Cheap small bookshelfs for music... (1 Viewer)

[Jason Wilcox]

I've gotta Marantz 2235B with 35wpc and I'm pretty sure on getting a cheap yamaha sub. I was planning on buying a pair of N24ii's but I'm not sure now. I can get them for about $85 shipped and I'm wondering if I can find any better speakers for the price.

 

[Phil Iturralde]

... planning on buying a pair of N24ii's ... $85 shipped ... I'm wondering if I can find any better speakers for the price.

@ $85 shipped ... No!! The JBL N24 (original) is the only speaker I know that has usable frequency below 90 Hz (89 Hz - 2.7 dB), as tested by Sound&Vision. The Energy Take 5.2 starts falling @ 110 Hz - 4.5 dB. Matter a fact, S&V benchedmarked the JBL N24 ...
front left/right.... 89 Hz to 18.9 kHz ±2.7 dB
All this means is that the JBL N24 "speaker is very easy to match up with practically any subwoofer." (quote by Brent Butterworth)
For more JBL N24 INFO w/several Reviews & links, see my website Why you should add JBL "N" & "S" Series to your audition list!
**NOTE: Because my website is 'free', hosted by GeoCities, if too many HT enthusiasts visit, GeoCities will shut it down for an hour or so because it exceeded the specified 'freebie' Data Transfer Rate. Sorry about that, just bookmark it and visit my site an hour later or when everyone has gone to bed!
Phil

 

[Jason Wilcox]

thanks phil. i was considering the s26's but they are too big for me. i can get JBLs pretty cheap because i work for best buy (don't laugh, i'm only 17) and JBL has a wonderful employee purchase program (that's where i got my scs135si).

 

[Phil Iturralde]

... work for best buy ...

Excellent perk Jason! The JBL N24II's w/Yamaha sub will matched your Marantz 2235B very nicely in your room, try not to disturb your parents too much!
The N24's will sound sweeter after about a 75-100 hrs. break-in, ... mostly for the 3/4" Titanium tweeter.
Have fun!
Phil

 

[EricHaas]

It's pretty hard to beat the J & R price on the JBL S26's - $159 with shipping for the pair. Even not being as big a jbl fan as Phil (I own Paradigm Reference), I'd say that ranks as one of the better bargains on bookshelf speakers anywhere. I would consider that for anything intended for music. I can appreciate the issue of size restructions though.

 

[Jason Wilcox]

That is a very good price from J&R. My discount on those is only $10 less with shipping. The best deal on s26's seems to be on ebay where Harman Audio themselves sell them. They regularly go for under $100+$12 shipping. Simply run a search for "JBL s26".

 

[Phil Iturralde]

i was considering the s26's but they are too big for me.

The JBL S26 are 17" x 10" x 10", huge, ... compared to the JBL N24's 9-1/2" x 6-1/4" x 4-3/4".
Funny story, ... about 3-days after I finally installed my 2nd set of JBL S26s in the surround locations (replaced my N24s), my wife finally noticed the right surround S26 (wall mounted) during dinner and asked if my JBL went on steroids?? Yep, they are definitely bigger!!
Phil

 

[Jason Wilcox]

Even the n24's are pretty big considering the size of the drivers.

 

[Phil Iturralde]

My faves from the Northridge line were the indoor/outdoor version of the N24, which I felt exhibited greater vocal clarity than any other speaker in the line, and the ND310, which played loud and deep and nearly equaled the clarity of the N24AW. Why did the little guy sound so good? A chat with Northridge series designer Matt Nelson revealed that the N24 and N24AW use a significantly different crossover design -- first-order (6 dB/octave), as compared to second-order (12 dB/octave) in the other Northridge speakers.

Phil

 

[Danny Tse]

I think the JBL S26 is THE biggest audio bargain out there, especially at $159.00/pair from J&R. I used to own the S26 and when my system was moved to another room, they became too big, size-wise. Highly recommended!!

 

[Bruce Chang]

PSB alpha AVs like $120 used.

 

[Robert_Gaither]

I went with the SuperZeroes for my computer since the local dealer was blowing them out at $150/pair. JBL N series are pretty good for a budget speaker compared to most of what's availible at BestBuy (the S series would be worth the upgrade imho as these are exceptional speakers for what the internet prices offer).

 

[Jason Wilcox]

Is the tweeter in the studio series JBL's a significant improvement over the tweeter in the Northridge series speakers?

 

[JerryW]

Paradigm Atoms maybe? Or, maybe a set of Infinity US-1s (can be had for

 

[John Garcia]

Is the tweeter in the studio series JBL's a significant improvement over the tweeter in the Northridge series speakers?

Yes, a noticable improvement.

While I agree the N24s are very good performers for the price, don't think you are getting spectacular speakers for that price either. 90Hz is no significant feat for a speaker of this size, IMO. I've heard 5-1/4 speakers that are quite a bit better, though quite a bit more expensive as well. I would recommend giving them a listen FIRST, since you work at BB, you should have no problem with that. They do just fine, set to small, with movies, but for music, I felt they were a bit lacking in midrange, especially with vocals. The S series is a significant jump in performance. For cheap mains with your discount, I would at least go with N26s.

 

[Saurav]

If size isn't a constraint, try the Michaura M55 - under $100 shipped from uBid.com. This is basically an Axiom speaker - same drivers, similar enclosures, identical manual. No personal experience, but it comes very highly recommended from people whose ears I trust a lot. Search www.audioasylum.com for discussions on this if you're interested.
Edit: Never mind, I just realized that size is a constraint. These speakers are pretty big.

 

[Jason Wilcox]

I'd really like to keep the speaker small for my dorm as they will probably be placed on a desk on both sides of my computer monitor. S26's (and N26's) are great speakers but they are too big. I would use my Koss M/80+'s but they aren't shielded and I don't think they can go below 100hz.

 

[Jason Wilcox]

Hey maybe koss customer service was wrong about the M/80+'s being shielded. I took em' apart and held a metal screw to the metal plate covering the magnets (this is for shielding right?) and the screw was only slightly attracted to the tweeter (not attracted at all to the woofers). Does this mean it would be safe to put next to a monitor?

 

[Jason Wilcox]

Ok, they only seem to affect my monitor when they are within 2 inches. But, maybe this is yet another of my bad ideas...

 

[Robert_Gaither]

Why not wall mount them if space is a concern?