Post by jhelms on May 31, 2014 20:22:23 GMT
I never have much time on my hands but I really wanted to express some love for a few pieces of equipment I have been using the last 6-7 months.
The journey started when I was shopping for some new active monitors for my office since I am at my desktop for hours at a time, designing, writing, building and so forth. Lucky enough, I have several places in which I can audition studio monitors and really get a feel for the sound. After hearing so many in the sub $1K price range, I found myself over and over listening to a bit of an ugly duckling, the Behringer B3030A's. Going back and forth wondering if I was making a bad choice with the behringers because of quality issues on some of their past equipment, I finally bit the bullet and ordered a set. I can say that so far, I have ZERO regrets. I can listen to these for hours without a hint of fatigue and they do nothing but put a smile on my face. They are detailed, accurate, involving and just so many things studio monitors are usually not, but with much of what studio monitors DO. That is reveal every note, breath, string or mistake in the track. You simply hear it all. I will skip the endless superlatives, but simply understand I do not rant or praise equipment lightly. For the money, these are the bargain of the century in my opinion (Purchased off the bay for $369.98 shipped for a pair)
The next part of the journey led me to purchasing an active studio sub. Not because the 3030a’s lacked bass, in fact they were quite decent near-field. But walking to other parts of the office or if sitting at another location more than 6’-10’ away, they just did not cut it. I listened to several local choices and spent some time auditioning. I simply was not finding what I was looking for. One of those things in which you will know it when you hear it. I even brought home a few like the KRK10s, and Yamaha hs8s. Both were great but just did not do it for me for. One evening I received an odd recommendation from a friend of mine who has his own studio and some quite impressive gear. He flat out said to just order in a JBL LSR2310SP and for the money, I would not be happier as he used one at home. Rather surprised at this JBL recommendation and knowing he has some very nice equipment at his disposal, I said ok. Ordered online and verified with the seller than I could return it if I just paid shipping. I really did not expect to love this sub and expected to return it. After just a few hours, I knew that I had found the one. This sub went DEEP. Cavernously deep and could fill the room with warm, beautiful defined bass. The sub was a flawless match for the 3030a’s. There is simply nothing lacking in my opinion with the lsr2310sp. It gets the job done beautifully. Just to note, I picked up the sub as a demo unit for $300
Overall this affordable active setup with pretty much any source takes me away to audio heaven (no pun intended). I own and have owned a lot of gear over the years, none of which I ever write about unless I am in love, one surprises me, or unless I modify some gear and get a chuckle out of the improvement. But if you are shopping for something similar… I give these speakers my stamp of approval. The value is stunning!
B3030A Pros:
- Smooth, engaging sound from top to bottom
- Without measurement, the mid-woofer and ribbon seem a good match
- Accurate with every genre I have thrown at it
- Never a hint of fatigue
- More than enough output
- Nice build quality, fit and finish despite the dated materials and look
- Run very cool
- Active amplifier section is decent for a speaker of this price
Several adjustments including:
- Level
- Low frequency
- Room compensation
- High frequency
B3030A Cons:
- Rather ugly. Cabinet has 90 degree corners / laminate
- Overall look is dated but again… for this price and sound who cares
- Speakers are a bit large for most desktops at 12.5 x 8.4 x 8.3
LSR2310SP Pros:
- Does exactly what it should, seamlessly adds beautiful bottom end in spades
- Bass extension and definition are very, very good
- Front firing woofer, rear port which I prefer
- Just enough control setting wise to match the unit to the 3030A’s.
- Fit and finish is outstanding. Cabinet is pleasing visually especially without the metal grill
- Metal grill pressure fits with a large rubber gasket and fits very tight so when on the sub, it never rattles or comes loose.
- The sub is not to large or small coming in at 16x15x17
LSR2310SP Cons:
- Amplifier heatsink is built into the port to aid in cooling. It works and is well integrated but does not keep the amp as cool as I would like
- Amplifier runs hot even at idle
The journey started when I was shopping for some new active monitors for my office since I am at my desktop for hours at a time, designing, writing, building and so forth. Lucky enough, I have several places in which I can audition studio monitors and really get a feel for the sound. After hearing so many in the sub $1K price range, I found myself over and over listening to a bit of an ugly duckling, the Behringer B3030A's. Going back and forth wondering if I was making a bad choice with the behringers because of quality issues on some of their past equipment, I finally bit the bullet and ordered a set. I can say that so far, I have ZERO regrets. I can listen to these for hours without a hint of fatigue and they do nothing but put a smile on my face. They are detailed, accurate, involving and just so many things studio monitors are usually not, but with much of what studio monitors DO. That is reveal every note, breath, string or mistake in the track. You simply hear it all. I will skip the endless superlatives, but simply understand I do not rant or praise equipment lightly. For the money, these are the bargain of the century in my opinion (Purchased off the bay for $369.98 shipped for a pair)
The next part of the journey led me to purchasing an active studio sub. Not because the 3030a’s lacked bass, in fact they were quite decent near-field. But walking to other parts of the office or if sitting at another location more than 6’-10’ away, they just did not cut it. I listened to several local choices and spent some time auditioning. I simply was not finding what I was looking for. One of those things in which you will know it when you hear it. I even brought home a few like the KRK10s, and Yamaha hs8s. Both were great but just did not do it for me for. One evening I received an odd recommendation from a friend of mine who has his own studio and some quite impressive gear. He flat out said to just order in a JBL LSR2310SP and for the money, I would not be happier as he used one at home. Rather surprised at this JBL recommendation and knowing he has some very nice equipment at his disposal, I said ok. Ordered online and verified with the seller than I could return it if I just paid shipping. I really did not expect to love this sub and expected to return it. After just a few hours, I knew that I had found the one. This sub went DEEP. Cavernously deep and could fill the room with warm, beautiful defined bass. The sub was a flawless match for the 3030a’s. There is simply nothing lacking in my opinion with the lsr2310sp. It gets the job done beautifully. Just to note, I picked up the sub as a demo unit for $300
Overall this affordable active setup with pretty much any source takes me away to audio heaven (no pun intended). I own and have owned a lot of gear over the years, none of which I ever write about unless I am in love, one surprises me, or unless I modify some gear and get a chuckle out of the improvement. But if you are shopping for something similar… I give these speakers my stamp of approval. The value is stunning!
B3030A Pros:
- Smooth, engaging sound from top to bottom
- Without measurement, the mid-woofer and ribbon seem a good match
- Accurate with every genre I have thrown at it
- Never a hint of fatigue
- More than enough output
- Nice build quality, fit and finish despite the dated materials and look
- Run very cool
- Active amplifier section is decent for a speaker of this price
Several adjustments including:
- Level
- Low frequency
- Room compensation
- High frequency
B3030A Cons:
- Rather ugly. Cabinet has 90 degree corners / laminate
- Overall look is dated but again… for this price and sound who cares
- Speakers are a bit large for most desktops at 12.5 x 8.4 x 8.3
LSR2310SP Pros:
- Does exactly what it should, seamlessly adds beautiful bottom end in spades
- Bass extension and definition are very, very good
- Front firing woofer, rear port which I prefer
- Just enough control setting wise to match the unit to the 3030A’s.
- Fit and finish is outstanding. Cabinet is pleasing visually especially without the metal grill
- Metal grill pressure fits with a large rubber gasket and fits very tight so when on the sub, it never rattles or comes loose.
- The sub is not to large or small coming in at 16x15x17
LSR2310SP Cons:
- Amplifier heatsink is built into the port to aid in cooling. It works and is well integrated but does not keep the amp as cool as I would like
- Amplifier runs hot even at idle