Hello rja,
I am the Harbeth dealer in the Dallas area and can expound on this some. When it comes to their lineup, I view them as an extended family. You have the only child in the P3ESR. Then you have brothers in the 30.2 and 40.2, and yet another pair of brothers in the C7ES3 and SHL5+. They are all cousins and share a familial resemblance, but there are some differences within each nuclear family.
In reference to the 30.2 and SHL5+, the 30.2 represents more of what I think of when I hear the name Harbeth. It is a warm speaker and because of that, its hard to get a bad synergy with them. They are more efficient than the specs would lead you to believe, are an easy load for an amplifier, and excel at near-field or semi-near-field positioning.
The SHL5+ is much more linear in tone and can take a little more effort in synergizing. They need more power than the 30.2 to 'open up' but when you get that right, they can fill a larger room with sound with ease. You get better bass response as well.
I hope this helps you some.
Cheers!
Skip
I am the Harbeth dealer in the Dallas area and can expound on this some. When it comes to their lineup, I view them as an extended family. You have the only child in the P3ESR. Then you have brothers in the 30.2 and 40.2, and yet another pair of brothers in the C7ES3 and SHL5+. They are all cousins and share a familial resemblance, but there are some differences within each nuclear family.
In reference to the 30.2 and SHL5+, the 30.2 represents more of what I think of when I hear the name Harbeth. It is a warm speaker and because of that, its hard to get a bad synergy with them. They are more efficient than the specs would lead you to believe, are an easy load for an amplifier, and excel at near-field or semi-near-field positioning.
The SHL5+ is much more linear in tone and can take a little more effort in synergizing. They need more power than the 30.2 to 'open up' but when you get that right, they can fill a larger room with sound with ease. You get better bass response as well.
I hope this helps you some.
Cheers!
Skip