JBL LSR25P Monitor advice sougt

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Chris F

Chris F

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I've been shopping around for monitors for my new G4/MOTU setup, and I'm almost ready to go with a pair of these. My decision so far is based on a couple of glowing reviews and the reputation of the company in general. Unfortunately, no one here in town carries these speakers, so I have to go by word of mouth. I do have a couple of questions before ordering, however, and I'd be really happy if anyone with any personal first-hand experience with these monitors wanted to chime in on any of the following:

1) JBL claims that these speakers are "designed to work in the downscaled working environments of today", which I take to mean that they can be used in a smaller space, and maybe even spaced closer together than the usual arrangement. I know that when using monitors, you want to form a triangle between the monitors and your ears...how far apart (or how close together) can these monitors be placed and still function correctly? Is there any truth to JBL's claims on this issue, or is this just more advertising hype? My space is fairly limited, and I'd like to have the whole mixing desk/setup in one fixed place if I can do so without compromising too much, but if I have to, I could move it out into the center of the room for mixing.

2) One review (Recording Magazine) says that these speakers have mounting points suitable for use with "Omnimount brackets". What are these, where can I find them, and how expensive are they? As I said, I'd like the whole desk to be one piece for ease of use, and if I could fix the speakers to the desk or mixing area, this would save a lot of time in the long run.

3) The best price I've found so far is at Mars at about $500 a pair. Is this about the best price out there? It doesn't seem bad at all, but if there was a better price, I'd love to know about it.

Thanks in advance.


Chris Fitzgerald
 
Chris,

I am also looking at these monitors.
I checked out these JBL's at my local GC. I also compared them to the Yamaha MSP5's ($500/pair). I didn't bring my own music CD source, but both monitors were connected to a big Mackie, so I got to play around with the tracks and EQ.

I'm not an expert....so take this with a grain of salt...

The JBL's have a higher power rating, but the Yamaha's held their own and kicked just as hard. The JBL's seems to have a fuller mid-range and a less interesting ( dull) low-end. The Yamaha's - a little more in your face and a tight low end.

The JBL's weigh a ton!..and have a big extruded heatsink on the back, also a larger footprint than the Yamaha's. Both have a grill cover on the speaker, which will deflect action hero's and lego's, - a must for me!

As for omnimount brackets, - these are wall mounting brackets, and have a ball and socket joint providing a good range for speaker angle and position. They have a maximum weight rating, which it appears the JBL's still meet.

Save@RiksMusic qouted $229 each on the Yamaha's + free shipping...best I've seen. I don't know whether they carry the JBL's.

Good luck,

dmm
 
Well, I'll give you my impression of the JBLs. I too was very excited about getting them based on all the reviews, recommendations, and specs. Picked them up at my local Mars store, and brought them home.

First impression was they were built like tanks...Second impression, they sounded like a tank too...not good.

While they will play loud, they didn't sound real to me. I tried every position, configuration, adjustments, etc, and could not get them to sound right. Bass was enhanced (probably in the 100-250hz range), high end sounded metalic, imaging was too wide (poor center image, and stereo content was wayyyy out there).

All in all, I was very dissappointed in them, and took them back. I was really surprised I didn't like them, because for years I used JBL 4208s, and I could get reliable mixes with them everytime.

Ended up checking out the KRK V6 and loved them from the very first note they played, and have been happy with them ever since. I've been also hearing good things about the KRK V4 ($500), and if you want to spend some bigger bucks the KRK V8 is excellent (Similar sounding to the V6 with extended bass response).

As subjective as speaker preference is, you should really listen to something before you buy...but if you can't, make sure the place you buy them from has a good return policy.

This has been an editorial comment, and does not reflect the viewpoints of anyone but me.

L8R,

LT
 
ChrisF,
1. I think the "smaller work environment" is referring to the relatively small footprint and cabinet size, and the magnetic sheilding. The operative word here is relatively. These things are dwarfs in comparison to their big brother, the LSR28P. I have mine approx 4 feet apart in the traditional equilateral triangle set-up. Between them is just enough room for my 2 CRT video monitors.

2. Quoted from This Review
If you want to wall-mount the speakers, there are four threaded mounting points fixed into the back of the enclosure that are meant to be used with Omnimount 75 Series brackets.
Click to expand...

3. ~$500 is the going rate. If you're ordering online, find someone with free shipping, as these babies weigh 17lbs (7.7kg) each. :eek:

Do try and find a place where you can listen to them, just because I like mine, doesn't mean you will like them. Also, what sounds good in my room may sound like shite in yours....

Queue
 
Thanks for the replies. Hmmm...two thumbs down and one thumb up. You know, I'm beginning to understand why every one always says that you need to get out and hear them for yourself. I'll make some more phone calls, but I didn't have any luck finding any in the area before now.

Thanks for the input.

Queue,

4' apart would be great for whatever speakers I end up getting. Is that far enough apart? If I understand the theory of monitor placement correctly, that would mean that your head would be the same distance from the speakers, which seems kind of close. But actually, that would fit my space fine.

mcmd,

I'll check and see if anyone on town has the Yahama's as well. I had considered these, but was sort of put off by all of the Yamaha monitor-bashing that goes on over the net.
 
I am (by no stretch of the imagination) an expert in the field of near-fields. ;)

However, the LSR25P appealed to me from many angles. Big, but not too big. Small, but not too small. Well received by many reviews, and possibly room to grow if I ever wanna sink some bux and get 3 more and a sub and go 5.1 :eek:

JBL sells a cool little bag you can zip 'em up in if you wanna be the portable engineer type who travels with his own monitors...

and the 4 feet thing... here's a quote from the manual

...the common listening position at recording consoles is generally 1 to 1.5 meters (3 to 5 feet) for near field applications...

Those brackets are around 40-60 bux...

Queue
 
Well, I got off my butt today and went to check out some monitors. Neither of the Yamaha dealers in town had MSP5's in stock. I did get to see the MSP10's, which sounded incredible on my reference CD's but were out of my price range, and the MSP3's, which were amazing little boxes but not enough monitor for what I need. I guess I'll have to get out and try to see some more.
 
Thanks for the link! I'll check that out. I played a gig last night with a friend who has a pair of Event PS8's and really likes them, so I'll hook up with him as well and hear them for myself. You guys weren't kidding about the "hands on" factor...it makes a huge difference.
 
"Hands on" (or "Ears on") is definitely the way to go...

BEST CASE is if you find a dealer that will let you take a demo unit and try them in your space. That can make a huge difference as well...

Queue
 
I've got 'em, and they're great. Excellent detail and a nice sound.

One person here said this: "First impression was they were built like tanks...Second impression, they sounded like a tank too...not good."

They *are* built like tanks, but I couldn't disagree more with this person about the sound, because they sound really good. The JBLSR25ps do two things: they reveal all the details, and they sound good. I play stuff for people in the studio sometimes using these monitors, and nobody comments on the sound - that's because it's a nice sound coming out of them.

The one downside: they're excellent down to about 75 Hz, and then they don't give you any idea at all about what's going on down at the bottom. You'll need a sub to hear bass and kick.
 
Hey Dobro,
Are you using a sub with yours?

If so, which one?

I've been toying with the idea of getting a sub, but I'm guessing that'll have to wait until I get a bigger house. :eek:

Queue
 
No, I haven't got a sub yet. It's a sensitive issue vis a vis neighbors and such.

I'm finally finishing off the tracking for this album, and it's got bass and kick on some of the tracks, so I'll have to deal with that without a sub. Damn. I've got some Sennheiser HD 580 cans, and I downloaded a spectrum analyzer, and I'll burn CDs and play 'em on various sound systems, take notes, tweak, and repeat the process. I tell you, I'd rather have a sub. Po' boy.
 
I think the forums have been down for a few days. Is that right, or am I just unlucky? Anyway, an update: Today I went to one of the largest pro audio stores in town and compared all of the following monitors:

* Tannoy Reveal - bland
* Event 20/20 - dull
* Event PS6 - better, but still dull
* M-Audio Studiophile 5B - nice for as small as they are, but a bit boxy
* Mackie 824 - Very nice. Out of my price range
* Roland Digital something-or-other - Total crap
* Hafler (Model #???...$650 a pop) - Nice, out of my range.
* M-Audio Studiophile 8B: The easy winner in my price range...bigger sound with more space and air than any of the others, but tighter than anything I heard save the Haflers. I took them home.

My biggest problem with them is that they're WAY bigger than I planned on, so I have to rearrange my entire music room to make room for my mixing station now. But I figure if that's my biggest problem, life could be worse...:)
 
dobro said:
[Bthey're excellent down to about 75 Hz, and then they don't give you any idea at all about what's going on down at the bottom. You'll need a sub to hear bass and kick. [/B]
Click to expand...

I agree completely. They sound great and accurate except at the low end. Nice stereo imaging, and they are built solid. The lack of bass is the only real drawback, but it is a pretty big one in my opinion.
 
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