Speakers - JBL L46

Back in college, which for reference was sometime between the death of disco and the fall of the Berlin Wall, I dated a pair of sisters - NO! not at the same time, this isn't one of THOSE Web sites! The sisters were the same in every way - attitudes, senses of humor, personalities - except physical stature. Claire (and I'm using a fake name here instead of disclosing her real name, Stephanie) was 5' 11", big-boned, strong and somewhat intimidating. Younger sister, Betty was petite, 5' 3", and delicate. Anyway, I'll leave the sordid details of the relationships' demise for another day - suffice to say, both relationships ended amiably, or at least that's how I choose to file them in my memories.

I was reminded of Claire and Betty as I'm collecting what seems to be the entire JBL speaker line from 1971 to 1983. All of these lovely JBLs have similar qualities that make them very appealing to me. Overall construction is superb, sound quality is predictably sweet, somewhat colored, but very satisfying.

The L46 is very much like its big sister, err uhh. . . cousin, the L56. The L46 has the same clear highs but less bass. It's very well-balanced though and perfect for a bedroom, den, or small family room. The L56 is more powerful, but still not in the class of the L36, L166 (coming soon), or L100 for BIG, 3-way sound. Sonically though - all of the JBls I've listened to lately possess many of the same qualities. I know they all "spec out" differently, but I'll betya I'd be able to tell the "JBL Sound" from any other speaker line in a blindfolded listening test. We will see if I can arrange that!

I'm going to keep all of the JBL speakers for a long time. They're not going to be traded or sold. And, unlike the sisters from so many years ago, these speakers can't run off to Santa Barbara with the captain of the beach volleyball team.

Now, where's that blindfold?

Here's a link to JBL speaker prices and all the models between 1970 and 1999.

Have any stories of photos of your JBL L46 speakers? Please leave a comment or send me an email.

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