JL Audio E-Sub e110 and e112 Subwoofers Conclusion
After
spending many months with the E series subs in my home I can say with certainty
that JL Audio has produced a very fine product in the e110 and e112 subwoofers.
I struggled to even come up with something to put in the column for “Cons”. These
have some of the best fit and finishing I’ve seen on any speaker and they are
so small that they should fit into anyone’s room. On my review units everything
was tight and had the feel of quality. They were rock solid no matter what I
put them through. Even throwing some of the most abusive low frequency signals
around into their input jacks did not faze them. I have had opportunity to hear
the Fathom F112 and F113 on a few separate occasions and I always came away
with a positive impression but the E series was supposed to be JL’s slightly
less expensive line and I have to say I may be more impressed with them. These
subwoofers are very simple in operation with only the traditional controls
which I am a big fan of. A lot of the extra “fluff” included with some
subwoofers these days is of very questionable value in my estimation and
certainly increases the price tag. Yes these are not budget subs but one look
at pictures of this driver and it should give some indication of where JL
thought that the money would best be spent in the E series design. The
amplifier is also a quality unit that packs quite a wallop. With tiny sealed
subwoofers there is only one way to get deep bass output out of them and that
is with a high displacement driver and a lot of amp. Both of these things of
course increase the costs. If you want a small subwoofer with big output you
will have to pay for it. There is no way around it. JL Audio has managed to
squeeze an amazing amount of output out of the E series subs. Most of the subwoofers
I’ve encountered in this size class I have a hard time even considering real
subs as they are so limited in output
and extension, but the e110 made me re-evaluate my stance on how small a
legitimate subwoofer could be. I give a tip of the hat to the JL Audio
engineering team as they really nailed it with the E series. The E series JL
Audio subwoofers may be one of the best options on the market for those in need
of a small yet powerful bass system.
The JL Audio e110 subwoofer easily meets the specified output thresholds to receive the Audioholics Bassaholic Medium Room rating but can’t quite meet the requirements to get the large room rating. Its larger brother the e112 was able to meet the output requirements needed to garner the Audioholics Bassaholic Large Room rating. The Medium room rating indicates that this sub is recommended as maintaining adequate headroom in rooms or spaces of 1,500-3,000 cubic feet and/or for users who usually listen at moderate volume levels. The Large room rating indicates that this sub is recommended as maintaining adequate headroom in rooms or spaces of 3,000-5,000 cubic feet and/or for users who usually listen at moderate volume levels with occasional high volume playback. For further information in how we make these recommendations see the full article here.
JL Audio e112 Subwoofer Youtube Review
See: Audioholics Subwoofer Room Size Rating Protocol
JL Audio e110 JL Audio e11
MSRP:
$1500-1700 (e110)
MSRP:
$1900-2100 (e112)
The Score Card
The scoring below is based on each piece of equipment doing the duty it is designed for. The numbers are weighed heavily with respect to the individual cost of each unit, thus giving a rating roughly equal to:
Performance × Price Factor/Value = Rating
Audioholics.com note: The ratings indicated below are based on subjective listening and objective testing of the product in question. The rating scale is based on performance/value ratio. If you notice better performing products in future reviews that have lower numbers in certain areas, be aware that the value factor is most likely the culprit. Other Audioholics reviewers may rate products solely based on performance, and each reviewer has his/her own system for ratings.
Audioholics Rating Scale
— Excellent
— Very Good
— Good
— Fair
— Poor
Metric | Rating |
---|---|
Bass Extension | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Bass Accuracy | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Build Quality | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Fit and Finish | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Ergonomics & Usability | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Features | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Dynamic Range | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Performance | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Value | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
See also:
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Recent Forum Posts:
Hubbard32, post: 1468458, member: 93682Josh hasn't posted here since 2016. Don't be too hopeful for a reply.
Hey Joshua,
Sorry to resurrect an old review, but it was very helpful.
I have 2 e110s on order right now for my 17x17x 8 (2300 cu ft) room where we listen to music and watch movies (60% music,40% movies). In this size room do you feel that the JLs will deliver the fullness and punch Im looking for? I will be calibrating the room with the help of DIRAC through my Monolith HTP-1.
im also entertaining the idea of attempting to blend these e110s with my existing James Loudspeaker EBU1200 12 sub to help lend a bit of low end support to movies. I would value your opinion on using these subs together and if you feel this will only harm the performance of the JL subs.
thank you in advance!
Ricci, post: 1031514, member: 56121Hey Joshua,
Thanks Erin. The JL's are nice subs. I'm a big sub kinda guy and I usually come away underwhelmed with the small sealed units but these have more balls than most.
Sorry to resurrect an old review, but it was very helpful.
I have 2 e110s on order right now for my 17x17x 8 (2300 cu ft) room where we listen to music and watch movies (60% music,40% movies). In this size room do you feel that the JLs will deliver the fullness and punch Im looking for? I will be calibrating the room with the help of DIRAC through my Monolith HTP-1.
im also entertaining the idea of attempting to blend these e110s with my existing James Loudspeaker EBU1200 12 sub to help lend a bit of low end support to movies. I would value your opinion on using these subs together and if you feel this will only harm the performance of the JL subs.
thank you in advance!
haraldo, post: 1081400, member: 32412
I'm really questioning why they do this …. it seems very strange to me, I'm sure they could use damping too….
Ref Jim's review here where he opened up the sub to see no damping inside: www.hometheatershack.com/forums/speaker-subwoofer-reviews/73616-jl-audio-e112-subwoofer-review.html
This us the answer I got from Barry @ JL Audio as to why there's no dampiimg inside:
The concept of “damping material” is
a) relatively useless at low frequencies
b) really useless if there are no cabinet resonances
Even if the cabinet were to vibrate, that signal would be so far down in dB relative to the actual output that it wouldn't make any difference.
The JL subs have long throw drivers. The way the cabinets are constructed we are mainly concerned with the air pressure in front of the driver.
What was it about the E Series that actually impressed you more than the Fathom series?
Is there more output?
Is the esub more musical?
KEW, post: 1081373, member: 41838
Are you sure it has no detrimental consequences?
I think they could definitely use some damping!
I'm really questioning why they do this …. it seems very strange to me, I'm sure they could use damping too….
Ref Jim's review here where he opened up the sub to see no damping inside: www.hometheatershack.com/forums/speaker-subwoofer-reviews/73616-jl-audio-e112-subwoofer-review.html