Spendor s3/5 SE, Harbeth HLP 3


Has anyone had a chance to compare the special edition Spendor with the small Harbeth?

Also, outside the issue of bass (and realizing that it's twice as expensive), how do these compare to the deCapo(i)?
allenstewart
Since I first posted this thread, I found a great deal on a used pair of Harbeth Compact 7s. Wonderful speaker but obvously more placement sensitive than some smaller ones. (I find that it still benefits from the use of my sub, but even with my Spicas and the Spendor s3/5 I had on loan, I've always found it best just to run the speakers full range with the crossover set to its lowest point with the gain fairly low.)

I'm very curious as to how the P3ES would compare to the C7 in my room. I wonder if it would have an overall lighter tonal balance.

Having the C7s hasn't made me appreciate my Spica TC-50s (which I now use in my bedroom/TV stereo) any less, though. Despite their limitations, the Spicas capture a certain texture of live music that I've never quite heard in any other speaker. And their imaging is such that I feel no need to have more than 2 channel for TV/DVDs.

Thanks for the responses.
I have listened to the Spendors, love their tonal balance but am always thrown off by their imaging

the sound seems to eminate backwards and down from the speakers like it's being supressed or coming from the back of the speaker

do owners put them considerable distance from the wall?

I do a long wall setup that wouldn't work with them

tom