@goofyfoot
I might be mistaken but I thought Harbeth had moved its manufacturing to China, sharing the same manufacturing facility as Quad.
I do hear that British speakers, Sterling, Rogers, Quad, Harbeth, etc... all share a common characteristic in that they are forward sounding.
you are mistaken, harbeths are made in britain still
you should perhaps also define ’forward’ for us in your use of the word, but using the definition of ’forward’ commonly understood in these circles, you are mistaken again
there is a saying that is bandied about pretty often by well worn, long time music lovers and audiophiles - ’after you have tried em all, you come back and find a home with harbeths’... obviously no speaker appeals to all, even all well worn audiophiles, but there is some truth in that claim
harbeths are natural sounding, do voice and real (non electrified) instruments very well, do not overwhelm with a false sense of detail and ’hi-fi-ness’... as @arafiq states, their appeal is in their ability to please and allow for lengthy listening sessions without fatigue, and allow much harshly, poorly recorded material to sound passable, if not downright good