Harbeth SHL5 for Shindo Montille?

Yeah, I also heard from many sources (users, dealers) that SHL5 do not have offical parameters sound good for tubes but in reality this speaker is quite OK. It is recommended for Leben CS600 but Leben has 30watts so no big deal. As for Shindo+Harbeth combo I was interested in in musical synergies also - would Harbeth be as good speaker for Shindo as it is for Leben? My room is approx. 20m2.

You got to be kidding, right? Shindo is about as cultish as they come..the guy's a scatter brain with his designs. Buy today, changed design tommorrow...very hit or miss. 15 watts are a joke anyway for almost any speaker unless your one of those limp eared listeners who are offended by realistsic music levels.

Dave b - Try the decaf.

Adam - I had the larger M-40.1's and drove them with a VAC 30/30 (32 wpc). My guess is you may be fine with with this pairing unless you like to listen to complex music (classic rock, pop, full scale orchestral) at high volume levels. Harbeth's are not made to be cranked at high volumes... they excel @ more moderate volume levels, which is one of the things that makes them appealing. Even though their efficiency rating is not high, they do have a benign impedance curve which makes them a good match with moderately powered tube amps. To be safe, I'd be leaning towards something with a min. of 25 "quality" wpc.

Dave_b: "...the guy's a scatter brain with his designs." Beg to differ strongly, and predict many others will do the same, whether they voice their opinions herein or not. Ken Shindo is one of the geniuses making important contributions to the ongoing pursuit of allowing audio systems to reproduce the live event as believably as possible. Change is at the heart of that pursuit. There are many quality speakers available that will do just fine with 15 watts or even less per side into 8 ohms. BTW, what to you believe is a realistic music level? Is that level across the board for all music genres? If not, what other levels are "appropriate" for various music genres, and how did you come by these numbers?

Adam3city: I would suggest the Leben CS600 for those Harbeths if you cannot afford equivalent quality power from the Shindo offerings.

For me, a Shostakovich Symphony demands to be played back at concert level (row 5-10). Even a trumpet played live can make your eardrums distort...it's crazy dynamic and visceral. Music is a living, breathing, aggressively seductive experience. Flea watt amps and limited range speakers do not serve the music IMHO.