Hsu CCB-8...What Have I Done?

alucard19:

If you decide you don't like them you could always send them back and try a pair of the HC-1 MK2 speakers instead at half the price.

You know, I really didn't even check those out.  I just kinda laser-beamed in on the CCB-8's.  I'm gonna go back and look at them again.  I will definitely keep them in mind.  Thank you!

Wow, my speakers are already in KC MO tonight...with delivery scheduled for tomorrow...all the way from Anaheim, Californ-I-A in 3 days!  They just shipped from Hsu on Monday evening with Fed-Ex.  Pretty speedy!  I hope they arrive in good shape!

Speakers delivered today!  Woo-hoo!  Well-packed with no damage -woohoo again! 

I moved two Velodyne subs from HT rig into family room to use with 2-channel  in there.  So far so good.  Bigger than I expected them to look!  Super smooth finish, like glass.  Sounding real nice, so far.  Holly Cole / Temptation A+,  James Taylor / JT C+ (definitely not an audiophile recording).  I'm thinking they're keepers.  Would love to add a pair of Hsu 15" sealed subs and cross over about 150 Hz.  Or at least, try it.  

How do you like them still? How do they compare to your JBL 590s?

I liked the sound real well, but not the looks.  They would have been fine in a dedicated theater or music room, but I had them in a family room and they were just too BBB (big, black and boxy).  So I ended up selling them. 

I never compared them directly to the JBL Studio 590's, but I gotta say I think the big JBL's are the better stereo sound value --if you get them bought right. 

The finish on the HSU's is in a different league, though.  While the vinyl on the JBL's is rather dull looking, the painted finish on the HSU's is high-quality automotive grade.  It's a shame you can't get them in something other than black. 

I would give the HSU's the edge over the JBL's in a home theater setting, though, because of the ability to use three identical speakers across the front and also due to no off-axis lobing compared to conventional center speakers.  That said, I'm quite content with my full JBL Studio 5 series 5-channel surround set-up, consisting of a pair of 590's, a pair of 530's in back, a 520C center and a pair of 550P subs.