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We thought it was just going to be bass, bass, bass but thankfully that is not the case. The bass is present, tangible and provides the fun factor but it doesn’t stop there. Instruments sound natural and there is enough speed to keep you listening. With the Cyrus there was enough control but it could certainly be better. In any case, you always have the urge to turn on the tap and put on all that rock music that sounds like nothing on most speakers. Surprisingly, like their smaller counterparts, they “disappear” very well. So music does not come from the speakers but is loose and 3D.Â
This creates a spacious soundstage with remarkable depth and where everything is in its correct place. That soundstage is a little less high than we are used to, this perhaps due to the lower positioning. Imaging is excellent. With two-part music, the vocalists are really separate. After a while you notice that this is also a particularly good speaker to listen to at low volume. It never gets sharp nor overly warm provided proper amplification. Of course, you can always tune it to your own taste
It is more noticeable and tangible than with smaller bookshelfs but provided proper placement, the speaker is quite balanced. You do not get the absolute coherence as on the Revels but we are talking about two totally different speakers here. You also immediately get a kind of live feel and The dynamic nature of the JBL 4312G GE creates a kind of live feel so this speaker presents excellently hard rock, solid classical music and jazz. There is high involvement and vocals sound real.
Listening
“Saturnz Return” by Goldie is a drum and bass classic with quite a few atmospheric tracks on it as well. There guest contributions from the likes of Noel Gallagher and David Bowie giving this album cult status. Just before we hooked up the JBLs, this was the last album on the Revels The JBL 4312G GE, unlike the Revels, is not a control freak and on some tracks we miss some control. Despite that big driver, this is not really a speaker for techno or house because then you want precision and punch.
Over to some pop music. “Ha Ha Heartbreak” by Warhaus, the solo project of Maarten Devoldere who we know mainly from Balthazar, is a wonderful album. Although solo doesn’t quite cover it because Devoldere is once again working with muse Sylvie Kreusch. We immediately get a kind of live feeling and instruments come through richer than on the neutral Revels. The bass drum is tight enough here, though, and after a few days we begin to get this speaker. This is not an accurate reproducer but one with passion and grinta.
The JBL 4312G GE is made for hard rock and all its derivatives. It comes through as it should. Raw and rancid. The latest Megadeth, “The Sick the Dying and the Dead,” sounds raw, dirty and cuts through marrow and bone. The guitar and drum solos rumble nicely. Volume knob up and rock on! It is clear that with this speaker, JBL is aiming at the listener who wants to have fun and who doesn’t care about all kinds of audiophile nonsense. Rock and Roll baby!
At the other end of the spectrum, though again with death and destruction, is “Death and the Maiden” by Franz Schubert. The allegro molto by the London Symphony Orchestra goes wonderfully well here. There is a lot of dynamics and The JBL 4312G GE is a dynamic speaker that switches effortlessly between quiet and loud pieces. You can hear an awful lot of detail from the hall, the audience and the orchestra, and when the music swells there is impact and baking drama
What about some more fragile work I hear you think? That’s just fine. Courtney Marie Andrews has written some exceptionally beautiful songs on “Loose Future” and although the bass drum on quite a few tracks is a bit softer than we are used to, it works. Courtney’s voice sounds realistic and the instrumentation blends nicely with the whole. Although the treble is at maximum there is never sharpness and s-sounds are not turned on. That means the JBL 4312G GE can also be a refined reproducer if needed
Jazz music also sounds excellent on the JBL 4312G GE. Trumpeter Red Rodney playing with his friends on “Borrowed Time” sounds sultry and lively. The JBL 4312G GE really, cliché danger, makes you feel as if you were present at the recording or performance. It’s a feeling rarely experienced. The trumpet sounds splashy, fast and the piano, not simple, also sounds true to life. And that via a stream on Qobuz. Special.
For whom
Not for purists because they want an accurate reproducer that transmits the signal as cleanly as possible. We see this speaker at its full potential with someone with a turntable who enjoys his favorite records every free moment. Sit back and enjoy. We can picture it that way. Or playing air guitar, of course you can do that too.
This is a speaker that goes back in time and embraces music. Inferior recordings are not mercilessly slashed and burned down and certain genres sound better than average as a result. On top of that, you can still tune the sound a bit to your own preference. No fuss. No fuss. Just good listening