I am generally a JBL fan (my reference speakers are L3's, and have owned L60t's,LX44's, etc.) but even though the bass is quite good, the top end this horn- speaker is dreadful--muddy, no sparkle, no detail. I brought them back within 24 hours. JBL doesn't seem to be making any consumer speakers to carry on the quality of the L series.

I recently purchased the JBL HLS 820s and they are a good buy for 410 dollars. I dont think I would pay more for them. They have plenty of bass and the horn tweeter deliver sharp detailed sound. For this price I would say they are among the best on the market. With a powerful reciever and a set of 16 gauge speaker wire backing them up you cant go wrong

I have 4 of these speakers, 2 for my mains, the other 2 for surrounds in my Digital Dolby system. I have a HLS center to compliment them and they are magnificent. I am however springing for the discontinued SVA 1800's. They have their own distinct sound that will make your mouth drop. But these 820's are great, for both movies and music..which is very important indeed. You wont be dissappointed if you get these..I highly recommend these to any serious music lover. They are fairly cheap in price and sound great! The JBL PSWD-112 subwoofer compliment these as well.

Purchased these bad boys not too long ago. Wow. For me, they were a big step up from the old garbage speakers I used to have, but I haven't heard speakers this good. I knew while I was playing around in the demo room at Best Buy that these were the guys to keep. Not only is the sweet spot huge on these thanks to the lovely sounding horns (that provide blistering highs), they are tuned perfectly for some very clean punchy bass that rivals some stand-alone subs.I picked the pair up for $400 at spidergear.com, and after I vacuumed all the packing peanuts out of the ports (oops!), I went through my whole music collection listening to songs again hearing things I never have heard before.

Definitely a great purchase!

I've had these speakers for about two weeks now and I must say that they are terrific. Even though they go for over $660.00 a pair I was able to get them for $281.00 (for the pair) at shopping.com's online auction. You can also get them from shop4.com for $306.00 a pair. These speakers have really nice highs and plenty of bass. They sound great on music and on movies. The only problem now is that I need to upgrade to a better receiver to really get the most out of them.

I picked these up about a month ago and I am very pleased! Before deciding on the 820's I looked at tons of speakers in the $300-$600 range and I kept coming back to them - there is no doubt to me these speakers are the best sounding for the buck$. Solid speakers that fill the room with a tight, crisp punch. Nice bass, and the horn throws a big sound - will have to tinker with the position of your speakers. Go get um!

i owned these briefly before i knew anything. the 820 and the other hls speakers are okay if you're determined to shop for speakers at sears or at best buy. i really wanted to like this speaker, and i still find it visually aesthetic, but there are just too many drawbacks. for a bass-reflex speaker of this size 40-20khz isn't too impressive. also, the build quality is awful. there is a cheap-looking piece of rubber around each woofer, which isn't even properly secured to the cabinet. i have heard that the woofers on these speakers are especially prone to moving forward out of the cabinet. also, the cabinet is really flimsy and scratches easily. the sound from the gimmicky horn tweeter is quite unruly with too many maverick reflections. i can't believe people still pay $600 for a pair of 820s. i have seen these auctioned off for below $200 a pair, and then you can even pay for shipping with the money you would have had to pay for sales tax if you bought them at a real-life store. also, who wants to be supporting the evil empire when it can be avoided?... nevertheless, this is an okay speaker that plays relatively loud (90db sens.) and looks nice in a monet sort of way. that horn tweeter is unquestionably adorable. these speakers are competent for simple applications, but i'm going to buy something that performs better, takes up less space, and costs less.

Video shielding.

Low musicallity.

Used three 820s for L,C, and R. I concur that the cabinet does scratch easily. Also, I do not like the fact that the speakers are "pre-tilted" (slightly upward) for you. Replaced with Magnepan MMG for its more spacious, sweet sound.

Cost: Ubid, $360 for 3.

reasonable base, clear highs

cheap looks, frail box

You can get them for $350/pr from the internet, I got 1 pair for $220 shipped from ubid, refurbs (one blown tweeter). I got another pair from Wiz, also with a blown tweeter. The Wiz guy said they are recalled.
I A/B them with RS-5, and I think the infinitys sound better (and look better built) for the same price. 820s lack in midrange, but have [same highs]/[better base] when compared to RS-5. They don't look/feel very solid, won't last forever.
I hope to get Delta 40s for $330-$400 shipped, if I am able to return these. Sorry, only three stars for JBL HLS820 :-(

Similar Products Used:

RS-5

Pleasing appearance. Clear accurate sound,even at low levels

Towers seem a bit "tippy", caution needed if small children in the home.

We looked at Polk, and Infinity, as well as the smaller HLS610 version and kept coming back to the HLS820's for the quality of sound, balance of the lows and highs. We use them as the only speakers at present, coupled with Sony STR-DE535 and have been very pleased. Even at rather low volume levels off the television and vcr, the sound is clean and clear without excessive highs or bass. When turned up for music, they are impressive. Got ours thru Consumer-Direct.com for 338.00 for the pair. The Infinity's and Polks were more and just didnt seem to have the depth that these 820's do. I'm a happy camper.