JBL N24 / N24AW
The JBL N24 was part of the company's North Ridge series. It's a compact 2-way, 2-driver bookshelf speaker — a 10 cm (4") cone woofer paired with a 1.9 cm dome tweeter in a bass-reflex enclosure. The woofer uses JBL's Polyplus diaphragm (a polymer-coated fiber cellulose), and the tweeter mounts a titanium-laminated dome on the company's EOS (elliptical optimized shape) short-horn baffle, which widens the listening window and sharpens stereo imaging. The magnetic circuit uses a "HeatScape" structure to pull heat away from the voice coil, improving power handling. Rated input is 100W (IEC) at 8 ohms, frequency response 75 Hz–20 kHz, sensitivity 86 dB/2.83V/m, crossover at 3 kHz. Dimensions are 159 × 241 × 121 mm and each speaker weighs 2.1 kg. Wall and ceiling brackets were included in the box, and a slim floor stand (FSN24) was available as an option.
The N24AW is the all-weather variation, with a white body and no magnetic shielding (the standard N24 is shielded). Both were sold in pairs in Japan in 2000, at ¥28,000 for the N24 and ¥35,000 for the N24AW. The N24AW was also offered in a "II" revision, marketed as weather-resistant with a high-impact molded enclosure and a durable WeatherPlas cone woofer. The N24AWII was sold in the US through outlets like Parts Express and B&H.
Documentation on these is thin beyond the basics. A technical manual exists for the N24/N24AW, but detailed spec sheets are scarce in the surviving record. There's no confirmed production run beyond the 2000 pricing. There's also no official word on whether the N24 and N24AW sound identical apart from finish and shielding, though that's generally assumed. One owner on a forum picked up a used pair for $60, and a craigslist listing for the N24AW asked $45 for the pair, noting some cabinet discoloration. Spare tweeters (4 ohm) are still available from parts dealers, and replacement woofers show up occasionally. Brent Butterworth of etown (April 11, 2000) noted that for a speaker of its size and price, he couldn't find anything that the N24 really did wrong.
Known specs:
- Type: 2-way, 2-driver, bass-reflex bookshelf
- Woofer: 10 cm cone (Polyplus diaphragm)
- Tweeter: 1.9 cm dome (titanium-laminated, EOS horn baffle)
- Frequency response: 75 Hz – 20 kHz
- Sensitivity: 86 dB / 2.83 V / m
- Impedance: 8 ohms
- Power handling: 100 W (IEC)
- Crossover: 3 kHz
- Dimensions: 159 W × 241 H × 121 D mm
- Weight: 2.1 kg each
- N24: magnetic shielding · N24AW: all-weather, non-shielded
Similar items on eBay
No exact JBL N24/N24AW listings are live right now — these searches show current JBL and similar vintage audio gear on eBay:
As an eBay Partner, we earn from qualifying purchases. This helps support our independent vintage technology research.
Related Models
- JBL 075
- JBL 077
- JBL 120Ti
- JBL 124A
- JBL 124H
- Braun AUDIO-1 (1965)
- Braun AUDIO-250 (1965)
- Magnavox Component Systems (1972)
- Acoustic Research AR (1967-1976)
- Acoustic Research 11