Why do Harbeth speakers have such a cult following

Hello Egoben,

Although I have interest in the Harbeth line of speakers, I have not yet had the opportunity to have heard the P3ESR's in person and have a few questions for you if you do not mind.

In regards to your post; ".....fills the room perfectly, big sound, enough bass, punchy, with great balance....." I like how small mini monitors can seem to "disappear" imaging wise, but due to their small size, they often seem to miniaturize the size of instruments, if you will. Like toy violins, cellos and toy pianos, etc. Do you feel the sense of the instrument's scale is lost at all with such a tiny speaker as the P3ESR?

Also, you mentioned that they are easy to drive with your tube amp. I'm a tube lover as well and am curious which tube amp you are using with your P3ESR's?

What size room are you playing these in and how close are you able to place them to the wall that is behind the speaker without suffering any sound degradation?

Thank you for your help!

Harbeth designs their speakers using a method that was very common in the 1950's and 60's which was pioneered by AR, KLH and Advent. They adjust the wood cabinet to have a direct effect on the drivers to create a sonic character that some would consider colored or laid back. Sony does the same thing with their flagship SS-AR1. Most speaker companies today isolate the drivers as much as possible from the cabinet to create a more open, neutral sound stage. Many older Audiophiles prefer Harbeth since it reminds them of the sonic character of the best speakers from the era of true analog before the rise of digital.

There a bit of truth and a lot of BS in what you say, Audiozen. But mostly it's just an unfair misrepresentation of Harbeth and its fans.

01-17-13: Audiozen
Harbeth designs their speakers using a method that was very common in the 1950's and 60's which was pioneered by AR, KLH and Advent. They adjust the wood cabinet to have a direct effect on the drivers to create a sonic character that some would consider colored or laid back.

Harbeth speakers trace their lineage back to the monitor designs developed by the BBC research department - for which Harbeth's founder, Dudley Harwood, worked as an engineer.
Many of the documents associated with those early BBC speaker designs are freely available on the web. You won't find any references to "adjusting the wood cabinet to have a direct effect on the drivers to create a sonic character that some would consider colored or laid back". That is complete BS you've made up.

The BBC research department assignment (for loudspeakers) was to design accurate, low coloration monitors for broadcast use. What you will find in those documents is how the speakers where evaluated with live music and voice to judge accuracy. This is something that I believe still forms the basis for Alan Shaw's current Harbeth designs.

Now I'm not saying that those early designs, nor even the current Harbeth designs, were/are completely successful (is any loudspeaker?). However it is very wrong to assert that Harbeth speakers are voiced to achieve a particular sonic coloration. They are designed primarily for accuracy and low coloration, so that the studio technician in the control room will hear an accurate representation of the sound being produced in the live studio.

If anyone is interested, there is a thread on the Harbeth forums where designer Alan Shaw explains the origin and reasons behind the BBC thin-wall cabinet design.

http://www.harbeth.co.uk/usergroup/showthread.php?351-BBC-style-thin-wall-cabinets-Why-so-special