How good are the Harbeth 40's?


I am intrigued about purchasing a pair of these for a room that is 14w by 22d. I have read great things (TAS) but have no practical experience. I have totem mani 2's, revel f 50s and thiel 3.5 and like them all for different reasons, but the british monitor aspect is very interesting. Also I am curious about amp needs for this very inefficient model. Primarily jazz, r&b and rock. Thanks.
emster

Showing 1 response by paulwp

Well, the Harbeth website recommends 100-250 watt amps. They were designed as a "drop-in" replacement for a large BBC monitor, and as a professional monitor, probably unequaled. Very few people have them in their homes and it seems like 3 of them have them up for sale. They are very large, and with a 12 inch woofer, difficult to situate in a real world room. They are the favorite speakers of Robert E Greene (REG), the longtime speaker reviwer for The Absolute Sound (TAS). Though they are listed below a lot of more expensive speakers on TAS's recommended list, REG says they are demonstrably better than almost all (maybe all) the more expensive speakers listed ahead of them.

I don't think your room is big enough for them.