Which one of these JBL 5.1 speakers should I buy?

[goyal.sanchit]

Hello everyone


Have almost decided on the Home theatre setup just 1 final choice between the speakers and thus requires some suggestions. Both would be paired with AVR 134.


Option 1-

Combo- AVR 134 + JBL SCS 200.5

Price- 32,000 Rs.

Specs-

JBL - Product Support - SCS200.5BK - Complete 6-Piece Home Cinema Speaker Package


Option 2-

Combo- AVR 134 + Cinema 300

Price- 35,000 Rs.

Specs-

JBL CINESYSTEM 300




So which one looks like a better option for both movies and music based on the specs?

Also read on the forum that it does not support HD, Blu-ray etc? Now what could that possible mean? I know that it does not process video signals over HDMI but it should support all audio formats or it doesnt?

Please shed some light on this.


Regards

 

[sdurani]

Speakerwise, the CineSystem 300 is the better of the two (more powerful subwoofer, better tweeter). If you can bump your budget to the CineSystem 500, you'll get more consistent sound all the way around (uses 5 of the same speaker).

As for receiver, the AVR-134 is pretty old technology and doesn't decode the newer audio codecs found on Blu-ray. You'd be better off finding something from Onkyo or Denon around the same price range.

 

[sumitarv]

I have auditioned both of them, Cine 300 is a better deal if asked personally....coz of its tonal quality....rest of ur queries i mite plz ask the experts here to handle it

 

[goyal.sanchit]

As for receiver, the AVR-134 is pretty old technology and doesn't decode the newer audio codecs found on Blu-ray. You'd be better off finding something from Onkyo or Denon around the same price range.

Onkyo I have heard is not very good for listening music. Havent got a chance to audition Denon and I was pretty much inclined towards JBL due to sound quality.

In immediate future newer audio formats are not a concern as I wont be playing blu rays in near future. Only Blu ray rips.

Currently I use WD TV which cannot process DTS over HDMI but can passthrough optical.

Is it possible that If I buy a media player/blu ray player in future which support the newer audio codecs then it could decode them and send through HDMI and thus would be played by the system? (I dont know if its possible my knowledge about music system is a bit limited)

Regards

 

[sdurani]

Onkyo I have heard is not very good for listening music.

Never heard that. Don't even know what that means.

Havent got a chance to audition Denon and I was pretty much inclined towards JBL due to sound quality.

JBL speakers are good, it's H/K receivers that will give you trouble down the road.

In immediate future newer audio formats are not a concern as I wont be playing blu rays in near future.

Then why the previous comment "it should support all audio formats"?

 

[goyal.sanchit]

About onkyo I have read on this forum only that they are better if movie viewing is more and are not that good more listening music.

And about the last comment it was more of a question. I didn't expect it to be not playing some audio formats as well but even if it does not its not a deal breaker.

And pairing a denon with jbl speakers- I am not that sure. Would it be a good idea in terms of sound quality?

 

[sdurani]

About onkyo I have read on this forum only that they are better if movie viewing is more and are not that good more listening music.

How does the Onkyo know whether the sound going through it is movies or music? What if you're watching a movie that's a musical, would it sound good or bad?

And pairing a denon with jbl speakers- I am not that sure. Would it be a good idea in terms of sound quality?

JBL speakers will sound good with any receiver, because they have an anechoically flat frequency response and they do an excellent job of maintaining that response off-axis. This means you'll hear good sound when the speakers are pointed at you and the room reflections won't change the tonality of the speakers. I don't see how the Denon (or any other receiver, for that matter) can take away that quality. What are you afraid will happen if you combine JBL speakers with a Denon receiver?

 

[goyal.sanchit]

How does the Onkyo know whether the sound going through it is movies or music? What if you're watching a movie that's a musical, would it sound good or bad?

It clearly seems you are in a mood to argue and prove your "superior" knowledge without understanding the point. In that case find someone else. I am least interested.

As I clearly said I read on this forum only about what I said. Here are some threads which talk about it-

http://www.hifivision.com/home-theater/11038-onkyo-3300-good-music.html

http://www.hifivision.com/home-theater/14158-onkyo-hts3300-good-music.html

http://www.hifivision.com/home-theater/16901-onkyo-hts5300-good-music.html

Onkyo HT-S3300 5.1 Home Theater Price India & Review



Google and you shall find many others.

What are you afraid will happen if you combine JBL speakers with a Denon receiver?

Theres a reason for matching AVR/Amps with speakers.

 

[manoj.p]

There are plenty of people in this world who have paired Denon with JBL and other speakers. When you are pairing a speaker with amplifier/receiver, all you have to see is that it has enough amplification to drive those speakers.

Don't limit yourself to only certain brand of receivers.

 

[manoj.p]

Oh, I see there have been some posts exchanged since I started to type and finished the post. I have known Sanjay for some time now and I can assure you, he is not arguing. It may seem like that from his post, but that's just the way he asks some hard questions. That's the way he makes us ask that question to ourselves. For example -

How does the Onkyo know whether the sound going through it is movies or music? What if you're watching a movie that's a musical, would it sound good or bad?

If we take out the emotion and just see it as a question to ask ourselves, we can know the fallacy when people say a certain receiver is good for music and certain is good for movies. What makes a receiver good for one and bad for another? Does the receiver know that it has to sound bad for music? There is lot of make/belief in Audio and people swear by it on internet forums and we certainly need to take it with pinch of salt.

Same thing with the JBL speaker question. They are by-design flat speakers, without any coloration. All the speaker does is play back the signal fed to it. Matching the speaker with Amp power, yes. We need to make sure the amp section has enough power to drive the speaker. Most of the time, people overdo it and feed it way more power than needed. That's what he means by the question. It's more like, ask yourself that question, and see if we can think of a logical answer.

What are you afraid will happen if you combine JBL speakers with a Denon receiver?

Not advocating him here, but just want to clear the confusion that he is trying to show superior knowledge or argue. May seem that way because he asks hard questions but his intentions are to make us think, take our own decision and not sway by popular beliefs. Hope this helps.

 

[paritosh]

Dear Sanchit,

If you have heard that onkyos are bad for music, have you really HEARD them? I would recommend a close audition of the shortlisted JBLs and Onkyo before you make a decision.

And, my friend, you have to look for a better AVR than 134. Depending on your movie to music preference-you can go for Onkyo or Denon in that order. The best option in your kind of budget would be

Onkyo 3400 (less than 25k)
Onkyo 308 with 728 (should be around 45k-hears them during my rounds of auditions, quite good for movie and music)
Denon 1311 + Polk RM6750 (has a completely different sound signature to onkyos)
Denon 1311 + Jamo 102

If you are lucky enough, you will find Energy Take Classic, which, according to many, is the topper amongst the Sub -sat gang for music

Also, do not give a miss to Yamaha.

Now, from my experience (the little that I have) is that for a g.ryood music experience, nothing is comparable to a pair of good floor standers with two ch amp. So, get your priorities set, and focus on auditioning as many systems as possible before making a choice.

And, as far as the debate of HOW CAN A SYSTEM BE BIASED TOWARDS MOVIE OR MUSIC, I would say, its the processing technique of sound codecs that separates one AVR from the other. Audio wise, the function of an AVR is two folds: 1. Decoding the ditital audio from source and converting it to analog format (read-electrical signal) 2. Amplification of the analog signal. So, the decoding is the stage which determines, majorly, how the AVR is going to drive the speakers. If you can imagine decoding section as a translator and source as a book of foreign language, you can guess if the translator knows the foreign language in depth and can read between the lines, he is going to translate the book with the closest precision to the original book.

For more info, refer the thread below:
http://www.hifivision.com/amplifiers/11329-stereo-vs-5-1-sound-avr-vs-2-chn-amp-cdp-vd-dvdp.html

 

[sdurani]

It clearly seems you are in a mood to argue and prove your "superior" knowledge without understanding the point.

Not trying to prove anything. I simply asked a question. If you don't know the answer, then there's nothing wrong with simply saying so.

Here are some threads which talk about it-

Repeating something doesn't make it fact. If you read those threads, you'll notice not one single person explains why Onkyo receivers are good with movies and not good with music. Not one.

Google and you shall find many others.

I Googled and found many reviews of Onkyo receivers, though none that supported any lack of musicality.

AVForums: "the musical fundamental of timing is present and correct and the bold, clean, dynamic presentation with movies, transfers to a thoroughly engaging listen with music...it's a genuinely entertaining music maker"

CNET: "Great Sound crisp and clear. If you want this just for music or surround sound it's great."

Audioholics: "Overall, the receiver was musically satisfying, with a character similar to the TX-SR602, but with audibly more heft and solidity to the sonic signature...Transient musical sounds, such as percussion and acoustic guitar, were also crisper and better separated from the other instrumentation...I found that the receiver provided clean musical detail, allowed nuances and subtle shades of instrumental timbres to sound unfettered."

Trusted Reviews: "The unit also delivers a fantastic performance with music, replaying a 5.1-channel Japanese jazz DVD-Audio disc with spine-tingling detail, drive and cohesion. It even turns in a top-drawer performance with CDs, squeezing out every last drop of sonic detail and giving the material a snappy, rhythmic feel that would make even the most staunch hi-fi purist nod along in enjoyment."

Theres a reason for matching AVR/Amps with speakers.

What's the reason?

 

[goyal.sanchit]

Before I go further with the question I would like to thank Manoj for explaining the concept in simple language and also clearing the confusion, Paritosh for suggesting some good combinations and also telling about the working of AVR in detail and Sanjay for telling his viewpoints. Maybe your intentions were to help but the way you framed it looked otherwise to me resulting in a bit of an issue.

But lets leave that and I would be glad if you all help with your suggestions now coz the variables have changed a bit.

---------


I listened to some other setups today. Onkyo 3300 didnt sound very impressive but at 25ks its not a bad deal either.


I listened to Denon dht 390. It looked great for movies. The song quality looked good but cant be very sure since the Output from the source (Samsung I9000 Galaxy S) was below average to say the least.

The person quoted 38,000 Rs as the final price including installation etc. Is this option worth considering as far as specs etc are concerned?


Then I went to the JBL store but couldnt compare the sound quality with the same songs as Cinema 300 was out of stock. Also the person said that AVR 134 play all the audio formats which seems to be not true but I could not tell him the exact formats it does not play and said that I would enquire later. So which formats it does not play?


My budget was initially about 30k but now it can be stretched to 40ks. If I buy a Denon reciever which comes with dht 390 and jbl speakers they would cost 45,000 rs so thats not really an option.


What would be the approx cost of AVR 1311? And other AVR I should consider since H/K doesnt look to be an option anymore.


Regards

 

[sdurani]

Also the person said that AVR 134 play all the audio formats which seems to be not true but I could not tell him the exact formats it does not play and said that I would enquire later. So which formats it does not play?

It doesn't decode any of the newer codecs that have been around for the last 5 years on Blu-ray: Dolby Digital Plus (DD+), Dolby TrueHD, DTS-HD HRA, DTS-HD MA. It only decodes the legacy DD and DTS codecs that came out 15 years ago. That's a pretty dated receiver.

My budget was initially about 30k but now it can be stretched to 40ks. If I buy a Denon reciever which comes with dht 390 and jbl speakers they would cost 45,000 rs so thats not really an option.

Considering your expanded budget, if you were to get the JBL Cinema 300, how much would you have left for a receiver?

 

[baijuxavior]

You should consider denon 1611 or Onkyo 508 as your AVR. Denon 1611 is available for 25K.

 

[manoj.p]

The onkyo x08 series have some shutoff issues. Not sure if Onkyo 508 is one of them. Do make sure to google it up before buying.

 

[mpw]

as someone who opwn JBL, please try this combo HK AVR 255 + JBL Control Now ( for fronts and center ) + JBL Control One ( for rear ) and JBL ES150 for sub woofer or the JBL CSS10 for the subwoofer.

This is quite a good combo.

I heard this while i was shopping for my system ( about 2 years back ).

PS : many folks will say JBL / HK not good.. only denon / Yamaha are good.. but dont believe.. i have had a flawless experience with HK and JBL. Trust ytour ears only.. if you like it.. go for it.

PS2 : Check if the HKTS 11 still available. Thats a good sub-sat as well.


rgds,
mpw

 

[goyal.sanchit]

Ohk so the somewhat clear picture is that-

1.) AVR 134 is out of the picture (Though the option to play songs from USB was pretty lucrative.)

2.) Denon dht 390 is also out coz it doesnt support DTS HD MA and also Dolby TrueHD.

Now the confusing part-

1.) If Denon then Denon 1311 or 1611? Since I would be using WD TV and most probably some HD DTH service I am assuming upconversion in 1611 wont be of any use?


2.) Earlier I was not much inclined towards Onkyo but it looks that If I do not buy a combo the budget may exceed 45k including installation/wiring etc. In that case Onkyo 3400 for around 25k looks to be quite good.

Considering your expanded budget, if you were to get the JBL Cinema 300, how much would you have left for a receiver?

The JBL Cinema 300 MRP is Rs 20k. I might get some discount but can't be sure. So If I am buying a separate AVR then the budget is about 20k and for that price I guess I could get Denon 1311 from somewhere.

But If I dont buy the cinema 300 and look for some combos then there would be other deals also.


@ MPW

I believe the products you have mentioned would be out of budget in the current scenario.


I would again go tomorrow to audition one other combination the person was talking about which included Denon 1311 and some speakers. Also would like to audition Onkyo 3400 if the person has it and would ask for some other combinations as well.

If the person agrees to do just installation for a certain amount then I can freely thing about mixing stuff and trying some permutations and combinations.

 

[sdurani]

If Denon then Denon 1311 or 1611?

Denon 1611, for the room correction (I don't think the 1311 has any).

The JBL Cinema 300 MRP is Rs 20k. I might get some discount but can't be sure. So If I am buying a separate AVR then the budget is about 20k and for that price I guess I could get Denon 1311 from somewhere.

What other receivers are available for 20k?

 

[mpw]

ask the JBL guy if he would swap the AVR 142 for AVR 255 and the price differential. The AVR 255 is more powerful.

this up-conversion.. the DTH scene has now more and more HD channels.. so i would not worry too much about it.

The AVR 255 is quite good.

regarding USB - there are many DVDP with USB.

rgds
mpw