JBL everest?

@v6517413 --

Obviously there are a bunch of JBL Everest DD65000-67000 owners out there, a significant portion of those being Japanese audio enthusiasts (and, I gather, Russian enthusiasts as well?), but they’re hardly representative of the general audio "gist" here at Audiogon, meaning that large horn hybrids or all-horn speakers seem to be in the minority of preference here compared to the plethora of the less efficient and typically (much) smaller direct radiating alternatives. On top of that the Everests are very expensive, so don’t bet on a queue of owners standing in line to jump at your questions - at least on these forums. The Lansing Heritage Forums may be a better place for you to pursue some answers (I would try out the ’General Audio Discussion’ threads):

http://www.audioheritage.org/vbulletin/

So, above paragraph of mine may be at least a partial answer to your first question, in regards to their seeming lack of popularity at the forums in North America. Bear in mind that while Audiogon is most likely the most elaborate forum section on Audio in the US, it’s not the most encompassing, I find; as mentioned earlier horns (and woofers of 15" and above) are not a popular meal around here, and seem to generate the response mainly as something that’s supposed to be attached to the forehead - in pairs.

Regarding the sound of the Everests, I haven’t heard their latest iteration (i.e.: the DD67000, nor the DD65000), only the DD66000, but I would hardly be able to add anything worthwhile here apart from what has already been mentioned above by other posters. In particularly I like the description of how the sound of theirs seems to "fall out" of them as opposed to something that has to be forced or pulled out of them, which is a giveaway to their rather uninhibited and effortless presentation. It’s a big sound, and a very dynamic one as well, all of which makes them more desirable to my ears than what most of the direct radiating and smaller speakers can offer.

Personally though I find there are other alternatives, certainly all-horns, that sound better all around, and at a much lesser price, but they’re not popular as such - nothing easily branded as the JBL’s, Everests no less. My advice would be to go a bit beyond "popular," also with regard to amps, and dig into solutions that mayn’t be as visible to the, say, reigning monetary elite (to whom status seems more important than pursuing excellent sound per se as a quest in itself), but that are no less capable, and that at more fair prices. If JBL and Boulder is what you’re after though I’m sure you can’t really go wrong with either, but remember to dig a little deeper into those pockets..

Everersts are shown routinely in HK rooms at shows where they do not do well, in my opinion. K2s and 4367s have had the same fate. At RMAF Home Sound Audio was able to setup a pair of 4367s in a very shallow room and they were awesome. Again the adjacent Everest room was quite bad sounding. My experience is that the model has a status to them in America, but they are not marketable. This is mainly because of decor reasons. Slim speakers are the rule, and dynamics as priority has been largely shelved. I do wish they would do better in show setups and would love to hear them at the flagship store.

mmatty - could you please tell what amplification you use or have experienced?

phusis - are you talking about turnkey all-horn alternatives or DIY? Goodsoundclub patrons would certainly agree that better and cheeper are available than retail brands, like Avantgarde. Sounds great to me.

@ohlala

phusis - are you talking about turnkey all-horn alternatives or DIY? Goodsoundclub patrons would certainly agree that better and cheeper are available than retail brands, like Avantgarde. Sounds great to me.

I’ve heard mixtures of all-horns that I believe could be rightly categorized as DIY, as well as "turnkey" iterations that are very worthwhile. The JBL’s (i.e.: K2 and Everest’s in particular) had my quite impressed for a while, until I became more familiar with other horn speakers, including my own all-horns (that is, except the sub octaves which are augmented with a direct radiating subwoofer, but I have planned two upcoming DIY horn subs) which I’ve had now for over 2 years. Listening to the K2 S9900’s last fall it struck me how much their sonic imprinting had changed to my ears given that my own frame of reference has changed these last years. My main gripe with the JBL’s, be it both the Everest’s (haven’t heard the DD65000 and DD67000, I must add) and K2’s, is that they lack relative refinement and overall coherency. While the bass and lower mids is indeed very dynamic, agile and with a fine tonality in its upper range, it has a general warmth or roundness (some would call this coloration) that draws too much attention to itself. Moving up through the midrange I find there’s a "splashy," grey-ish and slightly hollow signature that lacks organic presence. This may sound like harsh criticism, but I actually still like the JBL’s quite a lot, with the proviso just mentioned and that I find they’re too expensive. That being said it’s not fair to single out the JBL’s as too expensive in light of most of the direct radiating competition, where I find they have much to offer by comparison.

I’m not that familiar with Romy’s sonic preferences or views in general, but have noticed he’s quite open about his dislikes here and there.

i have a set of 5 jbl 67000 powered by 5 denon s1 monoblocks in a room about 20 by 24 with high ceilings  for movies and music

i think they are definitely fine products, the soundstage is wide and deep  the volume is not limiting   the horns are smooth and in my opinion really seem to bring the band into the room and the room disappears   there are likely better combos for less money though these are quite good

I have heard the JBL Everest speakers at RMAF years ago...Large room.. I can't remember the amplifiction....They sounded transparent but not very musical to me...I love JBLs from the 1960s and the Everest had some of that same sound flavor, just didn't move me. At the same or lower price point, there are so many great choices ...heck, in the $1000-$15,000 range there are so many good choices of speakers that may have kept the big JBLs from getting much play in the US/EU...At the over 50K price point there are many other contenders.... Such a cool thing about hifi....truly something for everyone at most any price point..