Are Harbeth S HL5's As Good As Reviewers Claim?


I'm looking at acquiring a pair of these but have gotten mixed opinions. The reviewers say they're the best thing since sliced bread but some say they are dull, boring and a bit on the "warm" side. Any thoughts, experiences would be appreciated.
mikesmith

Showing 3 responses by chashas1

If you hear em and like em, then they're as good as the reviewers say they are. If they're not your cup of tea, then it doesn't really matter what the reviewers say, does it? or the people that have them....
But that's just it, it's an opinion. In my own lil listening group, we all hear things sometimes the same, sometimes not. It depends on what a person is listening for or preference. One thing I've discovered, someone can go on about a particular piece of gear, and then you go over, and the system is so poorly set up or things mismatched. Who would trust such an opinion then? I bet if you could hear even half of the systems of people who post their opinions on here you'd bust a gut laughing in disbelief!
That's why I made my comment. Opinions are fine, but know their source. and trust your own ears.
Perhaps, it's certainly not worth arguing the point. If he hears them and likes them, case closed. But, one strong rule of thumb to go by is, if they're getting good word of mouth, almost envariably they'll stink in the end or certainly won't be to someone's liking. Case in point, spendors are great speakers for what they do, and if you still like that sound, then they're great for you. I find them to be way too polite and have moved on. Hence the harbeths, same scenario. I have one reviewer I like, jeff day--still loves the HL5's. Another reviewer, bob neil, loved the spendors, then harbeths, now he's onto something else, audio notes, i think. You could line all these guys up with their harbeths on here and hear praise from them. If I listened and started nodding off, like with spendors, then they're definitely not for me. It's fun to talk about all this gear and our experiences, and yes, the opinions, but that can only go so far as to making a purchase.