I have a JSE story....In 1987, after 2 years of searching for
the best speaker/amp combo I could afford, I bought a set of JSE Model
2's and a Soundstream DA-1 amp (before it was THX certified). It's all
personal taste, but for the truer amplification, I chose the DA-1 over
the Adcom GFA-555, which I thought had a boosted bass. Fun Fact 1: The
salesman at Harvey Electronics in Paramus NJ that sold me the JSE
speakers and demo'd the DA-1 was Jeff Joseph, who years later, after
John Sollecito closed JSE, licensed the Infinite Slope technology and
started Joseph Audio. I preferred the extended bass range of the JSE
Model 4, but couldn't justify the increased cost. Fun Fact 2: The List
Price of the JSE speaker line coincided with the model numbers.
therefore, the Model 4 was priced at $4,000.
In 1992, the oak veneer of the Model 2's began to lift/bubble. I called
JSE and spoke directly with John Sollecito. He was extremely
supportive! However, instead of fixing the Model 2 cabinets I had, he
offered a more expedient solution that I happily accepted. He sent 2
technicians in a van to my house with an upgrade replacement to Model
2A's in gloss black. The 2A had the upgraded super tweeter and rounded
cabinet edge for smoother high end dispersion. The 2A grille covers the
full front, not like the slanted cover of the 2.
In 2003, I called John Sollicito again and talked briefly about Source
Technologies and the old JSE line. I mentioned how happy I was with the
Model 2A and mentioned that originally, I thought the bass of the Model 4
was noticeably better, but I didn't think they were $1,500 better. Fun
Fact 3: John laughed and agreed. He said when originally designed, he
needed to price the Model 2 performance competitively, so he didn't use
the best woofers available at the time. The Model 4 was the no
compromise speaker with a larger volume cabinet. To enhance my system
bass, I went with his suggestion of what would best match/compliment my
2A's. At the time, it was the Source Technology XLS 12" 450 watt
amplified passive radiator subwoofer. It has a very sold bass and
extends the frequency response down to 18hz. He gave me a great deal and
I'm very pleased with this unit.
In 2012, the 2A woofer foam surrounds were disintegrating, so I gave
John a call. He remembered me. We discussed the options and he
suggested upgrading the woofers and replacing the aging capacitors of
the crossovers. I and a friend who has the Model 2 each bought an
upgrade kit. It came will detailed instructions and was easy to
install. The only small issue was that the new woofers protruded just a
bit more from the cabinet surface, so I shimmed the cloth cover frame a
bit. Again, I'm very pleased and haven't had any issues since.