JBL 4367 shoutiness remedies?

Not the speakers.  EQ?  Really?  That alone will screw up the sound.  Cables?  Power cords?  Placement?  Need a pure clean signal.

Of course you could just play songs that sound good on your system.  Nahh - nobody would ever do that. 

Of course you could just play songs that sound good on your system. Nahh - nobody would ever do that.

I know that was spoken with tongue in cheek, but it's more true than many want to believe. There are lots of people in this hobby with tens of thousands (or much more!) in equipment that only listen to "audiophile" approved recordings. That is beyond sad............

Oz

Room acoustics??

A live room will accentuate mid to treble a great deal, especially with volume.

I suggest these two experiments:

1 - Sit about 2 feet in front and see if the problem goes away.  If so, definitely the room.

2 - Throw absorbent materials around like blankets and cushions or pillows.  Include the floor between and behind the speakers.  Also behind the listening location.

If either of these two show improvement, contact GIK for a permanent fix.

@deckhand --

... The issue I bought when I paid for the speakers is a loudly blaring shoutiness in the range of frequencies of the human voice. It can be loud and overpowering even with EQ attenuating the frequencies between 500 and 4khz. I called the dealer who I bought them from for advice..he told me the amp and cd player are junk, ($6000 junk) and the only way to fix the shoutiness was to buy tube equipment. On some recordings, the speakers sound wonderful, but on some, it makes me question whether or not they’re worth keeping.

--

... Based on a couple of suggestions, I’ve spaced the speakers very close to 11 feet apart and then toed them way in so the horns are not directly aimed at the listeners. That did help attenuate the shoutiness in a way that was easily discernible. May have made the mid bass more pronounced. Am very pleased for that progress, but still need to employ additional measures.

I believe there’s a fine line to walk here; some of named "shoutiness" you address is, to my ears, inherent to these speakers, and as such trying to ameliorate these tendencies you may find yourself suppressing other qualities of theirs. Balancing this could be the true challenge while coming to the realization the signature at play - because, believe me: the JBL 4367’s have signature. No speaker truly escapes it, regardless of what others may try to tell you.

Your observation of the JBL’s sounding excellent with some music and not with other mirrors my own experience auditioning them. What I cherish in particular about these speakers is their dynamic/agile/punchy, tonally rather accurate, direct, clean and sphere-like presentation - at least down to the midbass below which I find to port tune and contribution to be quite characteristic (i.e.: the bass becoming a bit too warm/round and lacking detail). The energy, drive and raw insight of the overall sound is addictive indeed, and something I find to be important traits in sound reproduction.

Where they’re less adept - again, to me - and that may to some extend be intrinsically linked to their positively perceived qualities, is handling certain string instruments, violins in particular, and other classical repertoire. This is where the waveguide becomes a bit strident sounding with a slight sense of nasality that lends an unnatural "splash" to the presentation. My thought is material resonance rather than modes produced through the waveguide profile itself or even the driver, but that’s only a guess. They may approach relative "neutrality" or evenness in regards to frequency response, but tonally - depending on the material played through them - they can be a bit uneven, and moreover I find they lack a sense of unforced "flow," liquidity or relaxation in the presentation. In regards to soundstaging, from my recollection, depth of field and height isn’t their strongest trait, but more of a in-the-room presence that’s beguiling in itself.

I believe a lot of good advice has been given already from other posters, but I’d stress getting rid of the "EQ" device you’re using (in the analogue domain?) to make for the cleanest signal possible. You may be able to partly attenuate the frequency region problematic to your ears (without addressing the true problem, that is), but you’ll likely introduce other artifacts that would be promptly laid bare by the 4367’s.

Do you have them placed on proper stands? That’s a must, I find, elevating them some 8-12" from the floor. Another important aspect: power. To my mind you need much more of it, and I’d look into something like the MC² Audio S1400 studio amp that puts out close to 800 watts into 8 ohms. Take my word for it; it sounds wonderful. With regard to acoustics: put a cow skin or similar on the floor and experiment with its placement and proximity to your stereo. It affects the presentation more than one believes. Use diffusion more predominantly than absorption. It takes away the "zing" issues that may arise in the higher frequencies while retaining the energy of the sound.

Please don’t take my criticism above as bashing your speakers - that’s not my intention. With care taken implementing them I find they’re damn good speakers, and a heck of a lot more interesting than most more typical hifi-offerings out there. I hope you’ll come to enjoy them for years.