JBL Olympus

Name: JBL Olympus
Brand: JBL

The JBL Olympus is a 1957 design by JBL founder James B. Lansing himself, intended as the ultimate speaker system of its time. It is a large four-driver, three-way system: an LE15 bass driver, an LE85 midrange, and an LE20 tweeter, with crossover points at 500 Hz and 3500 Hz. Both the midrange and tweeter use diffraction lenses - a 12-cell lens on the midrange and a 5-cell lens on the tweeter. This was JBL's signature approach to high-frequency dispersion in that era.

The cabinet is big: 52" x 14.5" x 11.5", weighing 67 lbs. It is built from 1/2" walnut plywood with a 3/4" baffle, and walnut veneer on the front, top, and bottom. Rated impedance is 8 ohms, sensitivity is 91 dB, and power handling is 50 watts, with a recommended amplifier range of 20-100 watts. That is a high-efficiency system, designed to be driven by modest amplification.

The Olympus was JBL's flagship speaker system, and the advertising treated it that way. Audio (June 1961, p.59) called it "a new sonic summit," and praised its "Linear-Efficiency" design and the "transcendent fidelity" of its reproduction. By 1964, JBL was marketing the Olympus as "the classic gift" for Christmas. Later ads in Audio (January 1965, p.35) stressed how well the system fit into traditional, richly furnished interiors. That suggests an affluent, design-conscious buyer as much as the serious audiophile.

Documentation on the Olympus is thin in places. No original price, no production run dates beyond the 1957 design year, and no frequency response figures have surfaced. The system is still highly sought after by collectors, and owners describe the sound as warm and detailed, with excellent imaging and soundstage.

Design year: 1957, by JBL founder James B. Lansing
Type: 3-way, 4-driver loudspeaker system
Drivers: LE15 bass, LE85 midrange, LE20 tweeter
Crossover: 500 Hz and 3500 Hz
Impedance: 8 ohms · Sensitivity: 91 dB
Power handling: 50 watts (20–100 watts recommended)
Dimensions: 52" x 14.5" x 11.5" · Weight: 67 lbs
Cabinet: 1/2" walnut plywood, 3/4" baffle, walnut veneer front/top/bottom
Diffraction lenses: 12-cell on midrange, 5-cell on tweeter