JBL-m9500
 

https://www.audioaficionado.org/pict...pictureid=5750

https://www.audioaficionado.org/pict...pictureid=5751

Lamm ML2.2 (18 Watt) monoblocks

I am fortunate to acquire a pair of JBL M9500 speakers in top condition. Originally intended as studio monitors, there are more of these in Japan than anywhere else and they rarely come up for sale anywhere. JBL produced a low quantity of them from 1993-1997; the M9500 was the JBL flagship model as part of their Professional Series. In 1994 a pair ran ~3650000 Yen.

The M9500 is an enhanced version of the JBL K2 S9500 in a larger industrial enclosure. Its size limited soffit mounting in studios and the speaker was actually more successful in the consumer market. It is a two-way design with dual 14" woofers (1400nd) over-under a bi-radial horn (475 nd). The woofer cabinets have different volumes. For JBL afficiandos, the cross-over, horn and enclosure were designed by Greg Timbers, with Doug Button developing the bass and Francher Murray high-frequency driver. The small boxes in the picture are the external cross-overs.

This particular pair has excellent provenance. They were owned by a JBL production manager. The woofers were re-coned at JBL by Greg Timbers who also hand applied the Aquaplas. Production run speakers came with a Nextel outer coating - a soft suede like finish which tended to deteriorate over time. This pair was never coated, surfaces are excellent.

Some specs:

2-Way, 3-Speaker, Bass Reflex System, Floor Type

For low band : 36 cm cone type (1400 nd) x2
For High Frequency : Horn Type (475 nd)
Frequency characteristic: 35 Hz to 20 kHz -6dB
Output sound pressure level: 96dB/2.83V/m
Nominal input impedance 4 Ω (when dedicated network is used)
Maximum allowable input 400W (i.e. C Shaped noise with dedicated network)
Crossover frequency 650Hz(-18dB/oct)

Speakers can be bi-wired, tri-wired and bi-amped.

Although they can handle hi-wattage amplification (max 400W), their efficiency aso accomodates low wattage amps. I am driving them with either my 110W Class A Lamm M1.2 amps or my 18 Watt Lamm ML2.2 SET amplifiers. The ML2.2 is my preferred pairing.

Most impressive. A 'collector' set of gear for a lifetime.

As you may have gathered from my Mahler thread, I love large scale orchestral music - symphonic music - from all ages and particularly from the late 19th Century through the 20th Century.

Here is a recording of the M9500s I made in my room with a phone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AbYMCAhyWyU

https://www.audioaficionado.org/pict...pictureid=5767

Shostakovich Sym. 8, Movement 3 (Allegro non troppo)
Haitink with Concertgebouw Orchestra
Vinyl: London Digital LDR 71121 also Decca SXDL 7621

This work was written in summer 1943. The Battle of Stalingrad took place 7/1942 - 2/1943, Hitler wanted to defeat the Russians in that area and seize the lucrative Caucasus oilfields. In terms of loss of life the cost wa extremely high on both sides with Soviet military casualties estimated near 1.1 million with 40,000 civilian deaths.

The Eighth had the nickname of the Stalingrad Symphony. The third movement can be interpreted as a battle or as East German director Kurt Sanderling wrote as "the crushing of the individual" by the Soviet system. It finally erupts into a "massive climax of self-destruction" ( That quote I got from Wikipedia.) Iirc, Shostakovich said he wrote it for or because of civilian suffering.

One might say this work is more about survival than victory. Because of that it was of little use by Soviet propagandists and was banned in Russia for several years by the Soviet regime, re-emerging in 1956.

To know Shostakovich's music is partly to know Soviet/Russian history

You probably want at least to use desktop speakers for this.

Thanks for sharing! :ok:

Thanks, Ivan, my pleasure.

Comments welcome all.

Here is another video of energetic music, this time from Georg Friedrich Handel's Messiah. This performance features The Academy of Ancient Music under the baton of Christopher Hogwood. Released in 1982, this is a box set of 3 LPs and booklet from L'Oiseau-Lyre - 189D. There are lots of versions of this work and this is my favorite. The musicians really work it right out of the gate -- you can sense their enthusiasm.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJ15SrTT4lY

You will want to hear this on desktop speakers or better. Phone listening doesn't represent the music well.

https://www.audioaficionado.org/pict...pictureid=5769

The video covers scenes 40-43 in Part II where-in rulers reject the Gospel yet in the end God triumphs. (Not religion here but description of the work.) Immediately after scene 43 we hear the most famous passage, the Hallelujah Chorus, which I did not include in the video.

40. Song (Bass): Why Do The Nations So Furiously Rage Together (David Thomas)
41. Chorus: Let Us Brake Their Bonds Asunder
42. Recitative (Tenor): He That Dwelleth In Heaven Shall Laugh Them To Scorn (Paul Elliott)
43. Song (Tenor): Thou Shalt Break Them With A Rod Of Iron (Paul Elliott)

Also featured elsewhere are soprano vocals from Emma Kirkby and Judith Nelson. Their voices are gorgeous.

Here is a video with the JBL M9500s of what may be the most famous organ work in the classical repertoire.

https://youtu.be/BgZxzD9Ea2Y


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Johan Sebstian Bach's Tocatta & Fugue in D Minor, BMV 565
Michael Murray
Telarc Vinyl: DG-10088. Released in 1983

This work was written sometime between 1704-1750s. It was made popular in the 20th Century thanks to the 1940 soundtrack for Disney's Fantasia via Stokowsiki's orchestral transcription.

The lowest note is at 16Hz, a low C pedal note that requires a 32-foot pipe to produce. The spec'd range for the M9500s is 35Hz - 20kHz. Most of us cannot hear below 20Hz on a good day. You probably won't hear the fundamental. The sound from musical instruments are not pure sine waves. What you will hear are the higher overtones (2X, 3X, 4X, etc.) from that note. You may feel the lows through your bones - we use our whole bodies, to hear, not just our ears. Gauge for yourself how well the speakers do.

Again, desktop speakers or better are suggested for listening. A phone won't do justice to the music. Comments welcome.

Great sounding videos, Tim. Lots of power and energy comes through and I get a real sense of what your wonderful system must sound like in the room. Congratulations on your new speakers. I heard them in a different system, and they are truly special.

Tamer, quirky yet delightful...

Here is a sampling of Dumbarton Oaks a Concerto in E-flat from a compilation of smaller pieces by Igor Stravinsky, featuring the English Chamber Orchestra with Colin Davis conducting.

This 1938 work was written on commission from a wealthy diplomat for his Georgetown, District of Columbia estate of the same name.

The recording covers the final 2 of 3 movements. It is 'modern' but kinda grows on you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ioyWc2tL1G4

Finzi my aging audio cat makes a brief appearance to clean his paws.
cats ...

https://www.audioaficionado.org/pict...pictureid=5771

L'Oiseau-Lyre SOL 60050, 1962

After Bach organ music and big chorus with Handel, after Stravinsky and Shostakovich, I thought I'd post something smaller, perhaps something more traditional in the Classical world. So here's a string quartet. 2 violins, 1 viola, 1 cello.

It's Beethoven but it is not 'traditional Beethoven.' This is music he was afraid to publish or have performed because he thought his friends would not understand it -- and they didn't. To me this is music from the future from 1826 when he wrote it, among his final works before his death. Having heard it, Schubert supposedly said: "After this, what is left for us to write?" Along with B's Opus 127 it has a "grandeur ... which no words can express. They seem to me to stand ... on the extreme boundary of all that has hitherto been attained by human art and imagination." (ref) This could easily be 20th Century music.

Here's the video: https://youtu.be/Saee3Kc8dQA

This is by the Végh Quartet, Hungarians, on the Valois label: cmb 83, recorded 1972-74. Founded by Sandor Végh in 1940. It is part of a 10-LP box set of Beethoven's late string quartets. I won't say it is the best because there are a few other fine recordings of these works, but it is one of the best. The box set in vinyl is still available and I think it is on CD as well. The works also can be purchased individually.

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Végh Quartet, Valois cmb 83
Beethoven
Quartet No. 14
Opus 131
V.Presto
VI. Adagio Quasi Un Poco Andante (~5:43)
VII. Allegro (~7:52)

Someone wanted to hear something modern. I don't generally listen to pop but here is rather unique offering.
Three tunes from the two-person group Musica Nuda.

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Double bassist Ferrucio Spinetti and soprano Petra Magoni team up on their LP Musica Nuda [Fonè ‎– 8012871010615 ] to offer jazzy covers of popular songs sung in English and Italian. Given the instrumentation, the music is very sparse and the combination of different tonalities is, well, different. The recording thrusts at you, and the JBL Lamm system conveys its raw immediacy and naturalness with open-eared clarity.

Magoni’s voice is raucous and rangy and Spinetti’s classical training belies an inventive spontaneity that runs all over the octaves. Several tunes, such as the group’s covers of "Roxanne" and "Eleanor Rigby," feature Spinetti’s martelé technique of punching or hammering a string with his bow. Near the end of "Guarda che Luna," Ms. Magoni demonstrates incredible breath control as her voice jumps octaves instantly, pulling notes into the ether for what seemed like eternity.

Here are Eleanor Rigby, Roxanne and Guarda che Luna.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fkd72jPiRn4

Back to big classical...

Here is one of the most famous symphonies in the classical world, Beethoven's 5th Symphony, Opus 67 in C-minor. Performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under the iron fist of Hungarian-American conductor Fritz Reiner. This recording was made in August 1959 - a time when the Chicago orchestra was at its peak and had what was likely the best collection of horn players in the world.

The video here is from an original RCA Shaded Dog, (LSC-2343). The LP was made in Chicago's Orchestra Hall, engineered by Lewis Layton and produced by Richard Mohr.

The opening movement is dramatic and often characterized as "Fate knocking at the door.." The video covers the entire 1st Movement.

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Video: https://youtu.be/NvWjnF7AuFM

Belated congratulations! From the Mahler 2, Beethoven 5, and Shostakovich 8 videos, it is clear that the system sounds like it truly puts you into the performance physically and emotionally. I could not play the Bach organ video...YT states it is "private".

Thank you very much for your kind remarks. I'm happy you can get a sense of that from the youtube video. The in-room experience is compelling. My goal is large orchestral which I personally consider among the most challenging full-range music for a home stereo. Try the Bach Toccata & Fugue again - if it still doesn't play for you, please send me a PM. I'm still new to the youtube video settings.

Very rarely do I listen to folk music but I bought this album a few years back and do enjoy the song writing.

The Harrow & the Harvest was released in 2011 by the songwriting team of Gillian Welch and Dave Rawlings. It was nominated for a Grammy in the Best Contemporary Folk Album category. On the Acony label: ACNY-1109. It is on digital as well.

A harrow is a farm implement for breaking up clods of dirt. Gillian Welch is from Manhatten New York.

The following selection, written by Welch, is pretty straightforward pickin' and strummin' acoustic music without post production artifice. The lyrics are different. Several cool songs on this album - check it out.

That's the Way that it Goes.

https://youtu.be/bZPaASAXY_k

https://www.audioaficionado.org/pict...pictureid=5818

Haven't made a post here for a while. A brief JBL foray outside my usual classical - got a couple of late '60s rockers for you recorded in my room with my phone. These sound a lot better than some contemporary rock I've heard, but that's just my preference. Great horns and bass - ha! - Wagner might have liked these.

Highly advisable to turn it up. ;-)

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Blood, Sweat & Tears: Spinning Wheel: https://youtu.be/f9FuvhFeiPQ?si=_WDxSM4Lixdvgsya
Columbia CS 9720

https://www.audioaficionado.org/pict...pictureid=5853

Cchicago II: 25 or 6 2 4 https://youtu.be/nvNWcBeWLyA?si=YShBMPugQOlN6j9U
Columbia KGP 24

Here is a classical music classic. Scheherazade with Fritz Reiner and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Composed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakoff in 1888 and inspired by the Tales of the Arabian Nights.

R-K wrote a brief introduction to the work:

The Sultan Schakhriar, convinced that all women are false and faithless, vowed to put to death each of his wives after the first nuptial night. But the Sultana Scheherazade saved her life by entertaining her lord with fascinating tales, told seriatim, for a thousand and one nights. The Sultan, consumed with curiosity, postponed from day to day the execution of his wife, and finally repudiated his bloody vow entirely. ref

Recorded with my phone in my room, here is the finale, part IV: Festival In Bagdad; The Sea; The Ship Goes To Pieces On A Rock Surmounted By A Bronze Warrior

https://youtu.be/lHSFS1Yh9R0?si=hD8rb6OkTcZ2U3Ra

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Here is Siegfried's Funeral March from the newly reissued box set (3 LPs) "Klemperer Conducts Wagner" on Warner Classics (5419757987). It's nice to have this music on new clean Lps. Recorded with my phone in my listening room.

https://i.discogs.com/ONN0ew1bewi91S...wNy5qcGVn.jpeg

As the final piece in Wagner's epic Ring Cycle, Götterdämmerung (Ragnorak) is a depiction of the burning, flooding, and renewal of the world. It's gravitas music meant for volume, and I use it to assess my room’s acoustic integrity while listening for congestion or distortion.

Wagner’s orchestration for Siegfried's Funeral March in Götterdämmerung includes: three tenor trombones, one bass trombone, four Wagner tubas, one contrabass tuba, three trumpets, one bass trumpet, and four horns. There are also 2 harps - in my room, in the full face of it all, the harps come through. What you will hear depends on your playback -- phones and laptop speakers won't give you the experience.

Let's just call this what it is: power music. Some say Klemperer is the greatest Wagner conductor yet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iok5nJ0JKHQ

I made a few more videos ...

If you are a classical music lover, you probably know Jan Sibelius' Violin Concerto, and chances are you know it through Jascha Heifetz's magnificent Shaded Dog performance -- he is the Master.

And yet, there are others. Here is the 3rd Movement (finale) performed by Ida Haendel with Paavo Berglund and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra on EMI ASD 3199.

https://www.audioaficionado.org/pict...pictureid=5962

The video on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/zWTd7WNijfE?si=rGn85Xkp1JqPUs_u

Ida is very good!

Here is a recording from the recent Deutsche Grammophon 'The Original Source' series: Claudio Abbado and the Vienna Philharmonic performing Tchaikovsky's 4th Symphony. It was first released in 1976 and now receives the TOS treatment (DG 2530 651)

The video covers the 3rd Movement with a taste of the 4th. I have used this music as part of my standard reviewing repertoire for several years -- with its diverse instrumentation, broad palette of dynamics and tempos, it is my favorite Tchaikovsky Symphony. The Fourth Movement starts around 5:39; I faded it out but it continues to bring even more heat as it proceeds.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_jQE4SAw_U


https://i.discogs.com/0zKt-yixwgR887...0Mi5qcGVn.jpeg
The cover art is Kandinsky.

Gotta luv those Ruskies (at least most of the artists - Anna Netrebko has been banned from performing in Russia by Putin).
Here is my Kandinsky print from the MOMA show of the Bauhaus years in the early '80s. Prefer his work from that era, before the Bauhaus ran a foul of German politics and was closed in '33.

https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1713962544

Cool

DG often has great covers.