Based on my review of the old JBLs, you'd think I would be steering clear, right?
Nope.
I picked up a pair of s38II "studio series" bookshelfs today. They almost still had that "new speaker smell" they were so clean, and they were at a price I couldn't refuse.
For those who aren't in the know, these are post y2k 3 way ported bookshelf speakers with an 8" woofer, 4" mid, and 1" dome tweet. The drivers all bear an odd resemblance to Infinity's Interlude series
. Thanks HK.
I've only been listening to these for 1 cd so far (Freedy Johnston's This Perfect World) so my findings are very much subject to change.
For the main part I am happily surprised.
These are very smooth sounding speakers. The bass response is impressive, although this cd isn't the best choice for bass response. All the bass notes offered are defined well.
Highs are OK. I prefer a brighter sound. What they do produce is, again, very smooth and balanced.
Low mids seem a little exaggerated.
The most impressive thing about these speakers so far is the soundstage. I have them in the horizontal position (recommended in the manual) and they produce a very deep and wide stage. A blindfolded person would assume these were much bigger speakers.
All for now. more to come.