# JBL ES150P Powered Subwoofer Review Discussion Thread



## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

*by Wayne Myers*

*Price Each: $449.00 retail, $169.99 street.*


*Introduction*

Several months ago I undertook the construction of a pair of LXmini speakers from kit. The design, by Sigfried Linkwitz of Linkwitz Lab, had made a splash at audio shows and I had been impressed by their capability as a small and economical reference speaker. With the sponsorship of Linkwitz Lab (plans), Madisound (kit), and miniDSP (DSP), the LXmini pair was completed.


*Link to JBL ES150P Web Page.*


*Go to the JBL ES150P Review.*​


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

When I first saw a subwoofer review by AudiocRaver, I thought, Hey! You better untie Jman and let him outta the basement. Lol
Nice job Wayne. Sounds like you got exactly what you were looking for. Good read too. 


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

Thanks.

I made sure it was OK with Jim. Of course nobody does a sub review like Jim.


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## theJman (Mar 3, 2012)

:foottap:

:neener:

I actually had the ES250 on my list, but I just never got around to contacting JBL. I'm glad one of us had a chance to try something from the same product line. With that type of street price it seems like a nice budget subwoofer.


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## lovinthehd (Mar 17, 2012)

Isn't this the model that had quite a few reports of amp issues? Or was that the 250 that had more?


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

lovinthehd said:


> Isn't this the model that had quite a few reports of amp issues? Or was that the 250 that had more?



I've heard of quite a few. Including my own PB12 a long time ago. Could be coincidental, but my friend also had an older one(can't think of which one) give up the ghost for no apparent reason. 


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

The PB12 definitely was one that had lots of issues. I have not heard of anything similar in recent models.


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## lovinthehd (Mar 17, 2012)

Went looking and see more than what I consider an acceptable number of reports of issues with the amp with both the 150 and 250 models. Hopefully OP doesn't have any....


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## lcaillo (May 2, 2006)

What do you consider unacceptable and compared to what? I am loathe to defend JBL considering the dismal reliability and lack of parts for the earlier subs, but you have to also consider that JBL likely sells lots of units, so there will be relatively more complaints.


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## lovinthehd (Mar 17, 2012)

lcaillo said:


> What do you consider unacceptable and compared to what? I am loathe to defend JBL considering the dismal reliability and lack of parts for the earlier subs, but you have to also consider that JBL likely sells lots of units, so there will be relatively more complaints.


Yes, they can weather such better than someone like Epik or eD did with amp failures and I fully understand unhappy people complain more than happy people make nice reports, too. JBL simply doesn't put a lot into their lower end non-pro lineup of goods these days from what I can see, either. 

While I don't often put a lot of stock into Amazon reviews, the percentage of amp problems reported was pretty high, plus what I've seen on several forums. If you get a good enough deal it may be worth the risk I suppose. People may have been overdriving them is a possibility, too so perhaps that is a factor.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

Thank You for the review Wayne and I am glad they make you happy.

On a separate note, I tried putting tile and wood under my subs only to find that it did not seem to help. I am working on raising them off the floor a bit to see what happens in my room. In my friends room, he says it sounds better, I heard it but am no so sure. Just a thought in you long list of "Things"

Again thanks


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## willis7469 (Jan 31, 2014)

lcaillo said:


> The PB12 definitely was one that had lots of issues. I have not heard of anything similar in recent models.


I learned the scope of the failures after mine went down. Wow! A little OT, but I think Onkyo got the biggest black from the hdmi debacle because they had heavy market saturation compared to the other OEM's. I wonder if the pb12 was victim to that?



Savjac said:


> Thank You for the review Wayne and I am glad they make you happy.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



I tried a piece of wood under the aforementioned jbl pb12, and I'm pretty sure (it was a while ago) it helped the attack, and definition. I do recall the effects were subtle, and I won't even rule out that they were psychosomatic, but I kept the board until the amp died. I still have it and its waiting for another Frankenstein project. 


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

willis7469 said:


> I learned the scope of the failures after mine went down. Wow! A little OT, but I think Onkyo got the biggest black from the hdmi debacle because they had heavy market saturation compared to the other OEM's. I wonder if the pb12 was victim to that?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


This change I am sure is real as that model has a downward firing woofer. I found this to be true with down firing woofers and some ported ones as well but the ported ones had less effect, IMO, unless you are talking about full range speakers with a down firing port, then having a solid base under the speaker is important.


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

Great input on the possible amp failures. I admit my due diligence regarding product reliability amounted to:


Check the Amazon satisfaction profile: 72, 12, 2, 6, 8 - looks pretty solid.
Trust JBL. I know, I know, budget consumer grade hifi does not get the engineering attention that pro gear does. But I would buy cheap JBL before I would buy cheap by most other companies, even realizing that there is zero factual basis for doing so.
Buy the SquareTrade 2-year replacement plan for each at $10 per.
Baby my gear. Working for me is the easiest duty a piece of audio gear could hope for. Hey, none of my Behringer gear has even failed, some of it over 10 years old.
Count on luck. My equipment just never fails. Even when I brag about it. Underlying Superstitious Belief: Love your equipment, and it will love you back.0


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

Savjac said:


> This change I am sure is real as that model has a downward firing woofer. I found this to be true with down firing woofers and some ported ones as well but the ported ones had less effect, IMO, unless you are talking about full range speakers with a down firing port, then having a solid base under the speaker is important.


As Jack knows (he suggested it and I tried and confirmed it) a solid base under the downward-firing port on the MartinLogan ESL made a big difference. With the ES150P, I did not hear one, but the ringing room modes might have washed out any benefit. Now I should remove the tiles under them and see if the snappy delivery gets less snappy. Except that... it sounds great now, and that would involve more work, and I have already moved on, and I am just lazy enough that [yawn] I kinda am not interested enough to spend more time on it.:wink2:


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

AudiocRaver said:


> Great input on the possible amp failures. I admit my due diligence regarding product reliability amounted to:
> 
> 
> Check the Amazon satisfaction profile: 72, 12, 2, 6, 8 - looks pretty solid.
> ...


There ya go, Very Good answer. I love it


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

I am spending a little time fine-tuning the bass area between 80 and 200 Hz with a little manual filtering, because



By 100 Hz or so, localization has kicked in and it becomes pretty easy to hear a bass note pulled to one side or the other if the FR is much different between the L and R. Upon listening more, there is ONE NOTE, the D-flat at 138 Hz, that pulls left a little and is annoying me.
At that frequency I am quite sure it is amplitude differences that matter the most to SS&I, so filtering differently between L and R to match responses using minimum-phase filters is valid.
With a 8.16 foot wavelength, the dimension corresponds to a floor/ceiling room mode. In that part of the room the ceiling is fully finished, so there is not much I can do to apply treatment to dampen it.
That note does NOT want to tame down. It involves a resonant peak, so the ringing involved makes it worse - it was unaffected by my front-of-room treatment. A single notch or high-Q.dip parametric filter does not control it effectively.
Tried boosting the R side _just a little_ to match. Tightening FR between L and R did tighten up imaging that involved bass and kick drums even further, but that note did not change.
Yes, I am well aware of the perils of boosting in that region, especially where a resonance is concerned. Looking into treatment options. Just experimenting.
I am betting than when I run Dirac, it will be resolved. But I would like to learn more about what is going on with it first.

I will post results.


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## Savjac (Apr 17, 2008)

In the past I have found that some of these brand named sub-woofers in the affordable range tend to have a good deal of cabinet ring at certain frequencies that has not been cured by the fiberfill material.
This can impart a hollow or woody sound to the music, again at some frequencies.

I know they are new to you but might I suggest some of the sticky back sonic barrier foam material that you can cut and then stick to the inside of your cabinet ?
It worked great for some of the subs I had bought or made. Danny Ritchie recommends them for the sub cabinets he designs and it seems to work well. I am not sure how much fiberfill can then be placed into the cabinet as it may too much usable space and limit the extension of the woofer. 

Just a thought.


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## AudiocRaver (Jun 6, 2012)

And a good thought, Savjac. I think the next step is figuring out exactly where that resonance is occurring.


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