@ryder
The OP already purchased the ultimate speaker.
The OP already purchased the ultimate speaker.
Harbeth 30.1 ? The Ultimate Speaker under $5K ?
I have been on a mission lately to find the best speakers within my budget - under $5K ...I am definitely an audio freak and my sound engineer in LA told me we went to a HiFi convention of sorts in Newport and heard every high end boutique speaker there is and hands down the Harbeth 30.1 was the best...thought it was a live band as he turned the corner into room !
Local hiFi high end shops always push whatever they deal....guy near me recommends Paradigm Prestige 95s but the seem more for home theatre use...here's my profile:
I listen MOSTLY to LPs (stream on occasion with Audioengine B1)
Marantz PM-11S1 Mono Block Amp
Sony STR-V7 Amp
Technics SL-15
1 SVS SB1000 Sub (if necessary)
My listening room : is approximately 15 feet from Hifi to sitting position, wood floors , pitched ceiling about 10-15 feet in spots ...entire room approx 30 feet across . I consider it a VERY live, reflective space.
I am a drummer so I love fat , tight kick drum. Rock i.e.: Rush , Prince, old 70s / 80s fusion/Jazz
I listen to all different volume levels, sometimes low, sometimes I turn up music very loud and crappy speakers always seem to lose definition at high volume .
I currently have some NHTs 2.3 & Infinity IL60s for surround....
Is the Harbeth 30.1 too small of a speaker for my spot? what do you guys recommend! Thank You !
Local hiFi high end shops always push whatever they deal....guy near me recommends Paradigm Prestige 95s but the seem more for home theatre use...here's my profile:
I listen MOSTLY to LPs (stream on occasion with Audioengine B1)
Marantz PM-11S1 Mono Block Amp
Sony STR-V7 Amp
Technics SL-15
1 SVS SB1000 Sub (if necessary)
My listening room : is approximately 15 feet from Hifi to sitting position, wood floors , pitched ceiling about 10-15 feet in spots ...entire room approx 30 feet across . I consider it a VERY live, reflective space.
I am a drummer so I love fat , tight kick drum. Rock i.e.: Rush , Prince, old 70s / 80s fusion/Jazz
I listen to all different volume levels, sometimes low, sometimes I turn up music very loud and crappy speakers always seem to lose definition at high volume .
I currently have some NHTs 2.3 & Infinity IL60s for surround....
Is the Harbeth 30.1 too small of a speaker for my spot? what do you guys recommend! Thank You !
Showing 7 responses by shadorne
@d2girls I’ll be happy to report on my findings of the 30.2 once I get them, if ever... I’m more qualified as to what constitutes as ’natural’ sound more then any of you, by the way. Not all all of us here are complete music luddites. As a drummer, I hang a lot around real musicians. Some of their talent may rub off one day. One can but hope ;-) |
I have ATC and have auditioned Harbeth extensively. The mid range of Harbeth is excellent. The bass is not as tight as I would like and the driver integration isn’t as good. That said Harbeth would easily be my second choice for a warm FM sounding speaker that works great at moderate volumes. They sound really sweet. Great for acoustic, small jazz ensemble, vocals etc - not the speaker of choice for a rock drummer though. Harbeth mid range uses a soft cone material that is inert. Some form of polypropylene that remains soft and stable. Similar to ATC which use a doped fabric both drivers are intrinsically damped. I believe this is the trick to audibly superior mid range - others are chasing highly rigid materials for cones and these all have a characteristic resonances that are imparted on top of the music. An intrinsically damped cone has blacker blacks to use a visual analogy. This is why Harbeth mid range sounds so clean. FWIW - the other BBC designs with the harder polypropylene material a la Rogers etc. can not compare to Harbeth. The harder polypropylene cones used in most other BBC knock offs imparts a nasal character to the mid range. |
Dunlavy don’t play super loud and are preferred by classical listeners not rock. They aren’t fast and punchy but have lovely tone. Dunlavy have a narrow listening sweetspot which is ill suited to your large room. Also, as you are a drummer I think Dunlavy will fall a bit short of your needs in the sound reproduction of drums. https://www.mixonline.com/technology/high-end-studio-monitor-shootout-atc-scm-300a-and-dunlavy-sc-v-371391 Devore O/93 have a rather scooped mid range as do all speakers with a 10” woofer expected to cover the mid range. Of your list that leaves only the Cornwall - a classic rock speaker and your best choice of the three. |