great price drop.
downside: can only work with JBL link soundbar.
Curious to hear if is there any way to hack to plug in line in cable.
edit: wireless connection only. According to JBL website can only work with JBL LINK soundbars (only pair one sub), not any JBL soundbar or other brand soundbar.
nope, got one for myself for future hack.
Future hack a.k.a. buy first find a use for it later
Been searching constantly for a good sub deal and everything is wireless or paired to a soundbar :/.
might want to check out Voll's sub, on ebay
Anyone know if it's wireless only, or if it can be connected via aux?
I'd actually prefer not having bluetooth running all the time, even if that is the norm nowadays.
Why's that?
Signal interference. And just too many devices sending wireless signals all over the home. EMF radiation partly concern, even if risk is unproven.
Cords aesthetics don't bother me much, I'm old fashioned and the wolfer would go right underneath the TV anyway.
The entire JBL link soundbar and sub were $499 at JB last weekend for the combo
Dunno if it's the same combo but there's a combo on catch for $425 atm as well.
Mad! I'm gonna crack it open and hack it
Haha, did you actually get one?
https://www.harveynorman.com.au/jbl-link-bar-smart-soundbar-…
Here sound bar $299, total $399, $100 cheaper then JB.
Nice one, good first comment
It's gone up.in price, anyone have a docket for price match?
There was a similar offer for Samsung Subwoofer
https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/576397
However, it only works with soundbar+, 2017 models. These can only be found in the US used, at the moment. People who got it for 50$ are struggling to sell it on Gumtree.
Samsung owns AKG and JBL!
I saw a couple of sellers trying to sell it straight after buying it for $300-400.
a lot of people complaint the SWA-W700 no bass at all :)
Don't forget about the "Harvey Norman Tax" people , Gerry Harvey was the bastard that made sure we pay extra GST on items imported online under $1000
plus digital products such as movie streaming, e-books, apps and games and services such as architectural and legal services. Our costs go up as a consumer and he gets his pockets inflated with cash.
He won't ever be getting a single cent from me ever again.
See Here
Just ask JB-HI-FI to Price Match Harvey Norman or Domayne (which Harvey also Owns) , its the exact same model #4298543 that JB is asking $499 for (bundled) but you don't have to bundle it. just grab the wireless speaker from JBL as part of this deal then grab the soundbar separately from JB or even The Goodguys (which JB-Hi-Fi own)
What always frustrated me about his argument that he couldn't compete because he had to charge GST was that there was never mention the consumer was paying postage and that that kind of evened things out.
I agree, but the Universal Postal Union makes this a little more complicated, as it can sometimes cost less for a seller in China to ship an item to Australia than shipping the same item within Australia.
Maybe Gerry should have been fighting that instead!
Just as an addon , i went into JB-Hi-Fi this morning and they price matched harvey norman (after the guy checked with the manager cause apparently anything more then 50% off their price needs authorization LOL)
Anyway took it home set it up , i would rate it a solid 5/10 just the soundbar itself…i am awaiting delivery of the wireless speaker but after seeing one in-store its actually quite large in person (which is probably why they wanna charge $400 for it) i don't doubt it will offer a better experience.
Will update this post once i have it all set-up. but so far for the $299 i spent just on the soundbar itself i can't complain.
Is there such a thing as a solid 5/10? Is the sound quality lacking? does it get loud and does it distort when it does? Was connectivity easy?
@Project A: definitely solid 5/10
i felt the sound quality was ok
no distortion when it gets loud (max volume)
connectivity was extremely easy , literally plug the power in connect the cable switch the input done worked right out of the box.
i feel where its major drawbacks are at the moment is lack of depth in a bigger room but for a small room it should be more then enough , i hope when i receive the wireless speaker it will complete the depth aspect for myself.
it is currently in a living room at the moment so a larger then standard space so it is to be expected.
I make it a point never to buy anything from Hardly Normal… they never have any good prices anyways.
Would I be able to pair this with JBL link with my JBL Boom Box bluetooth speaker?
Probably not, JBL have used a few different types of speaker-link protocols. The boombox doesn't pair with the boombox 2. Check what type of link protocol each device is using. - PartyBoost+, Connect+ and Connect, are some of the JBL link protocols that aren't compatible with eachother. .. there are more… :(
Pity this can't be hooked up via XLR, to be honest. Would be a good alternative to use for mixing with my JBL LSR305s, if it had a 80Hz crosstalk. Probably isn't THAT far off the quality of the LSR310 sub.
crossover*
Whoops, thanks
Bro is this sub hectic?!?!?!
Locked to only work with certain JBL devices.
JBL boombox work with this?
Dunno I just had quick look the product page's faq.
Just got one, delivery is free to mel.
Everything's hackable :) Find the wireless receivers link to the power amp stage and bingo, job done. Absolute worst case scenario is to just keep the box & driver and install a simple plate Amp & Crossover. Whether that's worthwhile is up to you :)
I've had ten in my cart since seeing this deal but just can't quite commit. Would be great to hack, combine with a bulk quantity of small, decent bookshelf speakers I have and pass them onto friends & family as gifts… but I dunno. Not sure I want the hassle but on the flipside the hack is probably very, very simple. Damn you OzBargain ;)
Similar JBL Sub teardown seen here and as you can see the small wireless receiver board is pretty basic so it probably wouldn't be a difficult mod. Hmmm.
Update: Nah, decided not to bother. All good. Hope those who grab one are happy!
Yeah that white loom looks the go. Oh so tempting to experiment.
Still looking for a 55" TV, but the Sound bar and sub sorted! Thanks guys!
same!
I've got this sub with a JBL soundbar and it does a very good job. Excellent bass (sometimes too much) for a home thearter
Is the 10" woofer worth the $100?
Say, if I were to remove the inbuilt plate amp and replace it with some other plate amp for line in, which means I am only using the cabinet and the woofer. The new plate amp could cost around $200-$300 and this project could end up being $400-$500 in total.
Or I could build a new cabinet and steal the woofer from this sub. So, basically I am buying the woofer, is it worth $100?
you may be overpaying for that plate amp…
and you could most likely re-use the existing amp, just excise the proprietary wireless receiver.
Hmm… Yeah, I didn't even think about the proprietary wireless receiver.
The plate amp, I was thinking is https://www.diyclassd.com/product/fusionamp-fa251/155. That's why the cost.
That's a great amp, but not exactly what I'd go for when hunting/hacking an ultra budget sub (considering most subs in Aus are ~$400-$1000).
Here's something more suitable for this scenario and budget, IMO.
@xrailgun: Couldn't agree more with you xrailgun. That TPA3116 Plate Amp (with or without BT) would work stupidly well in this Sub so for only $50 and the clever use of an old Laptop Power Supply a pretty decent little 2.1 system could be created with only basic skills to boot.
Yeah bluehalk, that Plate Amp is seriously over-the-top for this application. Stick with the cheapie recommended by xrailgun below and I can guarantee you'll be impressed! A lot of this cheap stuff offers incredible bang-for-buck.
@SteveAndBelle: Yes, you are right. That Hypex plate amp is bit over the top for this.
Given that my fronts go down to 28hz, adding this sub in the mix will not benefit much. I think, I need to get 12" or 15" sub driver and one of the hypex plate amp.
But for $150-200 with this JBL sub and one of those cheap linked plate amp would make a really good sub.
@bluehalk: Erm yeah… this little Sub can't compete with mains that can go down to 28Hz… but can they really? What are the speakers? They must be serious units if they can genuinely & effectively reach 28!
@SteveAndBelle: Oh! I have Aussie made Ascension speakers (Adelaide Speakers) model Summoner 863SQTL and matching centre speaker.
https://www.adelaidespeakers.com/summoner-floorstanders.html
Currently, I have a Martin Logan dynamo 600x subwoofer, and many times I have tested the setup with the Sub on and off and leaving the fronts as full-range and sub to handle the bass for remaining channels is the best so far. Basically, the bass outputs from these speakers is better than dedicated sub.
I also have Martin Logan Motion 40s speaker in stereo room but much prefer the Ascension speakers over that. They are just awesome, I have tried many speakers before settling on these ones. And yes, these do go down to 25hz in room, tested with REW and MiniDSP MIC a while back.
I have been thinking about adding a larger sub, that's why the initial interest.
@bluehalk: Very very nice! I haven't heard them myself but they look as though they're definitely capable so I think you're doing the right thing in feeding them full-range and keeping the Sub purely to reinforce the other channels. You'll definitely need to be looking at a powerful 12" or 15" Sub for a worthwhile improvement. This little JBL is basically a 'toy' in comparison to the rest of your gear. Not saying it wouldn't sound good but yeah you're pretty much a good few levels up from this calibre already.
@SteveAndBelle: Yes, they really are good speakers with a good setup being powered by Purifi power amp (Another local aussie made quality product https://www.marchaudio.net.au/product-page/p452-stereo-power…), while rest of the speakers in setup are powered by Anthem power amps.
In any case, if anyone is wondering, this thread would be like user reviews for Adelaide speakers.
https://www.stereo.net.au/forums/topic/45349-ascension-audio…
By the way, just pointing out that, I am in no way associated to this business, just a happy customer for locally aussie made quality product.
@bluehalk: that's super sick, never knew there were such talented local speaker makers! And incredibly affordable for what they are… I would probably grab subs from them too in your situation. what are you even doing looking at these budget mass produced speakers?!
@xrailgun: haha… I know. When someone says a subwoofer for $100, the ozbargainer in me gets very excited and starts imagining the use of it.
One of those thing. Buy now and find a use later.
Yes, I think I will get a new sub from him as well.
** Meant to reply to previous post **
Hey thanks for the link and tips.
I bought the sub and then the link bar. Picking up bar tomorrow and sub has been posted. I'll let you know what I rekon when it's set up.
Couldn't help myself. 😬
Got the sub and the link bar from JB epping. Staff were kind enough to price match jbl and harvey norman so got it for $399
But the sub was not as exciting as i hoped it would be, bass is little low and i had to keep the sub next to my couch to feel it, link bar was really good gets loud enough for your neighbours to complain and doesn’t distort but not satisfied with the sub. If anyone knows how to make the sub more powerful please let me knowand i have increased the base level to 6 (highest found from settings)
It's wireless for a very good reason… try putting it in the corner of the room
Good idea. This might amplify the bass
have not received the sub yet from jbl so can't comment yet. surprised you liked the link bar given the online reviews are pretty bad and the drivers are tiny. how big is the room you using for this setup?
That's the beauty of life, and music. Everyone likes something different. I love my Jensen speakers but others would say they're crap lol :-)
Yes the vocals get pretty loud and surprisingly doesn’t distort at highest volume for it’s price and my living room is 5*9 m
Yay or nay? Is the sub Any good?
Has anyone had a chance to try it out yet? Any good?
Received mine today and although I don't have a JBL Soundbar I'll never know what they actually sound like out-of-the-box however here's what I found inside…
Texas Instruments TAS5614LA which is a pure PWM Digital Power Amplifier, so no analogue input capabilities at all. That's driven by a proprietary JBL IC (TAS5534) which is fed a digital stream by the Bluetooth module so yeah, these things are 100% digital all the way… except for the output to the driver itself of course. I don't have my workshop space yet however once I do I'd like to feed the 5614 a PWM signal and see what it does 'as is' however the associated extra stuff required to allow an analogue line-level signal to be used and properly controlled (at least a crossover & level control) would quickly add up to about the same as a mini plate amp anyway so I'd say gutting & replacing is going to be the cheapest & simplest way forward.
The good-ish news is that they come with a well built, fairly beefy looking 34V SMPS so that could easily be pressed into service to power a decent amp module. Hmmm, that's really all I can do until I get my workshop space anyway. Going by the rest of it though… for $100 these represent excellent value for money as the cabinet, port and driver alone would be worth more than that to buy & DIY!
thanks for the details, I got mine as well. Have not opened the box yet, but was thinking of connecting the cone to another amp, definitely with taking the benefit of having 34V SMPS.
Had checked few online resources for interest, these might help, will add more if I can find:
https://www.ti.com/lit/df/slar143/slar143.pdf?ts=16081091765… Schematic for TAS5634 Evaluation Module (not TAS5534 but still useful)
https://www.ti.com/lit/pdf/slas931 Datasheet for TAS5634 (not TAS5534 but still useful)
Guessing some discussion between TI and JBL engineers;
https://e2e.ti.com/support/audio/f/6/t/324345?TAS5534-Max-Vo…
https://e2e.ti.com/support/audio/f/6/t/702741
https://e2e.ti.com/support/audio/f/6/t/442659?TAS5534-38-SDO…
So what would it take to get this working from an analogue sub output ?
My gf will probably get my Marantz receiver when my new one arrives, I have some spare satellites but no sub.
Just replace the amp completely with an inexpensive plate amp… something like this 150W for about $80 shipped.
Ok i bought one of these too.
$100 for a sub + enclosure is too good.
I'm thinking a very very cheap way to fix this is to solder an RCA to the sub itself and get an external amp with a crossover…
https://www.ebay.com.au/i/133343891327?chn=ps&mkevt=1&mkcid=…
there's a lots cheaper than this.
I've gone with something very similar from AliExpress. I went with this more powerful version because it can handle up to 35-36V so I'm hoping to be able to utilise the 34V from the existing Power Supply in the Sub.
I'm also going to try a mini 2.1 Plate Amp (with bluetooth) as per xrailguns recommendation above. After doing my research I found this one to be the cheapest but of course neither Amp will arrive quickly… I'm expecting late Jan or even mid-late Feb.
Talked me into it. Tempted to go a second.
Yes.very very cheap way to go to a semi decent stereo subwoofer setup.
HOWEVER….
these exist:
https://djcity.com.au/product/skytronic-shfs08b-8-inch-activ…
https://djcity.com.au/product/skytronic-shfs10b-10-inch-hifi…
you're going to have to let the JBL sit anyway before you can get parts from china in Jan.
I'm a tad reticient to spent money on "30w amps" powered by a laptop charger made by NOBSOUND????
a plate amp that runs on 240v and fits exactly into that square hole and use those screw holes AND isnt too expensive would be the best bet!!!!
Talked me into swapping for one of the DJcity jobs
sorry man
Ok mine arrived too. Surprusing big and heavy, say just under 15kg so there's lot of fake MDF for your money.
Funnily enough there's a 3.5mm socket there that's marked "firmware upgrade".
Too bad you cant repurpose it for 3.5mm in.
IDEALLY you find a plate amp that's the exact same size of the square hole and discard the included unit.
ok the screw holes are pretty much 8" x 5.5", say 20cm x 14cm
plate hole size is 22cm x 16cm
In theory this is a good fit:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005001395587932.html?srcSns…
External dimensions: 200 mm * 145 mm * 53 mm thick
Opening size: 177mm125mm55mm
$45usd for the 80w
$60 for the 120w
$15 usd shipping
that's ok I guess?
or just buy the DJ city stuff!
wonder if it's price error?