JBL 4301BWX (1980–1983)
The JBL 4301BWX is a compact two-way bookshelf monitor that JBL released in 1980. It was aimed at editing rooms in broadcasting stations and studios. It was priced at ¥75,000 per unit around 1981, rising to ¥93,000 by 1983.
The drivers are what separate the 4301BWX from its consumer siblings. The woofer is a 20 cm cone, the 116H, which JBL says was developed "in strict pursuit of input resistance characteristics suitable for monitoring." The cone is hard paper with corrugation to improve high-frequency behavior. It is paired with a precisely designed 5 cm voice coil, pole piece, gap, and an aluminum die-cast frame. The tweeter is a 3.6 cm direct-radiator cone, the LE26. It uses hard cone paper and a center dome to get 90° directional characteristics (horizontal and vertical) at 10 kHz. A tapered resinous material wraps the tweeter to improve its compatibility with the baffle plate.
The crossover is set at 2.5 kHz, and the network takes phase characteristics and impedance correction into account. The enclosure is a bass-reflex design with 28 liters of internal volume, built from 19 mm high-density compressed material. Frequency response is 45 Hz to 15 kHz ±3 dB, with 88 dB/W/m sensitivity and 8-ohm impedance. Allowable input is rated at 15W RMS. That is modest by today's standards, but fine for near-field monitoring. The cabinet measures 291 × 483 × 306 mm and weighs 12.7 kg.
Documentation on the 4301BWX is thin. No period reviews or owner commentary have surfaced in the research. The relationship between this model and the base 4301B is not documented in available sources, and neither is what the "WX" suffix signifies. Japanese auction data shows active trading, with roughly 132 Yahoo! Auctions listings averaging around ¥28,123 over a 120-day period, which suggests a steady collector market in Japan. European listings have appeared at widely varying prices, from €590 for a pair of 4301B Broadcast monitors to €2,990 for a single 4301B.
Known specifications:
- Type: 2-way, 2-speaker, bass-reflex, bookshelf monitor
- Woofer: 20 cm cone (116H)
- Tweeter: 3.6 cm cone (LE26)
- Crossover: 2.5 kHz
- Frequency response: 45 Hz – 15 kHz ±3 dB
- Impedance: 8 ohms
- Sensitivity: 88 dB/W/m
- Allowable input: 15W RMS
- Enclosure volume: 28L
- Dimensions: 291 × 483 × 306 mm (W×H×D)
- Weight: 12.7 kg
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