2. speakers
  3. 165034-6055

Moving up the Harbeth line

I was fortunate to move my home office to another room which is a bit bigger than the previous one. Dimensions are 12x13 with almost 20-foot ceilings. As much as I love my Harbeth P3esr's, I can't help but notice that they've been outclassed by the bigger room, especially the high ceiling. This pair of speakers has been a mainstay in my home office/study for a number of years, and I find it to be a perfect fit for my listening habits and music preferences. But in the new setting, it's not able to fill the room as well as it used to. For examples, horns and piano now sound much smaller and distant. So that got me thinking of an upgrade. I have been using a Raven Audio Blackhawk MK3 for a few months and would want to stick with it if possible. There are very few speakers that have allowed me to make an emotional connection with the music, and Harbeth is certainly one of them. So my preference is to stay with the brand.

Now, before the 'search bar is your best friend' folks come swinging at me, I have read a few threads on similar topics but they all seem to be inconclusive, or at least I'm not able to decipher a reasonable consensus. Having spent way too much money on this addiction, err, hobby, in the last 12 months, I have to resort to buying used equipment only, and that too has to wait for at least 2-3 months. So, doing an in-house demo is going to be difficult if not impossible. And, AFAIK, there are no dealers nearby (Dallas area) either.

I would love to hear from people who have moved up the Harbeth food chain. The M30.x seems to be a logical next step, but I see an equal number of negative opinions (too polite, too boxy, pipe and slippers) as positive ones. Is there anyone who thinks that the M30 retains the same magic as the P3esr's but serves it in relatively bigger portions? Because that's what I'm mainly looking for to be honest -- a bigger version of P3esr. Or do you think the cons negate the pros offered by the bigger cabinet size?

Next up is SHL5+. Again, the opinions vary widely. Some are saying that this particular model deviates the most from the classic Harbeth sound. Another concern is that my room might be too small for them (?). Also, I cannot pull them more than one and a half feet from the front wall. Is that going to result in ugly bass problems?

I'm not against trying another brand, but would prefer an opinion that is based on an actual comparison with Harbeth speakers.
128x128arafiq
chorus
976 posts
 
Re best Power option. I have read many HB owners prefer SS with 100+ wpc, doubling down as ohms get lower. They may have larger rooms though. I agree that 20wpc of tube may short change you a bit.

Between models my ears enjoy the HL over 30's or 40's.
As 2Left mentioned I too heard the 30's and 40's in two different same size hotel rooms and the 30's sounded better in that smaller room.

If I lived in Dallas-did once many years ago- I would make an appt. with Danny at GR Research. Besides having a great resource so close you also apparently support your local manufacturers.

I am anxious to visit Danny and get a listen to his speakers. 


Good luck to you!!
avanti1960
1,480 posts
 
30.2 perfect.  the voicing is more forgiving than the 30.1.  
5's too big for sure, they need room.  
you had a bad experience with the C7ES3 but there was something wrong with the system you heard them in, they are by far the richest, sweetest sounding Harbeth and are magical but might be too much with your Raven amp.  
P3s are nice but require more power than is obvious to really open up.  
honeyooi
124 posts
 
M30.x is good for that room ,mine even smaller 10x11 and with 7 ft triangle listening set.
Near field is best Option.
Harbeth is need power more than 50w in my personal experience for sound best !

arafiq's avatar
arafiq OP
1,681 posts
 
To those who commented on the C7s, I agree that the room, associated equipment, and setup make a huge difference. I only heard them once for a short duration, and it is quite possible that it was a one-off. I would love to audition it again, but unfortunately there's no way to do that right now.

Moving on to the HL5s, I think they might be too much given the room size and listening distance. They might work, but given that my ability to position them properly in the home office is rather limited, it's a risky proposition. 40.x is pretty much out of question -- I just don't see how they will fit my room, aesthetics, and most importantly my budget.

At this point, I'm leaning heavily in the direction of 30.1s. Would love to get 30.2 but I don't think I can find a used pair around $3k. From what I have gathered thus far, they retain the sonic qualities of P3esr but serve them in a bigger, fuller platter. Just what the good doctor ordered. These seem to be the goldilocks of the Harbeth lineup, at least for my specific requirements.

For now, this is what I plan to do. Try the P3esr's with my REL T/Zero in conjunction with Blackhawk's dedicated sub out. But eventually, and knowing myself, I would most likely give the 30.x a try.

Having said that, I wonder if there is another speaker that retains the sonic qualities of Harbeth but is tube-friendly. I rather like my Blackhawk and would like to keep it if at all possible. The problem is that I have never met an efficient speaker that I really liked. I have auditioned the Klipsch Heritage line (except LaScalas), Devore O/96, and a few standmount models from Proacs, but none has appealed to me like the Harbeths. I understand that these are amazing speaker, and I don't intend to offend the owners, but just not my cup of tea. If someone can suggest non-horn speakers that are efficient and have a similar sound signature to Harbeth, I'm all ears.

arafiq's avatar
arafiq OP
1,681 posts
 
@redwoodaudio -- what a beautiful room you have there! I could sense the calm and serenity just by looking at the pictures. 

@chorus -- I had never heard of Danny or GR Research for that matter. But will definitely check him out. Thanks for the suggestion.
More to discover