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Executive System like JVC EX-A1

I was in an audio store recently and heard an executive system that sounded surprisingly good: it was the JVC EX-A1. It has a price to match, I think $550 list. It's the one with wooden speaker enclosures and also wooden diaphram in the speaker, very unusual. While most small systems sound, to my ear, pretty unpleasant, this one sounded very articulate and clean, even a little warm.

I'm wondering if anyone has extensive experience with this unit, or has found a similar sized executive system that they are very impressed with in terms of audio quality?

Thanks,
Art
artmaltman

Showing 2 responses by artmaltman

artmaltman OP
769 posts
 
Well, my curiousity has overwhelmed me. And I'm figuring that no in store demo will replace a home trial. How many pieces of gear have I loved at home but hated in the store, or visa versa...

And some pieces that I love have had the stupidest marketing gimmicks....

I found one at a good price, minimal risk : - )

I'm gonna do my break-in process on the speakers (even the greatest speakers without adequate breakin always sound thin to my ear), and I'll add isolation, proper power strip, etc. And my Rel Strata III sub : - o

If this JVC can sing at all, I'm gonna find out.

Art

ps: What, are you hinting that having a driver made of "sake soaked wood" is not obviously a major technical breakthrough! (Or perhaps it's the listener that needs to be "sake-soaked". Will let you know : - )
artmaltman OP
769 posts
 
Well I am puzzled indeed. I played this unit out of the box for around an hour, and I found a complex mix of characteristics. The midrange and bass and overall spaciousness of the sound were exceptional for it's size, but the treble and perhaps upper midrange were extremely harsh and extremely un-natural. (Is this what you mean by "noisy"?)

I did not enjoy the sound of this piece at all.

As for why it sounded great to me in the store, well, it could indeed be that they were demonstrating it with a cd that lacks treble information. I did not pay attention alas. When I played such a cd in my home I was mostly satisfied with the unit.

I know that I could try to break it in, and experiment with different speaker cables, but I've done this with a LOT of gear and I feel I have some sense of how much change one can expect. And, I don't have that level of commitment to this piece.

In retrospect, I think that overall naturalness is the reason that high end amp manufacturers avoid feedback; perhaps I should have been skeptical of the amp given it's bragging in the literature about high use of feedback.

I am returning it, at a loss of round trip shipping.

BTW, I did my testing with cds only, I did not try DVD's or DVD-A for example. Since my intended purpose is largely cd's I tested it for my own purposes.

And it does seem to me that you would do substantially better in sound quality per dollar by putting together an inexpensive system piece by piece.

Sigh!
Art
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