Short answer: the Dynaudio Emit 30. It ranks #46 of 59 floorstanding speakers by sound quality at $1274.25; the JBL Studio 590 ranks #57 and costs $2000, so there is not much of a tradeoff to weigh.
What the Dynaudio Emit 30 gets right: A 2.5-way floorstander: two 5.25” mid-woofers paired with a roughly 1” dome tweeter, driven through dual rear bass-reflex ports. Watch for: A dip and inconsistency in the lower-treble presence region (roughly 2-5kHz) makes the top end sound uneven - sometimes soft, sometimes forward - depending on the specific instrument or frequency being reproduced; male vocals can lack presence and cymbals can lack sizzle as a result.
What the JBL Studio 590 offers: Pretty deep bass. CEA2034 spinorama is flat on-axis at a high level, with high sensitivity around 89-90dB. Set against that: 3dB peak at 1.7khz, about a 4dB peak from 8k to 13k, going to be bright up top.
Buy the Dynaudio Emit 30. It ranks higher for sound quality than the JBL Studio 590 and costs less, so there is no real case for the other one.
If sound quality matters at all to you, skip both of these and look higher up the 59 floorstanding speakers instead.
Specifications Side By Side
| Dynaudio Emit 30 | JBL Studio 590 | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1,274.25 | $2000 Discontinued |
| Ranked | #46 of 59 in Large Size Floorstanding Speakers | #57 of 59 in Large Size Floorstanding Speakers |
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | 36Hz (measured, Erin’s Audio Corner) | 32Hz (measured, Audio Science Review) |
| Bass Extension (-3dB) | 44Hz (measured, Erin’s Audio Corner) | 48Hz (measured, Audio Science Review) |
| Drivers | Dual 5.25" mid-woofers, 1" soft dome tweeter | 2x 8" (200mm) PolyPlas cone woofers, 1x 1" (25mm) Teonex dome tweeter on Bi-Radial horn (2.5-way) |
| Weight | 34.2 lbs / 15.5 kg | 107.8 lbs / 48.9 kg |
| Sensitivity | 87dB | 90.3dB (2.83V/1m, measured by Audio Science Review) |
| Impedance | 4 ohms | 6 ohms nominal (5 ohms measured minimum, Audio Science Review) |
| Dimensions | 35.4"H x 6.7"W x 10.7"D (900.0 x 170.0 x 272.0 mm) | 49.7"H x 12.7"W x 16.3"D (1263.0 x 322.0 x 413.0 mm) |
| Woofer Cabinet | ported, rear (dual) | ported, rear |
| Frequency Response | 44Hz - 25kHz (±3dB, manufacturer specified) | - |
| Power Handling | 180W (IEC rated) | - |
| Country of Origin | Denmark | - |
| Discontinued | - | Yes |
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- Magnepan LRS+ vs JBL Studio 590
- Klipsch RP-8000F II vs Dynaudio Emit 30
The Two Speakers In Full
Dynaudio Emit 30: $1,274.25 Amazon
Pros: A 2.5-way floorstander: two 5.25” mid-woofers paired with a roughly 1” dome tweeter, driven through dual rear bass-reflex ports. The two woofers hand off at staggered crossover points (around 1kHz and 3.5kHz) rather than sharing one, which avoids the acoustic lobing a shared crossover point would cause between the tweeter and the lower woofer, and adds a few dB of sensitivity in the process. Genuinely deep bass for a speaker around this price - measured F3 near 44Hz and extends audibly down to about 40Hz in-room without much difficulty. Harmonic distortion measures clean and low at both 86dB and 96dB SPL/1m. Good CTA-2034 sound power and uniform directivity mean the speaker takes EQ correction well if a listener wants to dial in its one tonal weak point. Dynamic range and compression performance are strong overall, with only a minor, high-Q compression artifact tied to a cone-edge resonance that’s unlikely to be audible. Wide, consistent horizontal dispersion around ±70° with just a small ~10° narrowing between 1-3kHz, and a reasonably forgiving ±20° vertical window centered on the tweeter axis.
Cons: A dip and inconsistency in the lower-treble presence region (roughly 2-5kHz) makes the top end sound uneven - sometimes soft, sometimes forward - depending on the specific instrument or frequency being reproduced; male vocals can lack presence and cymbals can lack sizzle as a result. A cone-edge surround resonance shows up around 1-1.3kHz in burst-decay measurements (a trait the reviewer has also seen on other Dynaudio models) and lines up with elevated multitone distortion across roughly 600Hz-1.5kHz. An enclosure resonance appears around 350Hz in the impedance curve. Placed too close to a rear wall, the dual ports make the bass noticeably boomy - pulling the speaker out is needed to keep the low end from overloading the room. Fully resolving the top-end inconsistency needs a modest EQ correction (roughly +2dB with a Q of about 1, centered 3-6kHz), so out-of-the-box tonal accuracy in that band isn’t quite class-leading despite otherwise strong measured performance.
Full Dynaudio Emit 30 review and specifications →
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | 36Hz (measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
|---|---|
| Bass Extension (-3dB) | 44Hz (measured, Erin's Audio Corner) |
| Country of Origin | Denmark |
| Dimensions | 35.4"H x 6.7"W x 10.7"D (900.0 x 170.0 x 272.0 mm) |
| Drivers | Dual 5.25" mid-woofers, 1" soft dome tweeter |
| Frequency Response | 44Hz - 25kHz (±3dB, manufacturer specified) |
| Impedance | 4 ohms |
| Power Handling | 180W (IEC rated) |
| Sensitivity | 87dB |
| Weight | 34.2 lbs / 15.5 kg |
| Woofer Cabinet | ported, rear (dual) |
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- Links
- Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
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JBL Studio 590: $2000 Discontinued
Pros: Pretty deep bass. CEA2034 spinorama is flat on-axis at a high level, with high sensitivity around 89-90dB. Predicted in-room response is good aside from a dip between 800Hz-1.5kHz. Distortion at 86dB SPL/1m is good outside of the 8.5kHz resonance.
Cons: 3dB peak at 1.7khz, about a 4dB peak from 8k to 13k, going to be bright up top. Just okay vertical off axis. Really bad resonance at 8.5khz, which shows up as a sharp distortion spike at both 86dB and 96dB SPL/1m. Cumulative spectral decay (waterfall) reveals many fine resonances across the midrange and treble. At 96dB SPL/1m the midrange and treble get notably messier, with broad distortion elevation from 2-8kHz. Discontinued.
Full JBL Studio 590 review and specifications →
| Bass Extension (-10dB) | 32Hz (measured, Audio Science Review) |
|---|---|
| Bass Extension (-3dB) | 48Hz (measured, Audio Science Review) |
| Dimensions | 49.7"H x 12.7"W x 16.3"D (1263.0 x 322.0 x 413.0 mm) |
| Discontinued | Yes |
| Drivers | 2x 8" (200mm) PolyPlas cone woofers, 1x 1" (25mm) Teonex dome tweeter on Bi-Radial horn (2.5-way) |
| Impedance | 6 ohms nominal (5 ohms measured minimum, Audio Science Review) |
| Sensitivity | 90.3dB (2.83V/1m, measured by Audio Science Review) |
| Weight | 107.8 lbs / 48.9 kg |
| Woofer Cabinet | ported, rear |
As an eBay Partner, we may be compensated if you make a purchase.
- Links
- Reviews, Comparisons and Sound Samples
- Head-to-Head Comparisons
- JBL Studio 590 vs Triangle Esprit Antal Ez
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- JBL Studio 590 vs JBL Stage 2 280F
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