Quick comments on SHL5s (2007 30th anniversary edition with upgrade OFC internal wiring) on the floor...
Outstanding overall speaker. No offending characteristics.
No longer have to segregate my CDs based on how listenable they are--all are musical. Very nice vocals. Not state-of-the-art imaging in any direction but still has images in a nice 3D space with natural size sounds. A nice balance between fullness and image-boundary conditions. Reminds me very much of Sennheiser 650s (with a great headphone amp) but with better definition and detail. Silky and not abrasive at all. No screeching, grain, or hash or buzziness. Bass is solid and full but not boomy, a bit muddy on the floor, but really excellent on temporary tables I tried for a while. Overall, not nearly as tonally or spatially detailed as former Kharma 3.2s or Wilson WP6s,
but none of the pain from overexposure either that led me away from these. More transparent and better soundstaging than former Aerial 10Ts I had, without the occasional overrought bass or rare piercing lower treble. But, like Aerials, I can sit for long periods with zero fatigue.
Very balanced sound from top to bottom. Deep bass or sparkling highs only hinted at, but enough to be satisfying.
Sounds better with my single-wire Cardas Golden Ref speaker cable on the upper posts, despite Harbeths recommendations. Sounds better using EMM DCC2-SE's preamp
rather than separate preamps I have (Mac C46 or Jeff Rowland Capri). I use Stelth Indra ICs for all. (Actually, only one pair used for DCC2 to Edge NL12.1 amp.) I also use a Hydra 8 to plug in sources, and plug the amp right into the wall. The amp really grips the bass on the Harbeths well and makes it tight and formidable, but never abusive.
Again, I can listen to any disk with no fear, and that is so extremely valuable to me. What a sense of power that my system isn't dictating my musical tastes or moods. But, nonetheless,
SACDs sound extrordinary, with real focus and drive, but still relaxing, so I know the Harbeths do reflect the benefits of good upsteam equipment.
So, yes, I do miss the live, totally natural, liquid, you-are there sense you get with more sophisticated speakers with great recordings, but I need to live in the real world, too. If I only listened to classical, I would have stayed with the Kharmas with their extreme differentiation of tonality and layered micro-spatial cues that were really a joy, but I need to hear the Beatles and Boston and Blood Sweat and Tears and Chicago and Carole King and all that great British Invasion music without any abuse or abrasion to trigger those important synapses in my brain.
