JBL LSR308 vs Event ASP8. Which one? Opinions?

[James Steele]

I've sort of fallen out of love with my Event ASP8s. There's a pair of the JBLs I could get used. Opinions on the JBLs?

[MIDI Life Crisis]

Never mind... apparently of no interest.

[mikehalloran]

I would certainly consider them if it's a good price used – especially if the subwoofer is included.

Street is $380 for the pair + $299 for the sub new.

I am considering the sub to add to my Equators.

[James Steele]

Hmmm. Guy wants $300 for the pair used, but supposedly in excellent condition. Not a big savings off new. I was interested in the Equators, but the D series have been "Out of Stock" for months. So little going on at Equator's website that I wonder what's up with them?

[mikehalloran]

An interesting pair of comparison videos between the JBL and Yamaha H8 with a newer KRK thrown into the mix. You need a good pair of speakers or headphones to hear the differences.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=riXAOTRdTNA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrqfbiWSftM

The Yamaha and JBL seem to both perform pretty well. The KRK sounds dull by comparison.

I still a huge fan of the Equator D8 with a sub to tame the 50-80Hz region. Ted has been out of them for awhile now.

[mikehalloran]

Hmmm. Guy wants $300 for the pair used, but supposedly in excellent condition. Not a big savings off new. I was interested in the Equators, but the D series have been "Out of Stock" for months. So little going on at Equator's website that I wonder what's up with them?

I'd give Ted a call. He often answers the phone. He told me a couple of months ago that he wasn't expecting more D8s till around now and there was a tweaking of the design as he had earlier in the D5.

1-888-772-0087

[James Steele]

Hmmm. Guy wants $300 for the pair used, but supposedly in excellent condition. Not a big savings off new. I was interested in the Equators, but the D series have been "Out of Stock" for months. So little going on at Equator's website that I wonder what's up with them?

I'd give Ted a call. He often answers the phone. He told me a couple of months ago that he wasn't expecting more D8s till around now and there was a tweaking of the design as he had earlier in the D5.

1-888-772-0087

Yeah... he's essentially in my 'hood. San Diego. I'll try that!

[James Steele]

I discovered an issue with one of my Events anyway. It tools a spill and I thought it wasn't damaged but it exhibits two problems. First is some sort of random static when cranked loud volumes. It's faint and it comes and goes like there's a loose connection. The second is a rattle. If I push some kick drum though it, the metal of the backplate rattles. If I press my hand against it it stop. I'm hoping I can remove the little plastic round nubs on the plate and expose some screws that can be tightened. Still the static is another issue. Maybe I can open it up and find something obvious. Not sure they're even worth fixing now.

[mikehalloran]

Did you get the email from Musicians Friend this morning? The JBL at $220 -buy one get one half off. That makes it $330 the pair plus tax if you want them today -- or push for a better price on that used pair if so inclined.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/pro-audi ... io-monitor

Guitar Center will match, of course.

My daughter recently picked up a pair of the LSR305s. Very nice.

[James Steele]

Thanks for the heads up. I better check tomorrow if I can fix the Events in order to be able to sell them eventually to cover the cost.

[James Steele]

The JBL at $220 -buy one get one half off. That makes it $330 the pair plus tax if you want them today...

I clicked the link for the deal on the pair it's $373. Still not bad.

[mhschmieder]

I've been really happy with mine. I do hope to upgrade later this year or next, have have a few in mind, but of course any upgrade starts at around $1600 and up.

The sub is particularly good quality and value for price. In fact, I can think of no sub as good or better, for under $1000 or maybe even under $1500.

So, you might grab the set, keep the sub, and flip the mains if they don't float your boat or if you find another set you'd prefer as your switch from the Event ASP's.

[James Steele]

I've been really happy with mine.

You have the JBL's? The 308s? How necessary is the subs? I have some JBL 4410s positioned further away from my listening position and I'm thinking I can check the bass by occasionally throwing mixes up on those every so often?

[mhschmieder]

Well, I thought that was what I had, but I checked the back and even though the price is identical mine are the previous generation. I don't know how much they changed. They sure didn't wait long though, as mine were a new product when I bought them about two years ago!

Physically they look different so maybe there's a lot more that got changed than I thought. Also, the new version of the sub, which I found at Amazon just now, looks WAY radically different from mine. I hope they didn't muck with a good thing!

It would surprise me if the new versions aren't as good, as JBL has been trending positive of late (I wouldn't have said that a few years ago, even forgetting that they are major competitors of my employer, but in a completely different application area than home studios). The new enclosures look gimmicky to me though, and that raises some flags. So many companies take a "me-too" attitude when they see a successful product and want to be "seen" as equally innovative by deriving an industrial design in a similar theme.

Unlike when I had KRK Rokits (where the sub wasn't very good anyway, but did help a lot), I wouldn't say the sub is essential with the JBL home monitors -- especially with the 8's. I now stay away from 8's myself as I feel the working distance needs to be more akin to a desk that has a digital mixer that increases how far you are from the computer monitor and the active stereo monitors. With the previous generation, however, I didn't find the various sizes of the JBL's sounded noticeably different when comparing at equivalent working distances.

[James Steele]

Thanks for the advice. I'm probably too close to my ASP8s as it is. I had them on stands before and they might have been about 6 feet from me. I recently moved them onto the top of my Argosy desk (the sort with two slanted 8 space racks built in on either side) and they're only about 4 feet now. Maybe the smaller one would work out. This is when I like buying at the local GC. They have a 30-day money back return policy on a lot of stuff. You don't like it... just bring it back. If I was feeling like I had some extra dough, I suppose I could buy a pair of both, decide in my room between the two, and return the other.

Decisions... decisions. Frankly, the whole room treatment and proper monitoring thing is a black art to me. I wish I could afford to have a professional come in and analyze my room and make recommendations. I feel very lost when it comes to that.