kwingylee Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 I had a chance to audition a pair of Klipsch Jubilees, equipped with a K402 horn, EV driver with titanium diaphram and DeanG passive crossover in the Chicago area this week. I made the mistake of not bring my battery of music and spent most of the time listening to Floyd, Genesis and Blue Man Group, as well as a TELARC disk containing various STAR TREK sound tracks and ALSO SPRACH ZARANTHUSTRA. I also sampled some Nora Jones off an IPOD. The system was driven by OPPO/OUTLAW/YAMAHA amps. The Jubilees are lethal weapons!!! These are without a doubt the best Klipsch speakers I have ever heard. I have owned LaScalas, Cornwalls and now Khorns. These Jubilees are far superior. The played at incredible volumes with gut wrenching bass, full midbass and little trace of the horn harshness. The sound field was very even distributed across room. It was very clean and even everywhere in the room. ThI had to make sure the Belle center was off.e dynamics was nearly limitless. The experience was intense.The impact was incredible. Did I say they were dynamic? The last time I was overwhelmed like this was in the mid row of the IMAX theater (loaded with Junk But Loud) speakers - except the Jubilees sound cleaner, smoother and a less restrained high end. Did I say they were dynamic? Center image was superb. In the Norah Jones track, Her voice was solidly anchored. I had to make sure the Belle center was off. My only regret was the fact that I did not have my own music to test the stage depth, height and width of these monsters. The experience was extremely different from what I am custom to at home. I built my main system to excel in dimensionality and tones in the tradition of the BBC sound. The Jubilees are a whole different beast entirely. As good as the K402/EV/JUB Bottoms sounded, I wondered what they would sound like with the VTRAC from Greg? The bass was fantastic, but the top horn can be visually overwhelming. Either way, I am about to embark in the Jubilee journey as I am on my way to procure a pair of Jub bottoms and worry about the rest later....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators dtel Posted July 17, 2009 Moderators Share Posted July 17, 2009 I know exactly how you feel, I felt the same way when I first heard them, it was different from anything I had heard before. The only difference is I love the sound of the 402, it is big so I made it look smaller, see avatar ! That top right speaker ( Forte ll ) is not part of the 2 CH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwingylee Posted July 17, 2009 Author Share Posted July 17, 2009 Some stuff got left out the in post for some reason....must be an editor issue. The Jubilees are a very unique experience. The sheer presentation was overwhelming. Its sounds BIG!!!!! Its a wall of very loud, smooth and dynamic sound. I had no desire to leave the room... I regret I did not have a chance to judge their ability to generate stage width, height and especially depth. I like the K402 horn. But I have also heard Greg Roberts' VTRACs and would like to hear how they go with Jub bottoms. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg928gts Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 I like the K402 horn. But I have also heard Greg Roberts' VTRACs and would like to hear how they go with Jub bottoms. Me too! Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted July 17, 2009 Share Posted July 17, 2009 I like the K402 horn. But I have also heard Greg Roberts' VTRACs and would like to hear how they go with Jub bottoms. Me too! Greg That's just too funny, Greg... Haven't you paired them up yet or did you get rid of your Jubilees? I would think that would be a no brainer to try out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg928gts Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 I like the K402 horn. But I have also heard Greg Roberts' VTRACs and would like to hear how they go with Jub bottoms. Me too! Greg That's just too funny, Greg... Haven't you paired them up yet or did you get rid of your Jubilees? I would think that would be a no brainer to try out. There's only so much time in a day! I even built some tops and crossover networks. It's on my list of things to do. Greg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrWho Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 As good as the K402/EV/JUB Bottoms sounded, I wondered what they would sound like with the VTRAC from Greg? The bass was fantastic, but the top horn can be visually overwhelming. There's always the option of a K510 if you wanna stay 2-way... Btw, which iPod were you demo'ing with? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coytee Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Congrats on becoming a Heard!! I agree that they are a significiant improvement. I wonder though, you said you heard a different driver on the 402.... I dont know much about those things, maybe DocWho could chime in.... would the crossover need to be (possibly) tweeked with a different driver? In other words, are we 100% sure you heard that which Klipsch hears when measured in their chamber?? I don't know anything about these alternate drivers so it's an honest question. The only other setup I heard was using the expensive TAD driver. Anyone know how the EV driver compares? So....just how dynamic were they? [6] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daddy Dee Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 excellent review. thanks. Jubes are sweet indeed. sound to me like a Khorn, but with more authority. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tigerwoodKhorns Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 Nice review and glad tat you enjoyed them. But who is this "Junk But Loud" speaker manufacturer? Surly it cannot be JBL, the manufacturer of drivers that are pretty much across the board superior to the EV's in you Klipsh speakers?[:$] Do some searching here, it is a common upgrade to swap JBL drivers into heritage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwingylee Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 Didn't mean to disparage JBL drivers. I am sure they are great. I just have never heard a JBL speaker system: PA or home that I like. Its not the parts, its the sum of the parts that brings the results. I admire PWK for making great speaker systems using modest drivers. The K33 is a joke compare to the equivalent JBL and ALTEC drivers. JBL speaker systems sound like a bunch of drivers. I can make the same criticism of many high end speaker systems that I have heard. Great driver techology (supposedly) but with under-achieving results. For example, I much like Proacs but dislike the 800 series B&W speakers. One of my recent experience include classic JBL monitors the size of Cornwalls, driven by very very high quality tube OTL electronics and a REVOX RtoR. They sound loud but I much prefer the musicality and coherency of my buddy's Cornwall IIs driven with a modest EICO integrate. The CWII + EICO make music to me. SImilar experience with JBL speaker systems in IMAX theaters that I have attended. They were punchy and extremely loud but they don't sound real to me. The Jubs can produce almost the same experience during my audition but I did not want to leave the room the way I want to leave the IMAX theaters... My apologies to the JBL fans and teams... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwingylee Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 Coytee: I wish the K69 was on the 402. The JUB owner said he couldn't tell the difference so I had to take his word for it. In terms of size, the EV driver is about 4-5X the size of the K69 driver. Your point is well made - crossover adjustment probably was needed with the EV to get the voicing that Roy intended. I was just grateful to be in the house of a very generous forum member with a tremendous system. How dynamic were they? The physical sensation was so great that I got up and went to the back of the room. kwingylee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwingylee Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 DrWho: I don't know which IPOD. I do not have an IPOD and I don't know about the various models. But its the full size one with the big display - maybe 40M Harddrive.... I was listening to Jubs over MP3 files :-( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kwingylee Posted July 18, 2009 Author Share Posted July 18, 2009 dtel: I can make your bass bins into bunk beds for my kids....they are huge!!! In fact they can fit 4 little kids [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrWho Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 I just have never heard a JBL speaker system: PA or home that I like. Its not the parts, its the sum of the parts that brings the results. I admire PWK for making great speaker systems using modest drivers. The K33 is a joke compare to the equivalent JBL and ALTEC drivers. I feel the same way....extremely awesome drivers, but the systems seem to be voiced for something other than music. Btw, the K33 isn't equivalent to the JBL and Altec in terms of cost....which is something I've always admired PWK for: putting the money where the biggest gains are to be had. The reason I asked about the iPod is that a few of the models actually have good output stages on them and are more than suitable for doing audio measurements. But if you were listening to mp3's, then it totally doesn't matter [] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coytee Posted July 18, 2009 Share Posted July 18, 2009 How dynamic were they? The physical sensation was so great that I got up and went to the back of the room. Heh heh heh... yeah... I know what you mean...I've seen that effect on others. [A] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whatever55 Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 Could you elaborate ( or have the owner chime in ) on the EV drivers and passives please. Which EV drivers ? Was the passive modified from Roy's original design ... if so how ? We could speculate all day but it would be great to hear it from the "horse's mouth" They are impresive ... One more question.... what was the approximate room size and any room treatments ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coytee Posted July 19, 2009 Share Posted July 19, 2009 or have the owner chime in Mike, the owner (Steve) posts here very (very) infrequently. Kwing might know the answer but I didn't want you to think Mike was ignoring you. Unless someone beats me to it, I'll send him an email on Monday (don't have his email here at home) and put your question to him. Dean might know since these used to belong to him and he built the initial crossovers (for use with the K69 I'm sure). If Mike needed any alterations it's certainly possible he did any changes himself but it's also possible he might have asked Dean for input as well. Point being, it's possible Dean might known the answer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaudeJ1 Posted July 20, 2009 Share Posted July 20, 2009 As good as the K402/EV/JUB Bottoms sounded, I wondered what they would sound like with the VTRAC from Greg? The bass was fantastic, but the top horn can be visually overwhelming. There's always the option of a K510 if you wanna stay 2-way... Btw, which iPod were you demo'ing with? Those EV drivers used to be mine. I had 5 of them, but now I'm down to 3, with only one being used. I think JBL 2446J drivers are superior. The go lower and higher in spite of the 4" voice coil/larger diaphragam vs. 3" voice coil for the EV. Both are Titatinum and excellent, so we are splitting hairs here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClaudeJ1 Posted July 20, 2009 Share Posted July 20, 2009 Could you elaborate ( or have the owner chime in ) on the EV drivers and passives please. Which EV drivers ? Was the passive modified from Roy's original design ... if so how ? We could speculate all day but it would be great to hear it from the "horse's mouth" They are impresive ... One more question.... what was the approximate room size and any room treatments ? Since he bought them from me, I can say that they are EV DH1A's..........6 ohm version. He got the most mint ones I had. If this esteemed demo leader would post here more often, and reveal himself, he would say the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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