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Review 1 of 7
Price Paid:
$142.00
from Frys Electronics Summary:
Among the traditional JBL aficionado, this speaker falls into the "this is what's wrong with JBL today" category. As a long time JBL owner and user, I have to take exception with that opinion, and I describe these E50 bookshelves as excellent entry-level consumer fare. In almost every way they are technically better than my first JBL purchase in 1970: JBL L100 Century speakers.
OK, the L100s had Walnut veneer cabinets and Quadrex grilles, plus a nice 12" woofer, but they were also $546 in 1970 dollars. The E50 has a stunningly better tweeter housed in an EOS Waveguide, dual Freeflow ports, a real crossover network, a better designed cabinet, better speaker connectors, and far better integration between its drivers. The balance between the 8" woofer, 4" midrange, and 3/4" Ti tweeter is far more pleasing and listenable in the E50.
In real world listening, the E50, with its mirror-imaged pair, has great imaging and a nice, wide, soundstage. It does lack fullness at the bottom, though it can go fairly low, but the 8" just can't move enough air to hit the low notes with gusto. Still, it's intended to be part of a system with a subwoofer, so that is not so much a deficit as a design decision.
I still have my original L100s, as well as tens of thousands of dollars of other speakers, almost all JBL, but I listen to the E50s several times a month. They are capable, modern, satisfying speakers that any beginning or budget conscious consumer would be happy to own. Strengths:
Soundstage, imaging, clarity. Dual ports, SSP network design, EOS Waveguide. Quality construction, good fit and finish. Efficiency and power handling ability. Weaknesses:
Lowest bass notes are thin. Unnecessary bi-amp capability Similar Products Used:
JBL L100, XPL160, L3, LX300
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