JBL Synthesis SCL-6 In-Wall Speaker Review. A Home Theater in-wall I can live with.
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 13 ต.ค. 2024
- Written review/data can be found here:
www.erinsaudio...
*Typo in the horizontal global plot @ ~14:00, which should say:
"Omnidirectional in frontal hemisphere until 1.5kHz where response becomes ±40°."
Support the cause:
Patreon: / erinsaudiocorner
Contribute via PayPal: www.paypal.com...
Audio Advice Affiliate Link: www.audioadvic...
^ earns me a small commission at no additional cost to you
Your support helps me pay for new items to test, hardware, miscellaneous items and costs of the site’s server space and bandwidth. All of which I otherwise pay out of pocket. So, if you can help chip in a few bucks, know that it is very much appreciated.
____________________
All of my tests are conducted using KLIPPEL Hardware and Software. KLIPPEL is an innovative leader in providing unique test equipment for electro-acoustical transducers and audio systems. Founded in 1997 by Dr. Wolfgang Klippel, the novel techniques developed for control and measurement systems of loudspeakers and other transducers are the result of over 30 years of fundamental research. This provides more accurate physical models of loudspeakers, micro-speakers and headphones valid for both small and large amplitudes. The focus is on revealing the root causes of signal distortion and defects and giving practical indications for improvements in design and manufacturing of audio products. For information on KLIPPEL products, please visit their site below:
www.klippel.de/...
Generic Audio Advice Affiliate Link: www.audioadvice.com/?referral=erins-audio-corner&b=3
^ earns me a small commission at no additional cost to you
If you wanna support the channel, please considering using my above link to purchase anything Audio Advice sells. From TVs to speakers.
This is just amazing! Now we just need Audio advice to send you the focal 1000 and the B&W to round up a wide range of design to compare. I jus listen to the bigger options of the jbl (scl-4 ) and they are in my short list but really leaning towards the focal due to their versatility (the mid range and tweeter swivels and rotate). Thanks again for the work you do Erin! It is truly appreciated.
I completely agree. This is a great video. It’s hard to find measurements for in walls. I’m considering these or the Focal 1000 as well as maybe B&W. Would love to know how they compare like this
Well, Erin reviewed the Focal 1000 and B&W. Both sucked. Focal was the worst of the lot.
Yeap, watch that and so glad waited for it. I'm curious now to know how much volume you probably need to avoid those bumps on the mid-low frequency
First, I want to say you’re doing the Audio God’s work, so thank you for all your efforts! I am selfishly glad you have started to measure in-walls as I believe that is the direction I will go for a living room/theater space. In my old age I don’t want giant speakers in my living room anymore (I know crazy, right. lol).
So, I was curious if you might be getting a Focal 1000 IWLCR6 from Audio Advice by chance? If not, I know they are a Focal dealer, maybe a future review?? 😉
Anyways I just wanted to mention them if they are not on your radar. They seem to have some characteristics for in-walls that are specific to them.
- 1" Beryllium inverted dome tweeter
3 1/8" Midrange
6 1/2" Mid-Bass
7 1/8" Passive Radiator**
- Closed-back in-wall*
- Midrange and tweeter plate is positionally adjustable to listening position +/- 15°**
- Also, the midrange and tweeter plate is positionally rotatable 0-90° for horizontal center use WTMW, technically PWTMW (Passive Woofer).**
** Rare in an in-wall
* Somewhat rare in an in-wall
Focal does provide horizontal and vertical globe plots (or half globe, lol in-wall) and a frequency response graph, I assume they are anechoic measurements (don’t know, doesn’t say). It would be nice to see the DI and how EQ-able these speakers are, as well as their in-room estimated response.
The ability toe-in +/- 15° in an in-wall piqued my interest, also ability to rotate the TM for a horizontal center channel under a TV.
Focal provided spec sheet…
www.focal.com/sites/www.focal.fr/files/shared/catalog/document/fp_1000_iwlcr6_en_0.pdf
It's on the list. But most likely what I will be doing with in-wall speakers next will be a budget shootout, of sorts. That could be a while, though.
This was a thoughtful and supportive comment. Thanks for choosing kindness over smugness.
Yes! Fascinating to see in wall speaker testing....combined with the preview video showing your baffle setup. Can't wait to see more reviews like this, thank you!
You and me both!
This is really exciting. Erin, make sure you let us know if you end up installing some in wall speakers in your home!!
For sure.
Wow. Just saw the price of these speakers. Now there is no question that the Revel W553L's blow the doors off of the JBL's. Same sensitivity (91db), but the Revels have a smoother response, none of those jagged peaks and dips in the critical higher frequencies. They extend just a hair lower. And for the price of ONE JBL, you can buy THREE of the W553Ls. And in Harmon's double-blind survey, listeners preferred the Revel over other brands. It's a no brainer...
My deepest apologies. I misspelled Erin's name Thank you for having a great sense of humor.
Ernie, I am in the market for new speakers, I have asked Before if you could Possibly check out the JBL C211. Great review on the SCL 6 Speakers I am also considering them. Thank you for all you do.
I'm not interested in in-walls but ill watch this because of the effort you went to to make the video and its interesting.
That's appreciated.
This is by far the best channel for audio nerds, I really learned a lot in the past few months of following this channel. Erin just made me unsubscribe to a lot of other mainstream channels discussing audio.
Great and interesting video once again. Actually thought the front grill would have even higher impact.
I would love to see test of the similar priced B&W CT7.3 LCR that Audio Advice is also selling. Those I have heard here in Denmark, and despite the really mediorce room they were set up in, to my ears, they sounded really awesome. Considered these SCL-6 as well, but can't find a retailer within 400km to be able to hear them before deciding. ..
Finally, some good in-wall data. I was excited when Amir started tested in-walls last year but haven’t seen anything since he did the monoprice in-walls. Which measured really well for the money. Jbl does have an 8 inch version but they are $6600
Hers my review wish list from audio advice.
Bowers & Wilkins CWM 7.3 S2.
Martin Logan Tribute 5XW
Great testing! The performance loss with the grill was a bit disappointing.
After seeing this SCL-6, I really want to see the SCL-2 with the larger compression driver.
Yes. That would be a cool one.
Yes we want a review on that 😃
Great review. I appreciate all the time and effort you put into this. When you do objective listening for the tested speakers, what hardware are you using?
Thanks for that! Parasound HINT 6 for power. Oppo or AppleTV for music. Sometimes my computer for monitor/desktop speakers.
Erin- I just wanna say, these poses for the video is super awesome 😂. So jovial hah. Keep it up man.
Be safe & be well.
Thanks, you too!
Loved this review and your vibes.
Talking about large in walls. Have you seen the dali phantom s-280s...
You're right.
The additional support from a baffle wall is huge.
Similar to an amplifier's impedance load, the acoustic load the loudspeaker operates into is vital to how effective the wavelaunch of energy is into the room.
This is Half Space (2 pi) Loading, assuring no lossy SBIR occurs from the boundary surface behind the speaker.
Essentially all energy propagates uniformly into the room free from summation nulling issues from the jump.
Yes, wouldnt ths also improve percieved impulse response? Doesnt seem like many downsides to baffle wall from what I can tell
@@Canadian_Eh_I
Downsides include increased acoustic treatment demands for the rear wall behind the listener, as all that wave coherency results in maximized modal interaction...
Also, the right loudspeaker, in the right room, well spaced off of any adjacent boundary, can create spectacular soundstaging effects...
Big baffle loudspeakers image from the baffle forward.
Picture the theoretical opposite; B&W Nautilus... four way with essentially no baffle.
Hi Erin, great review on the JBL Synthesis speakers, have you tested any of the larger in wall speakers in the synthesis range? or do you think they will all be in the same ball park? also i amlooking at Ascedo speakers have you had a chance to have a look at those yet, im intersted in the 6" and 12" speakers thank you Oz
Erin, i think I've watched this video and your other in wall shootout video 5 times each already. Great stuff, thank you for taking the time to do these.
If i need to use in-walls for a multi use HT and music setup would these be a good choice or would any of the other options you tested give a better option purely for music listening?
I’d choose these or something from KEF. If budget is tighter then Monoprice Monolith in-walls look promising.
Hi Erin, thanks for all the work you put into these reviews. I was wondering if you've reviewed Pioneer Elite atmosphere enabled speakers by Andrew Jones? I own the full set towers, bookshelf and center (minus the sub) and was wondering if you've reviewed them?
@ErinsAudioCorner I want to power my home theatre LCR with SCL 6 - would you be able to recommend an amp or the recommended output per channel for this speakers please?
Great job, Ernie. I've been very interested on these SCL 6 speakers for a long time. But I am also considering the JBL's C211. What are the possibilities of you Reviewing them?
The C211’s look interesting. Btw, who’s Ernie?
Ernie is my evil twin.
@@ErinsAudioCorner 🤣😭😅
Ernie!?!? 😂
@@ErinsAudioCorner 😂
Thank you for all the great reviews!
@ErinsAudioCorner These JBLs or the KEF Ci5160RLM-THX? We need to know what is the king at this price point
Freq resp looks good on axis. The two dips above 10k are caused by diffraction at the entrance of the waveguide. I measured the same issue with Kartesian tweeter in their horn.
Thanks for this review. If you're considering in walls for yourself, you should watch Amir's review of the Revel in walls as well. They measured exceptionally well, and are a very reasonable $495 each. Great choice for center and surrounds for quality home theater.
Unfortunately, Amir doesn’t provide compression data which is a key bit of information for a speaker I would purchase.
Erin - I appreciate the great information and for getting me up outa here quickly 😂
Question; you mentioned the differences with the grill. Do you think that if the speaker were placed behind a woven acoustically transparent screen that the measurements would indicate similar results to the measurements with the grill on? If so, it seems like that could be somewhat problematic as I suspect the vast majority of these will probably go behind screens and you mentioned those issues could not be EQ’d. I’ve been strongly considering these speaker for my house for a few months now and I’m just curious.
A woven acoustically transparent screen would not elicit the same aberrations as seen with the JBL grill.
@@FOH3663 Why do you think that? Are you thinking woven screen is more acoustically transparent than the grill?
I'd expect more of a HF trim than much comb filtering. But it's hard to know for sure without testing the screen material itself. If it's too tight of a weave relative to the wavelength and also the pattern. This is something I would like to test sometime in the future.
Great video. Have you heard about the theory audio design?
I have.
Erin, have you compared the SCL-6, for theater vs JBL CBT J70-1 for LCR? CBT I’ve read on AVS are great for surround, but maybe not as much for LCR (contrary to other videos and AVR users).
I’m tempted to mix and match, 6 CBT 79J-1 and 4 SCL-8 Atmos in ceiling,
or even 3 SCL-6 LCR, plus side and back CBT 70J-1 with 4 scl-8 overhead.
Would you consider matching line array soft dome tweeters and horns in the same 15.5 x 26 x 7.8 mixed purpose room?
Love your channel, and Keppel testing, kind thanks in advance.
Thanks Erin! I think these would be awesome in a home theater.
Btw, the other day when you showed the wooden ring, even though wood inserts are insanely priced right now, if you plan on using those rings for multiple drivers for an extended period of time, you may want to switch from self tapping screws to wood inserts and screws for those. 10-24 probably would work well for most woofers and 8-32 for many tweeters. Just a thought I had which may help to reduce your costs long term.
Edit:
Btw, after I get around to it, I will send you a sigmastudio firmware made for a JAB5 (which is the same as parts- express Dayton KABD-4100 4-100W amp). I own a couple of them (decided to go a different direction with a build). So I'll design the schematic with labels for you to give to the community (basically a two way and three way schematic with time alignment for both drivers and speakers, volume leveling between drivers, crossover, IIR PEQ, and if enough instructions left, then a FIR with so few taps it may or may not be able to handle phase correction; maybe a noise circuit or a mute circuit for when nothing is playing to prevent hiss). Basically, i really enjoy sigmastudio, so being able to give a designed schematic to the diy community sounds good to me. There is also one I found on Aliexpress with 2 channel tpa3255 and an adau1701 dsp which, once I buy one for testing, I'll get the JAB5 schematic moved over to that for a two way for a bookshelf speaker.
Could you give the name of the transducers please ? JW13??? ..... it's difficult to see. The JBL's .pdf says JW13AI-4 but i think it's an error AND only one crossover freq. is given while it's a 2.5 way speaker. Thank you.
Great video, Erin, as always. I’d really like to see you review the Goldenear SPS Invisa in walls, which I’m close to purchasing. Any chance at all of that happening?
It’s possible. But it wouldn’t be anytime soon. I really need to start throttling back.
@@ErinsAudioCorner
Understood, I appreciate that you’re very busy. I’d be willing to contribute any out of pocket expenses to your Patreon account if that would be helpful
@@ErinsAudioCorner
I also feel reviewing this particular in wall would boost your channel, since Goldenear is a popular brand and their are no technical reviews of it anywhere. It should drive some traffic to your site
AWESOME! One question though, if used as a center Chanel is the dispersion better or worse then the JBL HDI center you reviewed awhile back?
If you leave it vertically oriented it would be better. Horizontal, it would probably be around the same. But I would have to go back and look at the data.
Awesome review! Thank you. 😊
This is awesome, I'm strongly considering these for my LCR behind a perf screen which I know will not be the same, but I figure can EQ the issues out of that?! Have you ever done a test or heard the SCL-2, 3 or 4 in-walls? I'd love to go with something with a bit more power because I do like listening to 2 chan stereo and would spend the money if I could get the right deal on SCL-2s for my LCR!!!
I haven't gotten to test those. I tried but the SCL-4 is out of stock everywhere.
@@ErinsAudioCorner That's the general theme of the year when it comes to AV :) Awesome channel! Really dig your reviews and breakdowns!!!!!
this looks really nice, this definitely went on my short list but still i would like to see the revel F36 or the F35 measured as those speaker at the top of my list
I'd imagine Harman would have the SPIN data for those.
When are you able to do the JBL studio towers? They have a big wave guide and probable do well. I’d love to see that
Yea, I reviewed the HDI-3800 and HDI-4500 last year.
I was debating between these and the triads. I would love to see some data relating to the triads, just can’t find anything anywhere.
will the SCL-7 do as a good jobb ? or can you go with the 6 as left/right and 7 as a center ?
On-wall can be good if you treat the wall to absorb SBIR and up. The short distance makes SBIR easier to absorb (but more problematic if you don't.)
Not sure I agree. The mid range frequencies typically exhibit the strong dip and the absorption thickness needed would be a few inches, give or take. I’m just not sure how effective typical treatment would be especially if you did not want it to look like an eyesore. Do you have any references to some examples you’re talking about? I would be interested in seeing before and after results.
@@ErinsAudioCorner yes, you'd need a few inches of absorption and/or absorption designed to target the right frequencies. For behind an AT screen, the only visual concern is that it's non-reflective. By "treat the wall to absorb SBIR and up" I meant doing it right, not doing it wrong. My point is that done right, on-wall can be good. Somehow, you'd ideally want to deal with SBIR. That can be eliminating it with in-wall, absorbing it with on-wall, or pushing it below the bass mgmt crossover with away from wall. Of course, in-wall has a 3db advantage.
Pleas ask Audio Advice to lend you the monitor audio w280 idc to see how it compares to the jbl and see if the price difference is really worth tks
Erin .. planning on puttinng in wall speakers for my 11 wdx22 depth room.. what would be you suggest .. JBL SLC-6 vs Revel W893?
I like the JBL. But I’d also consider vertical radiation and make sure all seats will be good in that respect. 👍
hey boss....is this speaker still the TOP of the list for recommendations for IN WALL ?
I’d say so.
15:20 isn't that's what best for dolby Atmos, dts x, dts hd master audio set ups? You know 7.4.4 type of room!
Does the EQ-ability come from the ERDI being smooth or the ERDI tracking the on axis measurement closely?
Do you think the same would apply to the SCL-7?
Generally, it would be both. But, mostly we look for the ERDI being smooth. It doesn't have to be flat; just linear (either upward sloping by some degree or flat). The slope indicates the beamwidth and is where preference comes into play.
What impact does a concrete basement wall with 2.5 inches of closed cell foam have?
I’m looking for some inwalls for a living room 2.1 setup. Is this a good recommendation. I have a dedicated 2 channel for music, just want something for tv and movie watch with a sub.
Definitely. I’d run them for that without question. They’re one of the best in wall speakers I’ve come across so far. And as a cheap plug, please consider using my affiliate link if you decide to buy these from Audio Advice.
www.audioadvice.com/?referral=erins-audio-corner&b=3
How does it perform behind a projector screen made for audio transparency?
What size back box do you recommend? I have like 40 cubic ft in my fireplace build out.
I'd contact JBL to ask for their recommendation.
@@ErinsAudioCorner I contacted them and the representative wouldn’t help me because I wasn’t a dealer.
@@ErinsAudioCorner I tried again and pressed a little harder. They said no back box is needed.
thank you!!!!!!!! can i angle these front speakers at each side
They sit flush with the wall, so not unless you do something to angle the wall itself.
Boundary gain bass sounds muddy and that is why box speakers sound much better at least 3 ft off the wall. Modern box speakers tend to have very narrow front baffles because that design lends to better sound quality. In wall and in ceiling speakers are relatively much more expensive than box speakers and you only get the front baffle and they sound like ass. Wall cavities are random, so how can the drivers be tuned to work in random boxes? Not to mention the huge problem from such a wide front baffle (a huge wall).
Would you be interested in testing Triad in-wall speakers? Let me know. I am curious about their performance.
Can this be used as all round surround sound...
Wouldn’t EQing that dip kill your sensitivity/dynamics?
at that high of a frequency, nah. There is already so little power sent that, based on tests I conducted nearly a decade ago, it doesn't matter. At least a couple dB.
I’ve watched this video 4 times now… decisions decisions
The SCL-2 has 3 8” drivers ;)
Yea, but I’d like to see 4 of them. LOL.
Maybe I can get the SCL-2 for future review.
@@ErinsAudioCorner I'll bring it up with John, maybe he would take one out of his wall. You also may be interested the new Studio 6 Series in wall coming soon.
Has Erin EVER said "this speaker satisfies my bass needs"???
Dutch & Dutch 8c. 👍
This in-wall speaker isn’t designed to go low so NBD. More and more, I find that passive speakers aren’t being designed to go low and rather assume the user will put that task on a subwoofer.
Just bugging about the svs prime center video here.......
What about it?
I'm confused. A passive low pass filter introduces phase shift. So why is there no visible interference between the low frequency and low/mid frequency woofers?
I'm pretty sure there should be lobing. It looks like a 2-way 'di-apolloito' arrangement to me. Can we confirm by looking at the xover?
Look at the vertical measurement.
@@ErinsAudioCorner Hmm... I'm wondering if the quoted 1.8khz xover is the lower woofer xover point. There seems to be something going on in the vertical directivity as high as 3-4khz.
Maybe LF Woofers drop out at 1.8khz / compression driver kicks in... while the LF/mid keeps going until 3.5khz?
Struggling to fit the data with my understanding!
@@ErinsAudioCornerP.S. I love what you are doing providing good data for all of us. Can I support you without giving Patreon a cut? Direct PayPal maybe?
NVM I found it on your website! Set up $5/month
Too expensive
this speaker doesn't excite me. bad top end, no backer boxes, some weird distortion, can't use a grill, no thanks.
You should occasionally make a positive comment in there so you aren't so predictable 🤣😭
@@keepingupwiththejones2933 I make positive comments all the time.
@@commanderrussels2612 I must only have read the negative ones😅😭. My bad maybe you could bookend your negative ones with something about how amazing Erin is for the community ❤
@@commanderrussels2612 what speaker do you recommend in this price range?