JBL COL800 Column Array Speaker

JBL COL800 Column Array Speaker

The JBL COL800 is a slim column loudspeaker, 800 mm tall and only 102 mm wide, designed for installed sound in spaces where speech intelligibility matters and the loudspeaker must respect the architecture: houses of worship, conference and lecture rooms, museums, galleries, retail spaces, concourses and hospitality venues. Four racetrack low-frequency drivers and two tweeters are arranged in a vertical line, which shapes the sound into a wide horizontal fan and a controlled vertical wedge — covering the audience evenly while putting far less energy onto reflective ceilings and floors.

That controlled vertical dispersion is the reason column speakers exist. In a reverberant hall, a conventional box speaker sprays sound in every direction, and the reflections smear speech. The COL800’s 60-degree vertical pattern, with a built-in 10-degree downward tilt to its aim, keeps the sound on the listeners. The cabinet can mount flat to the wall and still aim correctly at the seating, and the shallow 93 mm depth keeps it unobtrusive — shallow enough to satisfy accessibility protrusion limits in many jurisdictions when flush-mounted.

Key features

• Four racetrack woofers: Four 125 x 55 mm racetrack drivers maximise radiating area within the slim column format for full-range output down to 85 Hz.
• Dual tweeters at the top: Two 20 mm tweeters sit at the top of the array, above obstructions such as seated heads and furniture, and are angled for the built-in down-tilt.
• 160-degree horizontal coverage: A wide horizontal pattern covers broad seating areas from a single column position.
• 60-degree vertical coverage with 10-degree down-tilt: Focused vertical dispersion reduces ceiling and floor reflections, improving speech clarity in reverberant spaces.
• 150W continuous power handling: Rated at 150 watts continuous pink noise (600W peak) in 8-ohm direct mode, reaching 116 dB peak SPL.
• 70V/100V transformer plus 8-ohm direct: A built-in 60W multi-tap transformer (60, 30 and 15W taps at both 70V and 100V, plus 7.5W at 70V) supports distributed systems, with a switchable direct 8-ohm input for low-impedance systems.
• IP54 rated: Dust- and splash-protected construction with water-treated drivers and a terminal cover suits concourses and semi-exposed locations.
• Two bracket systems included: Close-to-wall L-brackets and a low-profile swivel/tilt wall bracket cover flat, panned and additionally tilted installations.

Designed for difficult rooms

Reverberation is the enemy of speech, and it is beaten by directivity, not volume. By keeping sound off the ceiling and the floor, the COL800 raises the ratio of direct to reflected sound at every seat, which is what listeners experience as clarity. Sensitivity of 88 dB and maximum output of 110 dB continuous mean a single column covers a substantial audience area for speech and background music, and the 85 Hz to 20 kHz range handles music reinforcement credibly without a subwoofer for many applications.

Distributed or direct

On a 70V or 100V distributed line, the multi-tap transformer lets an installer set each column’s level by tap selection, with insertion loss under 1 dB. In smaller systems, the direct 8-ohm input connects to a conventional amplifier channel. A recommended protective high-pass filter (75 Hz for 8-ohm use, 60 Hz on transformer taps) is part of JBL’s published guidance for getting rated performance safely.

Installation

The included L-brackets mount on the top and bottom panels for close-to-wall fitting with horizontal pan adjustment, or on the side panels; the swivel/tilt bracket adds up to 10 degrees of further down-tilt. The enclosure is moulded from PC and ABS, weighs 6.35 kg, and the drivers’ water treatment plus grille water-backing support the IP54 rating. Cabling terminates under a protective cover.

For consultants and integrators working in reverberant, visually sensitive spaces, the COL800 is the disciplined answer: a column that disappears into the architecture while speech lands clearly on every seat.