The JBL L42ms from HARMAN Luxury Audio Group joins the Classic series as a more compact alternative to the JBL L75ms. According to a company spokesperson, “The L42ms offers music lovers the choice of a compact package and ebony finish, while retaining most of the same features and signature JBL sound as the larger L75ms.”
In particular, there is a characteristic curved Quadrex grill and a body with natural ebony or walnut veneer. Two phase inverter ports are brought to the rear wall. Inside – a pair of 4-inch woofers with two 0.75-inch tweeters with domed aluminum membranes in separate waveguides. All this is powered by a four-channel amplifier with a total power of 200 watts.
The sound of the system is corrected by DSP, in addition, there is a bass contour switch on the rear panel, in addition there is a subwoofer output with a built-in high-pass filter at 80 Hz. You can turn on the sound field extension (SFX) mode with the remote control. By the way, the remote works via Bluetooth, so you do not need to send it to the system. Bluetooth is also suitable for connecting L42ms with various sources.
The built-in DAC supports 24bit/96kHz signals. The JBL L42ms can be connected via cable using RCA and 3.5mm stereo inputs. HDMI ARC is also provided: with it, the novelty will easily make friends with the TV. Another connector is LAN along with Wi-Fi, you can use a network connection and, accordingly, Apple Airplay2 and Google Chromecast. In addition, UPnP and reading audio files from a USB storage device is supported.
The new product received Roon Ready and Works with Smart Things certifications (interaction with Samsung TVs from HARMAN, Galaxy devices, etc.), there is built-in access to Spotify Connect and Tidal Connect, and the JBL Premium Audio app will provide access to Amazon Music, Qobuz, internet radio and podcasts. The novelty will be released in the season of pre-Christmas holiday sales.
In the US, the JBL L42ms audio system will cost $1,000.
