Harbeth SHL5 vs Dynaudio Special 25 vs...

All I can say is that the Harbeths are very special speakers. They have that rare combination of supreme musicality, incredibly natural tonality with excellent transparency as well. They image like a bandit for conventional box speakers and do other things spectularily well for their price range. I decided to become a dealer for Harbeth after all the positive things I heard and read, and everything is true. The Monitor 30's have that same Harbeth magic wilth a bit less full bottom but with a higher degree of resolution.

But where are the Harbeths in the photos? So they really have adequate bass extension and detail? Can you hear the double bass? Some people say they sound flat and laid back in the mid region.

Apopira, I haven't updated my system in two years. I was mixing and matching stuff a lot and I really did not have a steady system. What I have now is a cheap dvd player, hard drive+ Cal Labs Sigma ll DAC, Naim Nap 150 + Naim 112 and the Harbeths. I am builidng the system around the Harbeths. I am thinking for amplification on a Lavardin IT or a Leben 300 (the Naims are pretty good but I want to explore) and for cables maybe the Signal Siver Resolution.
Regarding the bass and mid range, I love strings and my two favorite instruments are the cello and the double bass, since I got the speakers I find myself listening even more to music that features these prominently. The sound is full bodied and I don`t need a sub.

Going back to compare the HL5 and the Special 25 they are probably closer than any two speakers that I have ever heard and I don`t think that you could go wrong regardless. But In my case and for my biases this is the best speaker that I`ve owned (and I am keeping them for good) with the Special 25 in second place.

Minotauro, I have not heard of the Leben but a quick internet search and I found them. WoW! what a beautiful amp. Have you listened to one? I would like to know where. If that amp sounds even close to how it looks the combination with the Harbeth should be magical. That is an amp I would really like to get a good listen to.

Hi Davt, I used one briefly. My friend has a pair of avantgarde unos and he bought the Leben and after a while gave it to me to sell it here(he doesn`t have a computer) at that time I had the De Capos I and listened for two weeks. I did not have the money available at that time and I sold it instead of buying it for myself and I regret it dearly. I think it was the first used Leben in Audiogon. The amp comes with NOS Mullar EL-84 and it is the finest amp that I`ve tried, also the nicest looking one, the sound is very sweet and detailed. They have a good review of it on 6moons but I honestly think that the amp sounds better than what transpires in the review. The Capos can be bright but the combination with the Leben was awsome, with this combo you can listen at very, very low levels and still get the whole musical presentation . I did not tried it with the Harbeths but I think that`s the direction that I will take.