JBL Speakers K vs. D

[louderock]

I have 2 JBL K110 speakers. How would these compare to a D110? What's the difference between the D and K series?

[johnzias]

I don't know technically, but in my experience, the D's sound better!

[BluesForDan]

I think the Ks have much bigger voice coils than the Ds, and could handle more power.

Yes, the Ds sound great, until they blow up. Reconed properly, they can still sound great, until the next time they self-destruct. Alas, the factory recone kits are scarcer than hens' teeth, and worth their weight in gold. Weber can recone them, but they're not the factory kits.

Not that the Ks won't sound good, but they're not the same as the Ds The classic sounds that put JBL on the sonic map were the Ds.

[drbob1]

Aren't the Ds Alnico? And the Ks are ceramic. That should make them higher power, less sensitive and less compressed when pushed hard. Didn't the Ks come along right after the Es which are also ceramic, higher powered but more similar to a D in sound...

[bosstone]

The D and the K 120 are both AlNiCo. The E120s are ceramic. The D120 are the best sounding of the lot. K's are second best and do handle about twice the power (about 125 or so). Be careful if you go to recone a D120 because as BluesForDan said, those original cone kits are very rare and I have had two of the what many people feel are some of the best reconers tell me that they used the original parts and when I pressed them they admitted that they actually used K120 kits. Both or these shops were official JBL repair stations and were going to charge me over $200.00 to recone each speaker.

The JBL D131 seem to be relatively unknown. If anything, they are probably even better than D120s. Some people think that they are 15" speakers because the D130 is a 15" speaker but they are 12" speakers and look almost identical to the D120. I heard that they have an even tighter voice coil but might be rated at only about 50 watts. I can't find any specs on them. Sometimes you see them go for a lot less than D120s.

After well over a year of looking for a pair of original JBL D120s, I found someone with one D120 and one D131 and he sold them both to me for $175.00 I was jazzed. I had them face down in my car and someone at work went to help me put some things in the car and before I could yell stop, he picked up the D131 and put his fingers completely through the cone. Oh well, I'm more of a Rola Celestion G12-65 guy anyway. No, I'm not crying...something just flew in my eye...yah, thats it...something just flew in my eye.

[devbro]

Originally Posted by bosstone

The D and the K 120 are both AlNiCo. The E120s are ceramic. The D120 are the best sounding of the lot. K's are second best and do handle about twice the power (about 125 or so). Be careful if you go to recone a D120 because as BluesForDan said, those original cone kits are very rare and I have had two of the what many people feel are some of the best reconers tell me that they used the original parts and when I pressed them they admitted that they actually used K120 kits. Both or these shops were official JBL repair stations and were going to charge me over $200.00 to recone each speaker.

The JBL D131 seem to be relatively unknown. If anything, they are probably even better than D120s. Some people think that they are 15" speakers because the D130 is a 15" speaker but they are 12" speakers and look almost identical to the D120. I heard that they have an even tighter voice coil but might be rated at only about 50 watts. I can't find any specs on them. Sometimes you see them go for a lot less than D120s.

After well over a year of looking for a pair of original JBL D120s, I found someone with one D120 and one D131 and he sold them both to me for $175.00 I was jazzed. I had them face down in my car and someone at work went to help me put some things in the car and before I could yell stop, he picked up the D131 and put his fingers completely through the cone. Oh well, I'm more of a Rola Celestion G12-65 guy anyway. No, I'm not crying...something just flew in my eye...yah, thats it...something just flew in my eye.

Isn't the D131 16 ohms? I've got a pair of D120's in a 67 twin and they sound unbelievable.

[bosstone]

As far as I know, they were available both ways but I can't say for sure. I have had two D130s that said 16 ohms and actually checked out at about 6.8, if I remember correctly. I know they read less than 8 ohms. I hear that this is not unusual. Another thing to know about JBLs is that the their "+" and (-) markings are done in the reverse of everyone else's. It doesn't matter if you are using only one speaker, which way you wire it or if all the speakers are JBL put they will be in "reverse polarity" if mixed with other brands of speakers and have to have the wires reversed.

[devbro]

I wonder how many people hook them up backwards out of phase

[TYY]

D&K series were both alnico, same voice coil size. The difference is in the cone/surround design. The D had a one-piece all paper cone/surround. The K went to a treated cloth surround.

[mad dog]

Wow Boss. I woulda been crying and screaming. Did you drive over his foot on the way out??

[bosstone]

He is a good guy and was just trying to help. I guess it just wasn't meant to be.

[drbob1]

I've got a pair of D131s that have voice coil rubs. Anybody got any idea how they would sound with the K120 recone kits (since, last I heard NO ONE has the D120 kits any more)? They seem more nasal and brighter than the D130s I've got (the only JBL alnicos I've currently got) so I wasn't sure if it was the rub or the basic speaker that was the problem...

[bosstone]

I would get in touch with Weber. They don't have the original cones but do a great job with what they use and are very knowledgeable about JBLs. It is possible that Neils Speaker Repair in Sacramento might still have some original cone kits.

[sfarnell]

The D120 is my favorite speaker of all time. It was the first JBL specifically made for musical instruments. The D131 predated the D120 and was made for hi-fi stereo applications.

I've had D120s reconed with a JBL kit and some with just OEM parts. The recone with the JBL kit sounds slightly warmer but not by much. I had A Brown Soun recone a D120 with a JBL kit and I assumed that it was a D120 kit, not a K120 kit; maybe I was wrong. It cost $210. A recone by Weber is significantly less expensive.

[bosstone]

The D120 was also designed to me a high end home stereo and theater speaker and both speakers are great, in fact they are almost identical.

If you got it done at A Brown Soun, (within the last two years) unless they mysteriously came up with NOS, OEM cone kits, you got K120 kits. Even if you send your speakers directly to JBL and tell them you want your D120s reconed, if you press them, they will tell you they don't have the original kits. They and most of their authorized repair centers charge over $200.00 to sell you K120 recones for your D120s. I have never heard a D120 with a K120 kit but I have heard from a few people say they are not as good. My main point is that you should be aware of what you are getting before plunking down the money.