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BMWCCA
Addicted Member
Best I can tell from tiny pictures, these are C50 cabinets with a non-Olympus style load of perhaps a D130 and an LE175DLH which are normally paired with an N1200 crossover but this is not the usual pairing from JBL or in an Olympus. Normal expectation for the D130 is an 075, and normal woofer with the LE175DLH would be the 130A. Normally the C50 Olympus would have a 15-inch LE15A with the added passive radiator PR15 in a two- or three-way system. You could buy an unloaded cabinet and put in it whatever you wanted, and you could always buy the plans to build your own.
I wouldn't call them "highly modified". Rather perhaps parted out and replaced with cheaper components from JBL, or bought that way originally and populated with the less expensive driver loads, or home-built.
I wouldn't call them "highly modified". Rather perhaps parted out and replaced with cheaper components from JBL, or bought that way originally and populated with the less expensive driver loads, or home-built.
Best I can tell from tiny pictures, these are C50 cabinets with a non-Olympus style load of perhaps a D130 and an LE175DLH which are normally paired with an N1200 crossover but this is not the usual pairing from JBL or in an Olympus. Normal expectation for the D130 is an 075, and normal woofer with the LE175DLH would be the 130A. Normally the C50 Olympus would have a 15-inch LE15A with the added passive radiator PR15 in a two- or three-way system. You could buy an unloaded cabinet and put in it whatever you wanted, and you could always buy the plans to build your own.
I wouldn't call them "highly modified". Rather perhaps parted out and replaced with cheaper components from JBL, or bought that way originally and populated with the less expensive driver loads, or home-built.
Where else can you get an answer like BMWCCA just gave except at AK. Well done BMWCCA.
I think BMWCCA is right on mark !!!
Best I can tell from tiny pictures, these are C50 cabinets with a non-Olympus style load of perhaps a D130 and an LE175DLH which are normally paired with an N1200 crossover but this is not the usual pairing from JBL or in an Olympus. Normal expectation for the D130 is an 075, and normal woofer with the LE175DLH would be the 130A. Normally the C50 Olympus would have a 15-inch LE15A with the added passive radiator PR15 in a two- or three-way system. You could buy an unloaded cabinet and put in it whatever you wanted, and you could always buy the plans to build your own.
I wouldn't call them "highly modified". Rather perhaps parted out and replaced with cheaper components from JBL, or bought that way originally and populated with the less expensive driver loads, or home-built.
Thanks so much for the detailed answer! I'm going to pass on them but if anyone is interested the seller is asking 600 on Craigslist in northern Maine.
https://maine.craigslist.org/atq/d/stonington-jbl-olympus-c50/7202661448.html
They're also on eBay for a low starting bid.
I'd say if someone lives close by and wants a project it might be worth bartering the guy down a bit. Too bad the drivers aren't original. I'm guessing it's some kind of kit build.
Do you think it's worth the 600? I'm going to ask for more photos and see what he says. Is it easy for the seller to open the cabinets and take a photo?
Ah okay that's good to know. I honestly think I just don't have room or enough money to work on a project like this at the moment. If I had the space and the cash I'd probably try and buy em but they're just too big and I have too many speakers. Hopefully another AK member buys them and fixes them up.
That's fair. I'm still kinda tempted honestly. How much do you think it would cost to replace the drivers? I'm pretty good at diy projects and I think I could handle it if the cost isn't crazy.
Also anyway to check if the drivers are original besides pulling them out?
I think the speakers are well worth checking out. Seller claims they are from the mid-50's, which can't be true. The C50 wasn't offered until ~ 1960. But the unit could be from around 1960, since the early C50 wasn't offered with the passive. The driver loads were the same as those offered in the smaller C51, with the extra space providing better low frequency response. I thought the passive was later added (mid to late '60s) as an inexpensive way to further enhance the difference in low frequency response between the larger and smaller enclosures.
In the early days you could get a D130 driver for the C50 as an economy offering. Page 15 and 16 of the 1962 catalog provide some details. If the woofers are D130's then the sale price is pretty reasonable. Can't quite figure out what is going on for a high frequency driver based on those pictures.
http://www.lansingheritage.org/html/jbl/catalogs/1962.htm
In the early days you could get a D130 driver for the C50 as an economy offering. Page 15 and 16 of the 1962 catalog provide some details. If the woofers are D130's then the sale price is pretty reasonable. Can't quite figure out what is going on for a high frequency driver based on those pictures.
http://www.lansingheritage.org/html/jbl/catalogs/1962.htm
Nyjblbob
Hooked on Horn's and Tubes. Go big or go home
The Issues with these is the mismatch of the speakers and X-overs.
They look like Dlh 175 /potato masher horns not bad at all and if they have the red
Wax seals intact are pretty good from 1200 cps to 17K.
I don’t see the matching N1200 Xovers
They look like Tweeter Xovers possibly n2500 that would be used with D130’s
And 075 tweeters. The D130 Woofers have very poor Lower Bass output, but will easily play well up to 1200 cps ever higher to 2500.cps
If you sold the D130’s and put in the Higher Spec Bass LE15’s or 2235’s 136’s Woofers not only would you need different Xovers you would also need bigger horns that can go
Down smoothly to 800 cps like the Jbl L300’s have. Or the very expensive 375 2” throat drivers and short horns that I mentioned in the S8 system.
Either way they are a project to sort out. If the Cabinets are Really nice and have the grills and emblems They could be of value to some of us that have excess drivers
Looking for Cabinets.
They look like Dlh 175 /potato masher horns not bad at all and if they have the red
Wax seals intact are pretty good from 1200 cps to 17K.
I don’t see the matching N1200 Xovers
They look like Tweeter Xovers possibly n2500 that would be used with D130’s
And 075 tweeters. The D130 Woofers have very poor Lower Bass output, but will easily play well up to 1200 cps ever higher to 2500.cps
If you sold the D130’s and put in the Higher Spec Bass LE15’s or 2235’s 136’s Woofers not only would you need different Xovers you would also need bigger horns that can go
Down smoothly to 800 cps like the Jbl L300’s have. Or the very expensive 375 2” throat drivers and short horns that I mentioned in the S8 system.
Either way they are a project to sort out. If the Cabinets are Really nice and have the grills and emblems They could be of value to some of us that have excess drivers
Looking for Cabinets.
liteagilis
Active Member
I messaged this guy too and he flaked on me. FYI.
BMWCCA
Addicted Member
Oh sure. You could part them out for $600 and end up with free cabinets. Reloading them with an S6 or S7 load will cost you probably more than just finding something similar that's intact. Personally I love a D130, but expecting it to carry the LF role in a large JBL and even reach half as low as a brand-new $1000 JBL system today is a pipe-dream. The LE175DLH combo is a great vintage mid-to-high-frequency driver. With the correct N1200 crossover the combination will certainly work. I've had JBL D130/LE175DLH/075 system in C37s in my house for almost 50-years and they do well on certain program material (strings) but the D130 is considered a full-range driver, meaning it doesn't do lows or highs particularly well. But the speakers here don't even have a bass port. That likely got plugged by the added LE175DLH at a later date. The D130 just doesn't work without the reinforcement of a reflex enclosure.
For $1800, not worth continuing the discussion.
For $1800, not worth continuing the discussion.
Yeah I'm going to pass. The guy has poor communication anyways. Plus I think I was overly optimistic thinking such large speakers would work in my room. They're 600 as is, maybe someone else will buy them.
