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Harbeth again…or other speakers for acoustic music?

Hi!

I’ve been without any decent hifi setup for a few years now but lately had the thoughts of investing in a good system again. Let me tell you little about my background and what I’m searching for. I live in a place far from any hifi-stores, I’ve not so much experience of listening to a lot of different systems or visiting hifi shows, but I’ve been playing music myself, mostly jazz, for about 20 years and have been in many performances both as musician and as audience.

About 5 years ago I first bought a pair of Harbeth P3 second hand along with a Rega amp. Pretty soon I wanted something bigger in scale so I swapped the speakers for a pair of 30.1 and the amp for a Croft 25/7 combo. The sound was really really good in so many ways, best sound and midrange I’ve ever heard before! Even though my apartment back then was not optimal with concrete walls the vocals was very lifelike. But after a while I feeling somehow that something was missing. I’m no bass junkie or so but I was tempted to try something that had little more depth and covered the bass region better, so I was started looking at SHL5+ and C7ES3. I also thought about integration some subs but never tried that route. Swapped the 30.1 for C7 but I was immediately disappointed. I never got them to sound good at my place. I thought they lacked the magic I felt 30.1 had.

 

I ended up selling all my gear, but the sound of 30.1 and Croft combo really etched back in my mind. It was more emotional to listen to music as I ever before had experienced. I prefer listen to acoustic music, jazz, small groups ensembles but occasional big band and some lighter pop, but looking for something that excells with vocals and acoustic instruments. It can absolutely be little on the warmer sound, I can’t stand harsh and cold sound.


So now I’m looking for a system again and would like to hear what suggestions you have. I listen to low to modest volumes. No heavy rock or metal. I need something that can play good on low volume. HE speakers and a SET amp would be an alternative but also is Harbeth. I know there’s 30.2 now and XD. Integrating with subs could be Ok. My living room is about 15x12 feet and the speakers cannot be to big and dominant, ex Quad ESL is not an option. There is a few softer walls and I think 1 concrete wall.

 

Happy to hear your thoughts..

philsons

Showing 4 responses by avanti1960

avanti1960
1,411 posts
 

I had the C7ES3 and while I liked them they were a touch too rich and occasionally lacking detail.  

I went through a few other brands and eventually came back to Harbeth with the SHL5+.  They have different sound compared to the C7.  More detail and an incredibly transparent midrange as well as better bass.  They are my long term speaker.   Like any, they thrive when you set them up properly and will respond well to quality amplification and sources.  

Good stands, proper placement and toe-in, etc. are critical.  

I used tube amps with excellent results- e.g. a Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum and Stereo 100.  Currently running a Cary tube preamp and Pass Labs solid state amp.  

avanti1960
1,411 posts
 

@philsons 

 

I have compared the 30.2 to the SHL5+.  but not with a subwoofer.  I am sure they would sound excellent.

Overall I prefer the transparency of the SHL5+ vs. the 30.2.  The 30.2 can sound soft and rounded.  Not as rich as the C7ES3 but again I prefer the transparency in the SHL5+

Not to say it is overly bright, the SHL5+ still maintains that Harbeth warmth and forgiveness.  

avanti1960
1,411 posts
 

@jdal 

please remember that GR research video has an agenda.  the crossover parts are low cost but are well regarded capacitors and resistors that have tight tolerances.  they are low cost because they are sold in high volume.  

as far as the parts content understand that to achieve the sound the designers are after a crossover may need many parts to achieve the best sound.  the main goals are absolute coherence between the drivers, a perfect phase response, an easy to drive impedance curve, and keeping drivers well out of their breakup modes.

to do this to perfection requires parts- e.g. higher order slopes require more parts per low pass/ and high pass filter than simple shallow slope design.  you may also need circuits for impedance flattening (zoebel), notch filtering for supressing peaks and distortion as well as baffle step compensation to flatten the response from higher reflected frequencies.  

The secret sauce of any speaker are the voicing and crossovers, often a simple one does not yield the best results.

you should see the crossovers for the well regarded Joseph Audio Pulsars, which are a patented "infinite slope" design.  

avanti1960
1,411 posts
 

The SHL5+ are sensitive to toe in and break in hours.  

They are counter intuitive in that more toe in reduces brightness. Also they should have grilles on to smooth the upper midrange.  

Lastly mine took many many hours to reach their final forgiving less bright initial sound.  

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