harbeth p3esr or usher be 718

The SHL5 are a great speaker but for a person who listens primarily to female Vocals I would still pick the Compact 7ES3 and if you had the budget add a sub or a pair of subs with the KRK ERGO to perfectly integrate the subs. If your tastes run to Classical and or Rock then the SHL5 is the better choice.

Neal

I am more generous towards the Ushers - especially the US version of the Be-718 - than some of the other posters here. Given enough power and the right placement, they can sound very, very good. But as an amateur speaker builder, I am a big fan of both sealed boxes and palpable midrange. Harbeth speakers have both, and now I shoot for my speakers to sound as close to them as I can get. If I were to go out and buy some speakers right now, it would be a pair of Compact 7es3's.

Late last year, I was searching for new speakers after living with a pair of Diapason Adamantes for a number of years. I had the Harbeth Compact 7ES3 in home audition for more than a week, then the Usher 718. I ended up returning the C7 and kept the Usher. I felt that although the C7 perhaps sounded more neutral, the Usher certainly sounded more lively and exciting. Instruments sounded a bit more palpable and weighty with the little Ushers.

My system is in the family room, and often I have the music on but sitting in the living room to relax. The Usher sounded better to me sitting in the living room. I would say if you primarily listen front and center 7-8 ft from your speakers, then you might like the neutral sound of the Harbeth better. But moving a bit farther, I felt that the Usher sound carries better.

Oh, and the Usher seems to project a deeper sound stage.

I have a very simple system: Oppo BDP-83SE is the source (a fantastic player), NAD Master M3 integrate feeds the Usher.

Richard

i just auditioned the ushers, whose aesthetics i've always admired. fantastic tweeter and high end which rivals focal as the best i've heard in its class. sounded great with acoustic music and female vox. however, on more dense/heavier rock stuff, i heard some mid-bass congestion (some would call it warmth); instruments weren't quite as defined or detailed as i'd expected. if i had 3k to drop, i probably would opt for something else. i seem to be the only audio freak on earth who hasn't heard the harbeths, so i can't opine thereon, but good luck with your purchase.

I forgot to mention that although the Usher lists at close to 3K, you can find them at discount, probably closer to 2k new. At that price, it's a killer value for the sound you get. And you certainly get more sound from the Usher than from the little Harbeth, given the proper amplification horse power as others have mentioned.