I would recommend the N24's over the HTD Level 2 for the JBL's better 3/4" Titanium Dome Tweeter*, wider (meaning lower to higher) & flatter frequency response character - more like the Pro Studio Monitor it was designed after.
*When Brent Butterworth review the HTD Level 3 - a positive review I might add, he did insert the following based on his JBL N24 experience ...
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Yes, the JBL's tweeter sounds clearer, more like what you'd find in a good recording monitor, but the Level THREE's tweeter may be more pleasant to listen to on a day-to-day basis.
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I personally like the JBL Equipped Studio Monitor Sounds and JBL Equipped Cinema Theater Sounds I've heard, and my JBL NSP1's w/AudioSource SW15 garnered from my usual once or twice a month Friday NITE DVD family/friends group, ... "sounds better than our local Cinema Century Theaters"!!!
My favorite comment came from a retired Engineering Manager friend wife (both were from Cuba/Florida), ... when she asked me after watching James Cameron's Titanic (around SEP 1999) @ approx. -10 dB below (Video Essentials) REF Level (106 dB Fast SPL LFE Peaks) ...
"Is this illegal??? ... Does the local Theaters know that you have superior sounds than they do!!!" - hee-hee!!!
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... the N26II's (in canada) for about $75 - $100 more and the sound is leaps and bounds better than the N24II's.
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Personal auditioning reveals that from the N26II & N24II x-over (3000Hz) , the sound is just about identical since they use the 'identical' 3/4" Titanium Dome Tweeter.
One of the audible differences between the two, is basically that the N24II overall smaller front baffle size, ... creates a smaller centralized point source thus, in effect creates a wider soundstage, with sounds going beyond either side**. The smaller size character also allows it to image audibly better than the larger sized N26II when placed away from the wall boundaries and comparing the identical sound material from the same front, placed on speaker stands location.
**Besides personal experience, Reference review from
Wayne Garcia for Amazon ...
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With orchestral music, the N24s throw a relatively wide soundstage, with more than a hint of depth (that is, of the sonic space extending beyond the speakers).
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What most consumer's perceive as 'better' than the N24II's is based on the laws-of-physics woofer size, which is 6" PolyPlas™ cone vs. the N24II 4" PolyPlas™ cone. The larger speaker cabinet size also contributes to the previously mentioned perception. From the speaker's 3000Hz x-over on down to the usable designed lower frequency, the N26II advantage is a slightly more audible SPL presence vs. the N24II.
But interestingly, since the N24II uses a
different crossover design*** --
first-order (6 dB/octave), as compared to second-order (12 dB/octave) in the N26II (& other N-Series speakers for that matter), ... the N24I & N24II actually exhibited
greater vocal clarity*+* than the N26 & N26II.
***Reference INFO from the August 23, 1999 article by Brent Butterworth - Northridge series designer Matt Nelson.
*+*Besides personal experience / auditions, Reference from
Brent Butterworth JBL N24 Speaker Review for eTown ...
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Performance:
When you get a listen to the mids, though, you'll forget how good the bass is. I think the midrange of this speaker may be the cleanest I've heard at $200/pair. I was astonished to hear voices on music CDs clear up when I switched from other mini-speakers to the N24. I've come to prize the ProMonitor 80 as a mini that gets the mids right, but the N24 gets the midrange even more right. Every singer I listened to sounded better even than on a lot of good $1000/pair speakers.
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So, either JBL N-Series bookshelf will do the job dynamically, clearly and impressively, The JBL NSP1 Objective Benchmark revealed why they received so many positive accolades ... from JAN 2000 Sound&Vision Magazine ...
Frequency Response
N-24 front left/right.... 89 Hz to 18.9 kHz ±2.7 dB
N-Center................... 89 Hz to 20 kHz ±5.5 dB
N-24 surround.......... 89 Hz to 18.4 kHz ±3.2 dB
For it's size, the JBL N24 is the only Objectively Tested speaker w/4" woofer to have a documented usable lower frequency extending down to 89 Hz ... -2.7 dB Fronts+* / 89 Hz ... -3.2 dB Surrounds+*. The highly recommended
Energy Take 5.2 only extended down to 110 Hz ... -4.5 dB Fronts+* / 110 ... -3.2 Hz dB Surrounds+* - making it a little more complicated to use AV Receiver's with 80 Hz or 90 Hz fixed x-over's.
+* Fronts: Averaged over a ±30° window, with double weight given to the most common listening angle, 30°.
+* Surrounds: Averaged over a ±60° window with double weight given to the widest off-axis angles.
So, audition both and choose what sounds the best for your room.
If HOME THEATER is your eventual goal / priority, ... then I usually recommend getting at the very least,
identical Fronts & Surrounds speakers w/timbre-(voice)-matched Center.
So, if you choose the N24II's, get the JBL NSP1-II HT set (includes N-Center)
If you choose the N26II's, when you add the surrounds, I would get another set of N26II's & N-Center.
The difference between timbre-matched though different size speakers vs. identical Fronts & Surrounds speakers is what I would consider "leaps and bounds better" when watching/listening to your blockbuster DD/DTS-5.1 DVD's!!!
I will never mix the front and surround speakers again, which is what I did when I moved up to the JBL S-Series - four JBL S26's!!!
The JBL NSP1's a keeper, and they now reside (w/AudioSource SW15 200w 15" sub) @ my vacation house up in the Sierra's (45 mins from the Kirkwood Ski resort).
Have fun deciding,
Phil
