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Harbeth Compact 7s vs. Pioneer's $129 speakers

I’m not going to claim they are the equals of my Harbeth Compact 7ES-3s, but the $129 Andrew Jones-designed speakers by Pioneer (SP-BS22-LR) are quite remarkable. My point in posting is not really to compare them with my Harbeths, but to make the following observation:

>>I’m becoming convinced that modestly priced components that are very good at doing a few things you care about very much can offer satisfaction far beyond any expectations based on price.<<

That’s the case with the Pioneer speakers, which I believe now have a list price of $159.

I listen almost exclusively to classical music and chamber music, in particular. These Pioneer speakers have a way of presenting string quartets, piano trios and similar ensembles with a truly remarkable sense of realism. The few things I care about more than any others include the timbres and textures of unamplified instruments (i.e., the woodiness of a cello, the rosiny sweet gruffness of a violin) as well as rendition of the recording venue’s ambiance. The Pioneer speakers do these things extremely well.

They have earned quite a bit of commentary and praise since their introduction. Needless to say, they don’t do as many things as well as the Harbeths (nearly 25 times their price), but I find that for me, the above observation rings true. The tone colors, textures and spaciousness that the Pioneers get so right, despite other imperfections, give them the ability to reward me far in excess of the expectations I had for them.

Andrew Jones, of course, is the designer of Pioneer’s megabuck TAD speakers, and I think it’s especially admirable that he took on the challenge of designing speakers at the very opposite end of the cost spectrum. I’m not about to sell my Harbeths, but I really don’t feel significantly shortchanged when I replace them with the Pioneers from time to time.

-Bob
hesson11
onemug
784 posts
 
Spent a day in a studio last week with some old friends and some new. Done this for years but this was the first time I heard someone talk about equipment and not music. The equipment was these Pioneers (BS22's) and how natural they sounded especially at $130 and these were the musicians that brought it up and not the engineers!!!

I found them at Best Buy less than a mile from my house so I went and picked them up. I figured 130 each BUT it was for the PAIR. I like them!

Looked a little more into these to find out why they might be sooooo good:

Andrew Jones from TAD....designer
Waveguide for the tweeters...helps it blend with the woofer
Treated cone for the mid/woofer
6 ohms nominal with the minimum being 5.5
A very nice crossover with film caps and air core inductors.

IMO: Not just good for 65 each, but simply a well designed speaker period.
tonyangel
309 posts
 
I got one of my kids a pair of those BS22s. Definitely solid mid-fi. I liked them better than all of the lower cost Paradigms that I listened to. He's driving them with an old Harman Kardon 80wpc amp using an ipod dock.
loomisjohnson
1,961 posts
 
my interest was piqued enuff to give 'em another listen at "magnolia" (a/k/a the dank, uninhabited corner of best buy). fairly stated, they're very nice for the price--balanced, good low end heft, nice imaging. significantly more enjoyable than the 2x the price polk and klipsch offered for comparison. they don't move mountains---there's a lack of high end detail/transparency; cymbals and trebly guitar sounds are somewhat compromised; they're not gonna compete with your megabuck magicos or revels. someone looking for a very high value ht system could do a lot worse, however.
daniel825
36 posts
 
Bob,

I went out and bought a pair of these today based on your review. I am using them in my bedroom. I have them hooked up to a Marantz PM7002 integrated amp, Marantz SA8004 CD player and a Rega P3 turntable.. The first couple hours of play I did not think they were so great. A few CD's later they started to open up and I spread them a bit farther apart to about 5 feet. You are absolutely right. The timbre is right on. The top end is rolled off a bit but perfect for non fatiguing late night bedroom listening. They image very well and they produce a lott of sound for their small size. In my 10x20 room the sound fills the whole room. The sound in my room with my system i VERY SATISFYING. I found myself putting in one cd after another.. Best $129 I have spent yet in audio...

Thanks
Dan
hesson11 OP
237 posts
 
Glad you're happy with them, Dan. They may not be perfect, but if the things they do well are the things that are important to you, they are truly remarkable for the price. I would love to see what Andrew Jones could do with a pair of monitors at the "princely" price point of $1,000 or so!

-Bob
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