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REVIEW: JMLab Chorus 706S Speakers

24.18.74.199


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Model: Chorus 706S
Category: Speakers
Suggested Retail Price: $450
Description: two way stand mount
Manufacturer URL: JMLab
Model Picture: View

Review by TopPop ( A ) on May 27, 2006 at 23:56:31
IP Address: 24.18.74.199
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for the Chorus 706S


Seeing as how I just bought these speakers yesterday, and have only spent about the last 3 hours listening, this review is based off of initial impressions. However, I will soon be changing my speaker cables, as well as moving the system to a new room, and filling my (new) speaker stands with sand after the move. All of this will change the sound of my system to some extent, and I plan to later post a follow-up review of these speakers because of this. It would be nice to have comparisons.

(Even though I have not spent much time listening, these were a dealer demo, and should have been partially burned-in when I purchased them.)
On to the review!**

I think that speakers are much like women (or men , for you women), in that there is ALWAYS a first impression to be had based solely on looks. Sometimes there is much to be found behind the physical appearance, sometimes there isn't. Sometimes looks can be deceiving, sometimes they reveal a welcomed suprise. Regardless, I always find myself looking at a speaker first, to see if it pleases me, aesthetically. Aesthetics are not that important to me, but it is nice, even desirable, to have a speaker that looks , as well as sounds good. The 706s fulfill this desire. The build quality is of a level which is quite hard to find at this price point. Very sturdy, very attractive. Very nice wood veneer (I have the 'Calvados' finish). High quality binding posts (biwire/biamp capable) allow for all types of wire hookup, including bare. Very inert cabinet; hardly any cabinet vibration. 6.5" Polyglass mid-bass driver, 1" inverted-dome metal tweeter. One of the nice things about JMlab is that all of their drivers are manufactured in their factory in Saint Etienne, France, and not contracted out to another country. This allows them to design each and every driver based on its sonic properties within a specific enclosure, and change the driver design immediately if the sound is not quite right. I would imagine that this raises QC a bit, too!

Okay, so the 706s look good, but how do they sound ? Well, I'll start with the quality that most impressed me about these speakers: they are completely non-fatiguing! Even beyond a 'normal' level of non-fatigue, these speakers are what I would describe as comfortable . I can only really illustrate the feeling with a specific analogy that came to my mind as I was listening tonight. A couple of years ago, while I was studying in France, I bought a pair of leather sandals. It took a long while for them to break in, and for the first few weeks, I didn't like wearing them at all: they were uncomfortable, they rubbed hard on the top of my feet, they caused chaffing, etc. However, now that they are well broken-in, they are the most comfortable footwear I have ever owned! That's the kind of 'comfortable' these speakers are: they just plain feel good . However, I do not consider this non-fatiguing presentation to be given at the expense of detail and treble extension. On the contrary: these speakers are very detailed, with much information in the upper registers, yet are still very 'listenable'

The soundstage is quite impressive. The width is, at least, the distance of the speakers, but more like 1.5 times the distance. Nice depth, with certain vocalists (recording dependent) ever-so-slightly foward from the plane of the drivers. Very accurate imaging; not the best I have heard, but extremely good, nonetheless. I can not detect any 'chestiness' with female vocals, but rather a very pleasant breathiness, with lots of air. There seems to be a slight peak in the lower midrange, but this could be the fact that I have yet to fill my new metal stands with sand. Bass is not the tightest, nor the deepest, that I have heard in a standmount, but it is very relaxing and easy to listen to.

The overall sound is very involving/engaging. So much so, that I rarely ever found myself reaching for the remote to skip through songs that I normally don't find to be my cup of tea. Nor did I have the urge to skip directly to songs which were the best recorded, just to see what the system can do. For that matter, I didn't even have the desire to sit forward anymore, to stay in the sweetspot, with my head as far as I could get it from the back wall, in order to achieve the best imaging that I could get from the system. No; instead I just wanted to sit in the most comfortable position and... listen ! What a novel concept! On that note, however, I did find that, to aquire the best imaging/soundstage, it was best to sit slightly off the vertical axis, with the speakers toed in such a way as to converge just behind the head.

All in all, a very open, spacious speaker, one which would probably be best suited for acoustic guitar, jazz, classical (unless you need to have a completely accurate speaker- these are slightly on the warmish side of neutral), and folk/pop. Easy to drive 8 ohm load, 4 ohm (??) minimum. 80 watt handling: perfect for my 50 watt NAD amp. If you may permit me to do so, I will use one more corny analogy to describe the sound of these speakers. Many 'engaging' speakers that I have listened to involve the listener by bring the music foward to meet them. However, these speakers seem to allow you to 'look into' the music by moving yourself forward into it . A very subtle difference, one which is hard to describe.

Highly recommended. I am very happy with these puppies!

**It should be important to note that my previous reference speakers were B&W DM303s. Keep their sound in mind for the review, as they have been my only real frame of reference for any meaningful period of time.


Product Weakness: Not the tightest, deepest bass you can experience at this price (if that happens to be important to you)
Product Strengths: Open sound, non-fatiguing, very detailed and lively (yet relaxing)


Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier: NAD C320BEE
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): Bottlehead Foreplay II
Sources (CDP/Turntable): Rotel RCD-970bx
Speakers: Focal.JMlab Chorus 706s
Cables/Interconnects: DIY solid siver ICs, twisted 12 awg solid core copper supply wire (speaker cable)
Music Used (Genre/Selections): jazz, classical, soft rock, acoustic guitar, blues
Time Period/Length of Audition: About 3 hours
Other (Power Conditioner etc.): Modified OneAC unit for amp and preamp, VansEvers Model 12 for CDP
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner




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Topic - REVIEW: JMLab Chorus 706S Speakers - TopPop 23:56:31 05/27/06 ( 8)