Iain Churches wrote:


Yes I remember that too. Clever advertising, and
by all accounts successful. A lot of people bought
the JBL Century 100's for home use.


** That would have to be a lot of Americans who bought them.

Back in the early 70s, I worked briefly for a store in Sydney that sold electronic components, kits for magazine projects and a couple of speaker kits.

One of these happened to be the KEF kit 3 containing the drivers and crossover needed for a KEF Concerto, minus box. Particle board boxes were also available as pre-cut kits.

A built pair kits was on constant demo, A-B switched with a pair of JBL L100s with their bright orange front grilles - see pic:

http://product-images.highwire.com/8593684/2748-2.jpg

Despite a price difference of more than 2:1, the JBLs sounded very poor, " thick and coloured like tomato soup" was one comment and with remarkably little bass. The store sold many KEF kit 3s and no JBLs on the basis of that demo while I was there.

I bought a pair of KEF kit 3s then too, later improving them with rebuilt crossovers plus massively deadened the cabinets. Sold them a couple of years on at a small profit, after buying a second hand pair of ESL57s.

I kept them for nearly 30 years.


..... Phil