James Loudspeaker EMB-1000 Active Subwoofer (Sold)

JAMES LOUDSPEAKERS EMB-1000

Active subwoofer with 10-inch active and 10-inch passive drivers.

little monster of a subwoofer which does subtlety and detail too. Good build quality. Great value.


California’s James Loudspeakers may not be well known here, but its products have been available in Malaysia for some time,attention coming more by word of mouth.

James manufactures more than just subwoofers, but it is these which intrigue – it has models which you can hide in your basement or attic, or bury in your garden (!), as well as plain box subwoofers, like the smallest in the EMB range, the EMB-1000.

The EMB-1000 is a sealed design which isn’t much to look at – it’s an MDF “Granite Black” box. Grander choices of finish (at extra cost, I believe) are available. Small, but not pint-sized, at 30.5 x 30.5 x 35 cm (h/w/d), it weighs 19kg and is solidly constructed.

James’ proprietary Energy Multiplied Bandpass technique is employed in the EMB-1000, where an internal driver is pneumatically coupled to the externally visible (passive) 10-inch aluminium cone. The idea is to limit the need for extreme excursion by the latter to minimise distortion and preserve tight transients, yet obtain better extension.

With 1,000W of BASH amplification on board, it’s not likely to choke when it’s clobbering time. I probably didn’t challenge the EMB-1000 enough – it was used in a two-channel music system.

The EMB-1000 has options for high and low level connections, these being via speaker binding posts and RCA inputs, respectively. I used the former only. One of my concerns had been whether there would be any audible side effects from the onboard kilowatt switch-mode amp – there was none that I could perceive, even though the EMB-1000 was plugged into the same gangway as my phono preamplifier.

Running in the unit took significantly longer than anticipated, but when the drivers got into stride the benefits were audible. Serious set-up should begin after it becomes more settled; there was quite a noticeable change for the better.

Having listened to a few subs, it’s my experience that not all are created equal. The EMB-1000 gets deeper than most for its size, yet is fast, dynamic and well defined.

I’m in no position to bestow any “best in class” titles, but if you know of a subwoofer significantly bettering the performance of this unit, at the size and local price (step up to the plate, REL and Sunfire), do tell.

Recommended enthusiastically.


Reference review :
http://sites.thestar.com.my/audio/story.asp?file=/2007/12/24/audiofile/24james

http://legacy.jamesloudspeaker.com/lit/perry1.pdf


http://www.stereophile.com/content/james-loudspeaker-emb-1200-subwoofer-james-emb-1000-subwoofer






Price : RM Sold
Contact Simon Ting 012-3612507