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
arafiq's avatar
arafiq OP
1,662 posts
 
Update ...

Finally got proper stands (open-style, wood, 18" tall, very similar to TonTrager) for the SHL5+, and what a difference they have made. The problem with excess bass that I described earlier is completely, 100% resolved. I have removed the REL subwoofer for the time being and still the bass from the speakers is astounding. You can actually feel the bass in your chest, something the SF Olympica IIs never achieved.

The other big surprise is the super tweeter. I guess it had to be raised further up the floor to really come into its own. The sound I’m getting now is airy, open, and extended. The soundstage has also improved both in terms of width and depth. One thing I appreciate is that the super tweeter only springs into action when called upon, otherwise it sits in the back and does not affect the music in a negative (bright, harsh) way. Well done, Harbeth!

Next weekend, I will do a side-by-side comparison between the SHL5+ and M30.1 and report back. But right now, I have to admit that the SHL5+ is proving to be a more engaging and versatile speaker compared to the M30.1. It is also, without a doubt, better than SF Olympica II in every regard.
twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,318 posts
 
Remember that the SHL5 harkens back to the Spendor BC1 and before that the BBC LS3/6.
jjss49's avatar
Ag insider logo xs@2x
jjss49
6,612 posts
 
+1

and to reinforce twoleftears' point

anyone with real interest in the shl5's (and harbeths in general) should familiarize themselves with the spendor bc1 and the bbc licensing lineage ... understand why and how the speakers were developed and designed, and how they have evolved into the various modern day versions bigger and smaller

listeners will then understand their limitations (in past and present forms) why they do the things they do so well, and why their weaknesses are what they are...
twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,318 posts
 
@arafiq  If you really want a curveball, one of the most interesting releases in recent years has been from Graham, another UK manufacturer in the BBC tradition, that brought out a LS5/5 update.
https://www.grahamaudio.co.uk/products/ls55/
Unfortunately, in the States, Graham distribution is even more sparse than the Spendor Classic line.
arafiq's avatar
arafiq OP
1,662 posts
 
@twoleftears The Ls5/5 design looks very interesting. When I was looking earlier, I did consider Graham and Falcon as Harbeth competitors. The problem is it is very difficult to audition these speakers anywhere. I have been burned in the past buying speakers without auditioning, so I decided to not take a chance.

For now, I have decided to sit back and enjoy the two Harbeths I already have in the house. The two speakers I have (M30.1 and SHL5+) are so different in character, yet each offers something unique and alluring that I’m finding it hard to declare an outright winner. They’re both extremely satisfying in their own way. The SHL5+ is more suited to the bigger room and definitely more versatile with different genres of music. The M30.1 is the perfect speaker for home office/study. It’s more buttoned down, coherent, and slightly better when it comes to stuff like tonality and timbre. It also sounds better at lower volumes. IMO, it does jazz, vocals, and small ensembles better, but gives it up to SHL5+ when it comes to rock, blues and indie music. The SHL5+ is definitely the more ’fun’ speaker between the two. It is more open, airy, dynamic, and the bass extension is far better.

The only weak link in my system is the Raven Audio Blackhawk driving the M30.1. The Blackhawk is definitely a great amp but perhaps better suited for more efficient speakers than Harbeth. No one should take it as a knock against Blackhawk, but I will say that their assertion that the 20 watts it offers are the equivalent of 100 SS watts is not true at all, at least in my experience. I will start looking for something else in a few months.


More to discover