn in them...much better ones)
 
avguytx said:
My buddy in Phoenix emailed me about these last night. I told him they were worth that price for just the sum of the parts. But those dark cabinets, I couldn't deal with. I'd rather have the original Oak color. Still, a good deal.
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I would have preferred the cabinets were original too, and I debated on getting them when I saw them, but in my normally dim light listening room, they don't look all that bad, but luckily they sound great, well worth it to me, and sort of makes up for missing out on the $65 L100T's I missed recently.
 
Yeah, I know what you mean. I hate it when original light/medium colored cabinets are stained darker....just ruins them in my opinion. I've got a pair of L100T's that were "cabinet challenged" when I got them but all the drivers were functional for the most part. A fellow AK'er in Dallas had a pair of L100T cabinets and I was fortunate enough to be able to get them from him. Now they look great. I did have to build a pair of grills from scratch, though. Which was fun.
 
I have a pair of oak L80t3's that I'm running with a Dynaco ST70. You can purchase the t3 crossovers off the auction site frequently if you want to go that route. I paid $125 and am very satisfied. My understanding is by extending the port 2", it cleans up the bass response a great deal. So the two major complaints......overly bright tweeter and muddy bass can both be fixed with above mods.

These speakers are really under the JBL price "radar" right now. You made a good purchase imo.
 
I actually find the tweeters to sound pretty good, and I hate hot mids and tweeters in a speaker. I'm really surprised they sound like they do, I expected something a little different and I'm not even running my eq, they're just running flat.

I'll keep an eye out for the T3 crossovers anyway though because if it improves what I already think is a very good sounding speaker, I may not even need any more speakers...well I'd probably still buy more, but anyway these are quite good as they sit even.
 
89grand said:
I actually find the tweeters to sound pretty good, and I hate hot mids and tweeters in a speaker. I'm really surprised they sound like they do, I expected something a little different and I'm not even running my eq, they're just running flat.

I'll keep an eye out for the T3 crossovers anyway though because if it improves what I already think is a very good sounding speaker, I may not even need any more speakers...well I'd probably still buy more, but anyway these are quite good as they sit even.
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Glad you really like them. Mine are keepers.....for sure!
 
I've had mine for 22 years now. Bought with a full 5 year JBL warranty as JBL refurbished. They, obviously, haven't gone anywhere. There are some posts here though that speak of a foam layer behind the titanium dome that disintegrates over time and may cause problems (fingers crossed!). Doesn't seem reparable.

But I'm not a Tech guy...far from IT!

cnh
 
I've been listening to them since I first got them home. They're awesome, well worth what I paid and more even with the cabinet issues.

I need to clear a little speaker room because of these. I thought if nothing else I could part them out and get more than my money back, but they are staying intact and are going to be my main speakers as of now, and I can't imagine disliking them later...although that has happened with other speakers before where I thought I liked something, then later realized I really didn't.

I'm going to unload a set or two of lesser speakers and keep these.
 
I'm glad you like them 89. I too have thought that from what people say, JBLs would be too bright for my tastes. I guess I need to make a effort to actually get out and listen to some.

I do know that my tastes have been changing over time. My TimeFrame TF600's are now sounding better to me than my TimeWindows - especially after I've recently teamed the 600s up with a Sanusi AU-317. What amp do you feel works best with your TimeWindows?
 
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