Anyone using JBL N-Center II? (1 Viewer)

Anyone using the N-center II in thier HT set up? How does this speaker perform when watching movies? I intend on getting one and matching these with N26 II surrounds and N38 mains. There's a lot of good reviews of the S-Studio center speakers. Will the N-center Ii do for a budget speaker? Any takers? Thanks.

The old JBL northbrige series is a very good entry level performance speaker. I have JBL NSP1, that comes with the N center, and for me it does the job pretty well, the only problem is that I had two put it 6'' above the screen because of bad sheilding, but others have them in top of the TV with no problems. Overall Im very happy with the performance cost of JBL, but more in movies than with music.

I've got the N-Center also and like it alot. Currently I've got N24II's as mains and surrounds with an E250P subwoofer. It does the job for HT but lacks a little in the music department.

I will probably go back to using my old JBL LX55's as my mains and live with the fact that they don't quite match my center channel.

I'm very impressed with the N-Center. Very clear speech that stands out even with lots of other action going on.

Note: My N-Center sits right above my TV and I haven't had any problems with shielding.

Good Luck...

I had the N-CenterII, first with N24II's all around then with N38II's for mains. I consider them outstanding for their price range. Recently I traded up to the JBL's Studio Series but I think you would be very pleased with your setup.

The Studio series are a bit smoother on the highs but the Northridge series are great speakers as well. Great midrange for things like vocals and guitar on both series.

The N26II's will probably be the hardest to find, the N-Center's are all over eBay for good prices. I really like the curved looks of the N and S Centers and they both sound great.

For JBL S & N series owners that own speakers with the plastic enclosures I highly recommend you check this thread out:

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...hreadid=177352

I bought my NSP1 II package in Nov. 2002 and have been very happy with it as my first HT speaker setup. My setup is used for 60% TV / 40% movies and the N-Center does a great job for the price.

I am also upgrading to Studio series across the front and keeping the N24's as surrounds. The S36IIPM's from BestBuy are already here and I have an S-CenterII on the way from another HTF member. My N-CenterII will be up for sale within a week or two if you are interested.

Thanks for all the input. So the N-center's plastic enclosure could be a problem? I suppose the EC25 or EC35 might be a better speaker since these have wood enclosures. Time to audition these speakers. Thanks again.

I have been using an N-center along with 6 N24's. I could not be happier with this setup. The N-center in particular is a great speaker for the price. It can be a bit bright at first but once everything loosens up the brightness really diminishes. I have not had any problem with the shielding, the N-center has sat on top of my 27 inch JVC and now sits on top of my 48 inch Mits.
I cannot recommend this speaker enough!!

rob.

ps- Do not sweat the link about the modded N series. The plastic enclosures are not a problem. If you noticed, a few people said it was neat but who actually tried it beside the main poster? Think about it. If this was a great cure-all for the northridge series everyone would be doing it.

It's only makes a very slight difference but it is an audible one. No one should interpret it to be some sort of major change in the speakers characteristics.

I also have an N-center with N24's all around. I've never had a problem with shielding or with the cabinets vibrating, and I play my movies pretty damned loud. Sometimes this speaker amazes me with the vocals on movies. This is my first HT setup and I don't plan on upgrading my speakers for at least 3-5 years because these bad boys are handling the load just fine.

"Quote: Thanks for all the input. So the N-center's plastic enclosure could be a problem?"


No, the plastic enclosures are just fine, the link describes a way that might improve the resonance properties a bit, but most everyone is quite happy with these speakers the way they are.

Tweaking is part of the fun of any hobby and there are always those who will try to improve on any given design.

You won't be disapointed with any speakers from the Northbridge line.

Pesiba,

You should really consider the E Series centers. I am using the EC35 with a ND310(mains), N26(surrounds) set-up and am very happy with the results.

Good Luck!

Jon-C,

I auditioned both the N-Center II and the EC35 today. I used Terminator 3 DVD and listened to the first 15 minutes. Dialogue wise, there was no noticeable difference between the two. The EC35 however is the most attractive. It's about $150 CDN more than the N-center II. Beside the price difference the N-center II seems to match, esthetically, the N26II surrounds. Plus, I can get a good deal on the N-Center being an older model.

I'm sure both centers will sound great in my HT setup. My budget is the other consideration. May be I'll bite the bullet and get the EC35.

Reviewing the responses so far shows that most do not use the N38 or N38II, these are full range floor standing speakers. Just an observation.

The ND310 is actually the big brother of the N38. It was a tough decision, but I chose the 310's over the 38's because of the 310's better bass response(I was SUB-less at the time).