Testwinner

The demand for discreet sound solutions, with speakers integrated into the walls or ceilings of homes, is growing rapidly in Europe.

No surprise then that HemmaBio, the biggest-selling home theatre magazine in Scandinavia, recently decided to carry out a group test of eight in-wall home theatre loudspeaker packages. Brands represented were Boston Acoustics, Bowers & Wilkins, Jamo, JBL, KEF, Monitor Audio, Preference Audio and Sonance.

The packages ranged in price from EUR 1000 - 1800 - with the Jamo system coming in at 1700 - and comprising Jamo 883K4 for the front channels, 515K3 as a centre-speaker and SU631K3 as surrounds.

It gives us great pleasure to inform you that the Jamo system was declared to be the clear test-winner, having achieved 12 out of a maximum of 15 points.

Some extracts from the test:

"Jamo should definitely be credited for giving the user the choice of fine-tuning adjustments in these loudspeakers. Both finish and care for detail are top notch...
Price-wise they are in the upper range in this test, with a total price of EUR 1700, but this is with some justification. This is a very well thought-out system.

Listening impressions
Thanks to the extensive adjustment facilities provided, you can get closer to the sonic ideal before you have even started using the adjustment possibilities in the receiver. In the test-room we managed achieving a good balance just using the passive controls.
With music Jamo delivers a homogeneous sound with nothing ‘sticking out’ or deviating too much.
The upper frequency range is clear and detailed, though the midrange, now and then, possibly shows a hint of hardness, but it’s an effect that’s really only pronounced at higher volume levels.
Bass reproduction is good, even without support from a subwoofer, which means that when you switch in the high-pass filter it can be adjusted quite low, leaving plenty of ‘room’ to find the right crossover point to the subwoofer.

The Jamo system is also convincing with movie soundtracks. The voice-matching between right/centre/left isn't quite as precise as, say, the Sonance and Boston, but taken overall the Jamo system still performs better. Good dynamics from the front array add a pleasing sense of authority to sound effects while, at the same time ensuring that small details are correctly reproduced.

Conclusions
And so we come to the Jamo entry, the most complete and versatile of the models tested here. It’s an unbelievably well thought-out package with lots of features and a sound quality that, though not absolutely high-end, is still extremely good, making Jamo the overall group test winner.”

HemmaBio’s test conclusion neatly sums up the Jamo approach to custom loudspeaker design. Placing loudspeakers in walls and ceilings imposes significant challenges when it comes to creating and maintaining a homogenous and consistent sound and it’s one that relatively few manufacturers can address successfully.

Thanks to our long experience in loudspeaker development, however, we think we know what it takes to get the best from any speaker, in any given environment. We’re immensely pleased to hear that HemmaBio agrees…