Harbeth 40.1 - Need some tips on placement from current owners.

Thanks Rob. These are a simple joy for me. I played all my Rickie Lee Jones CDs today and so enjoyed it! 

Yes I do have the 40.1s coming. Really like the sound of Harbeth speakers and decided to go for it! 

Pdreher, oh my why don't folks talk about these speakers more! What a revelation! So rich and full bodied with all the details of the finest speaker, but not thrust at you! 

I love them. 8 feet from the wall behind them, 7.5 feet apart center to center, and I sit 9 feet back from the front plane of the speakers. 

Slight toe in. They remind me of my Soundlab M1 speakers. No kidding. They fill the room with rich, full bodied music. Effortless and with a ton depth. 

This is true. I have owned many speakers through the years and these are so utterly different in a pleasant way. They do need a large room and some work to dial in. Once set up properly with the right gear, they are very special. 

Grills on or off? 

Von Gaylord Legend Triode amp. 50 watts monoblock amps that are spectacular. Ray updated these for me last month and they sound as good as any DHT amp I have owned, but with power! That is their claim to flame.

Claim to flame? Ha that is funny! Meant to type claim to fame! LOL

6550 tubes. Salectric

My system consists of of a DIY tube preamp with beefy power supply, the amps mentioned above, Luxman DA06 dac and PS Audio memory player transport. All my wire is Western Electric NOS from the 70s. Thick gauge for the power cords and speaker wire .. 10 ga. 

This is system has zero fatigue and has me forgetting completely about how this or that part of the system sounds. The music, in totality, just sounds right. Very nice end result. The speakers are the main reason. They are not the most resolving. They are not the most extended in the top end. Other speakers image better...and do other aphile tricks better.  However no speaker I have heard plays music with more simply enjoyment. 

The he one exception may be the Soundlab M1 speakers I owned. The two sound very much alike really. The SLs are huge however and need tons of power. 

Well I have had these speakers two weeks and they are just fabulous. They did take me awhile to set up for optimum performance. I found slight position changes impacted the sound. 

The bass was the biggest challenge. They can sound bass heavy and thick without that last bit of dialing in. I am enjoying classical music like never before. In general the speakers are just plain easy to enjoy music with. Easy to get lost into the music. No tipped up highs or upper mids. No thinness. Just a full bodied, natural sounding speaker. 

Sure my previous speakers were more impressive in dynamics and ultimate resolution, but the 40.1 just sound beautiful and right. Less impressive, but right. 

If if any of you have tinnitus, then this speaker is a must have! 

Perfect description! Agree 110%. 

I am trying out a Job 225 to see what solid state does with these speakers.

Hi Bob. I hooked the 40.1s to a Goldmund Job 225 SS amp today and have been listening for several hours. I must say it seems these speakers like more power and SS amps. I like the sound better and I did not think it could get any better. 

These speakers like a fast amp with great bass control and at least 100-150 watts to really open up. At least that has been my experience thus far with  25 watt SET amps, 50 watt triode PP tube amps, and finally the Job 225. The Job is the best of the group on this speaker. 

all three were good, but I really enjoy the Job 225 more.

Nice post. I bet the Bryston is a good match with the 40.1s. Best to avoid dark or warmish sounding amps for best results. I bet the new Vac will be very good indeed!