Harbeth 7es-3 Sound

Finally got to hear these speakers yesterday.

What I heard was excellent driver integration - you don't have the sensation of where/when the tweeter takes over (which is such a common problem in two way speakers).

A warm wooden or boxy resonant sound in the bass. (Nice for acoustic music at low levels - great ambience but can get overwhelming at loud levels) The highs are nice and polite with a delicate touch - really good. And the mid range is the best part of this speaker - it is better than other Harbeth's but just a tad polite or recessed. Apart form the bass response overall it is very accurate/neutral. I suspect the driver has great internal damping which makes it so pleasant and natural to listen to compared to the horrible sound of metal drivers (all those resonances). Great that Harbeth is still making their drivers when many manufacturers just buy off the shelf mass produced stuff.

This is a very relaxing speaker. I would not use it for rock or orchestral or big band as I don't think the drivers/cabinet are robust enough to even play moderately loud. This is the kind of speaker I would enjoy in my study whilst quietly reading and listeing to beautiful vocalists...

I listen almost exclusively to rock and I absolutely love my Compact 7ES-3's! I occasionally listen to jazz and mellow acoustic stuff, too, and I have to say that the Harbeths handle it ALL very well. The only thing I am tempted to try is a sub to reach a little deeper on the low end. But, what is there is very accurate and suprisingly deep. I'm afraid adding a sub will be an endless game of tweaking for proper integration and I am enjoying the simplicity and fine sound of having the speakers alone. Granted, I do have a small room and don't listen at crushing volumes. The Harbeths are plenty punchy, even for Metallica (believe it or not). Electric guitars sound phenomenal. Imaging is great and as someone else said, driver integration is superb. These are very, very well designed speakers and the unique cabinet construction certainly contributes to the whole sonic picture. It is obvious that every minute detail of these speakers has been well thought out for functionality. They may not be the best looking, but they do look nice in a "retro" sort of way. They don't do all (or any, really) of the audiophile tricks, but present music in a fully enjoyable manner. Of course, speaker preference is one of the most personal issues in hifi. YMMV...

hi,

Well in a word they disappear. The musicality, transients, clarity, faithfulness to the recorded medium ( IE, the recording engineers interpertation of the sound) are all there in spades. I do use it for all geners of music and all are presented by the speakers in a extreamily pleasent and nonfatiguing fasihon.

For me these are stop here speakers ... no need to look farther. Audition them if you can, If you can't just buy them ... you will lose very little as they are in great demand on the used market and do not come up with any frequency for sale used. Those of us who have them just keep them.

good listening

Larry

hi,

a review here

http://www.stereotimes.com/speak103107.shtml

Larry

I have to say that the Harbeths handle it ALL very well.

I agree. It is indeed an outstanding speaker.

My point that they don't go very loud and that the warm bass (which is so nice at lower levels) can be overwhelming at higher levels is in the category of "nit picking".

These speakers have the characterstic Harbeth warm "audiophile" British sound and, in particular, I think the midrange excels in this one - compared to other speakers and other Harbeths (driver integration perhaps - who knows?).