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|   JBL S-38's for $350/pair at Best Buy, or Paradigm Titans? | Bruin
Apr 1, 2002 11:38 PM | | Hey guys, I went to the BEst Buy today and saw JBL S-38's for $350 pair (closeout i think) in Westwood, CA. I've been interested in these speakers for sometime now, Retail price (original best buy price) is $500 or $600/pair. I have seen them online for about $300/pair, but you still gotta pay for shipping, and worry about warranty and other related issues.
Anyways, I'm looking for 4 speakers for my bedroom, 12x12. My two choices are:
1. 4 Paradigm Titans @ $219/pair
2. 2 JBL S-38's @ $300-350/pair, and 2 JBL S-36's @ $250-300/pair.
I prefer the JBL's, mostly due to their ability to reproduce lower (bass) frequencies. I've auditioned both, and like them both, but have been unable to audition them head to head. My biggest concerns, room size and the speakers HAVE TO BE wall mounted. For the Paradigms, they have brackets I believe. For the JBL's, I would literally have to build shelves on the walls for the S-38's, and the s-36's have brackets.
Just wondering If anybody has any recommendations. Also, are they replacing the JBL Studio series, thereby putting them on closeout. If they are being replaced what are the differences and is the new version any better? Lastly, I also would consider the Axiom (M3TI?) as I have heard such great reviews on them. Just never been able to audition them.
Thanks in advance. |
| re: JBL S-38's for $350/pair at Best Buy, or Paradigm Titans? | Rhino
Apr 2, 2002 2:35 PM | | If you're buying 4 speakers, then I am assuming you will be using them in a surround setup with a powered sub. If that's the case, the the JBL's larger woofer and lower bass extension really isn't as much of an issue as is the sound quality. The paradigms are more acurate speakers, IMO, and I'd go with those, but you need to choose what sounds best to you.
If you choose the JBLs, I'd recommend searching the internet for a better deal. You should be able to get at least 25% shaved off the price at a mass market retailer like bestbuy, and many will price match if you find a better deal online. I save $650 on my wide-screen Sony at Sears that way! |
| re: JBL S-38's for $350/pair at Best Buy, or Paradigm Titans? | Night Wolf
Apr 2, 2002 2:41 PM | | too bad they have to be a bookshelve speakers, because JandR.com had the JBL ND310 for $300/pair with free shipping (they have the dual 10's, i have a pair, tons of bass) but the S38's are $300/pair free shipping at JandR.com also |
| re: JBL S-38's for $350/pair at Best Buy, or Paradigm Titans? | Dusty
Apr 3, 2002 1:07 PM | | According to JBL the differences in the original Studio Series and the series II is cosmetic, they have the same drivers and the sound is indistinguishable between them. Silver colored drivers instead of copper. |
| re: JBL S-38's for $350/pair at Best Buy, or Paradigm Titans? | Woochifer
Apr 2, 2002 3:07 PM | | Sounds to me like an open box special, and at Best Buy that's a crap shoot. If you're lucky, it's a unit that someone took home and brought back, basically in new condition. If you're unlucky, you've got one of BB's floor samples and considering the floor traffic at BB and the abuse that their demos take, I would avoid them at all cost.
I've heard consistently good things about that particular JBL model. If it's a new in-the-box unit, that's a great price. I doubt that the S-38's been discontinued, since it only came out last year, and speaker models generally don't turn over annually like receivers and source components do, but you never know. Since you need to shelf mount the speakers, you might need to also use some sound absorbing materials, but at least the ports are front firing. I think those JBLs might be light enough to install with a universal mounting bracket (though you need to drill holes in your speakers). Those JBLs are generally compared with the Paradigm Studio 20s and Monitor 5s, and the S-38s are known for their bass performance, so the Titans may not be your best alternative.
P.S. When did they build a Best Buy in Westwood??? I know that Circuit City's been in the village for years now, but a BB?! |
| re: JBL S-38's for $350/pair at Best Buy, or Paradigm Titans? | Bruin
Apr 2, 2002 5:25 PM | | Just some clarification -
JBL's is replacing the S series with the SII series. So they are discontinuing the s-38's and replacing them with s-38II's. Same thing with their entire Studio series. The only thing I saw, was the copper colored drivers are being replaced with silver colored drivers, I don't know if the actual driver is any different except for the color. The units best buy is selling are new-in-box, not open box items. You can check bestbuy.com for their prices on their s-38 blacks, they come up as $350/pair. But, I have actually seen the JBL s-38II's at bestpriceaudiovideo.com for about $280.
So it comes down to whether I want to spend about $650 on a JBL lineup, or $450 on a paradigm lineup. Also, I've listened to both, and loved both. Just not head-to-head. Is the JBL worth $200 more?
Also, the speakers would be in my room and would be used as follows. I have an Onkyo tsdx-484 receiver (only 55wpc so efficiency is an issue). The only thing that is hooked up to the receiver is my computer. I use the setup to play the radio, MP3's, sometimes CD's, and sometimes games (most of the time with games I use headphones, better sound localization). I currently would not purchase a powered sub for sometime, so bass is an issue. The speakers would primarily be used for MP3's, radio, etc. The reason for 4 speakers is for the 4 speaker games and 4 speaker music sounds soooooooooooo much better than 2 speaker. My current speakers will be replaced as they are some old KLH's I've had for about 15 years.
Ohh, and they built a Best Buy in the village about 3+ months ago. The old Macy's that closed down got converted into a Ralphs, Best Buy, and Longs drugs. |
| re: JBL S-38's for $350/pair at Best Buy, or Paradigm Titans? | Rhino
Apr 2, 2002 7:03 PM | | If you're just listening to the radio and MP3's, then I'm not sure it matters all that much what speaker you get. Neither is going to sound like the actual recording sounds anyway. To be hinest, I'm not a big fan of JBL's, as they tend to overemphasize the bass and treble to get the sizzle that sells in huge warehouses like bestbuy. To see which you prefer you'll need to do a side-by-side with a good quality recording on good quality equipment. If you don't, you'll always wish you had--and I'm speaking from experience here. |
| re: Wow... | Woochifer
Apr 3, 2002 7:44 PM | | I was wondering what would ever happen with that side of the village. I guess I'll have to swing by when I'm on campus later in the month.
On the speakers, I would guess that if you like bass, those JBLs will go deeper than anything else of quality in that price range. The Paradigm Mini Monitors (which go for $350 a pair) have excellent range for their size, but again I suspect that the JBLs have better extension. All things considered, you could always borrow a pair of the Paradigms from your local dealer, and take home the JBLs so you can do your own comparison (Best Buy does have that generous return policy). |
| re: Wow... | daman
Apr 4, 2002 2:46 AM | | Hey Bruin, It's a great speaker for the money. I noticed J&R Music has them for 300 a pair includes free shipping. They are a authorized JBL online dealer. I ordered a pair of the 312's from them no problems what so ever. Good luck with ever speaker you choose Paradigm is a excellent speaker also. |
| Try the Polk RT-25i | WStan
Apr 4, 2002 3:39 PM | | Since you have a Circuit City in your neighborhood, you should pick up a pair of the little Polk RT-25i's and test them against some of the other speakers you are considering; you will have a 30 day return policy on them if you don't like them. A Stereophile editor gave them rave reviews six months ago and he wasn't on peyote when he wrote that review. I heard a pair twice at a CC and while I ultimately didn't get them (got a great deal on a new/used pair of Monitor 7's for my kid sis) they impressed me very much. To the extent one can compare them to speakers from a different store, in a different room, played with a different system, I felt that the little Polks blew away every speaker made by Paradigm below the Monitor 7, including the highly esteemed (and overrated IMHO) Mini Monitor. The Paradigms, driven by a Cal Audio Labs CL-15 and Krell integrated, in a well setup listening room, should have sounded better than the RT-25i's driven by some Sony DVD player and HK 320 receiver, sitting on top of the carpetted ramps in CC's mighty demo room, but the Polks definitely sounded better to me. They had a much more natural reproduction of most instruments and vocals, a bigger, more impressive soundstage, more precise imaging and better bass. The Polks are almost $100 cheaper, too. Give them a try and see if you like them. I thought they were better than the also highly acclaimed B&W 303, too. |
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