Jamo Concert C 80 Series Home Theater Speaker System Page 3

Kong is also an object lesson in why you still need a subwoofer, even with a pair of main speakers whose response is solid to 40 Hz or so. Sure, the C 807s reasonably conveyed the film's many bass effects and provided satisfying sound from most music. But when I went back and re-auditioned the same sequences with the C 80 SUB in the mix, what a difference! The large, barrel-sided Jamo dual-10-inch sub kicked out plenty of true bottom on material like the sonically powerful but painfully CGI-looking dino-bowling sequence. Dialing in a touch of its Boundary Control (this flattens the typical subwoofer response-peak, at the cost of a bit of ultimate output) audibly increased bottom-octave solidity.

The Jamo sub showed real guts, but it couldn't quite equal my everyday sub, a high-powered single-12 about twice the price, which produced just a little more solidity in the lowest octave at even moderate levels. The C 80 SUB also revealed its limit with some modest dull clattering perhaps 6 dB earlier than did the bigger sub (despite its Motional Feedback technology, which Jamo pegs as helping to control cone movement). Still, the SUB has plenty of whomp for most needs; only if you demand near-cinema-reference levels in a room approaching 3,000 cubic feet would I expect you to feel the need for more woof. The Jamo excelled at musical bass as well, adding a last bit of realism to jazz standup bass, which had already impressed me via the 807s alone.

BOTTOM LINE In a crowded field, this Jamo Concert C 80 Series home theater speaker system stands up as another very musical, dynamically able, highly pleasing option, one with more going for it than mere Danish-modern looks. There's no shortage of $4K, tower-based systems out there: Many are strong performers; some give you real wood finish, but with plainer design; others offer smaller subs or simpler surrounds. And, of course, performance varies widely. You pick your poison. But with its strong subwoofer, well-done dipole surrounds, and overall musicality, Jamo's example suggests that we owe it to ourselves, when searching this field, to reconnoiter it thoroughly.

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