Quality of construction on some speakers- namely Harbeth

@mocktender

for example on tmr there is currently a set of spendor sp100 classic series -- asking 3 grand

the cabinets (corners, side panels, bevels) are hammered to hell, several locations, big hits gouges drops onto hard floors or moving truck floors

that is gross abuse/carelessness on the part of past owner(s), hired movers, whatever... they are large heavy speakers and lots of folks buy them then can’t handle them when it is time to move them, handle them set them up

has got nothing to do with how the speakers were made or the bbc design philosophy thin-wall ’resonant’ cabinets

sad

Thanks for all the responses.  I have talked to a few dealers that handle Harbeth and others.  Their opinions were that the Harbeth and other British speakers have light weight cabinets to induce the sound that they want.  But that lightness was not the trouble for cracked cabinets or separation.  It was less than careful owners, kids, dogs, etc... falling off stands or being dropped in moves. 

I not sure how to load pictures here, but there are several listings on TMRaudio.com that show what I am talking about (they seem to do a nice job showing any and all flaws in the listings: Good on them).

Anyway, doesn't seem to be a real issue.

Mock

Hard to find new, Energy rc-70 pair is what your looking for.
Highs rolled off, and are sublime for low level, and volume.
Smoothest highs, and the midrange is so good, it puts me to sleep. Klipsch ruined energy, forever angry.
One of the best speakers.
If you can find the rc-70, you will have 20 years of pleasure.
The cf-70’s are ok, but have a more detailed and up front tweeter, but are tamed nice with tweaks.

$. Not to bad for the CF-70’s. Worth a audition.


Happy hunting.




 Harbeth are good speakers, tone, parts, drivers, etc etc. 
     

There are some audio manufacturers out there that have strong opinions about various issues that run contrary to popular audiophile received wisdom. This may involve design decisions, component choices and so on. Alan Shaw is one of those contrarians on several levels and doesn't wish to waste time debating his choices. If you like his speakers, great, buy them. If you don't like them, go away.   

I've owned Spendors and heard Harbeths many times and think both brands are excellent and very musical sounding. I never had any trouble with the cabinet quality of the Spendors I owned which included two of the classic models and two of the S series. 

You called to tell him you think he cheaped out on components and he hung up on you. I’d have done the same. 

Very disappointing ,Al the owner of Harbeth hung up on me about 8 years ago because I called him out on the Subpar cheap Xovers parts 
look at 6 moons in one of the  reviews it shows the Xover .
I located these shiny gun drop maroon caps they are from Taiwan , and cheap ceramic resistors ,for a speaker this expensive ,a huge markup for profit. I even mentioned Clarity caps made in the U,K
much better ,why not use U.K  capacitors ?  The phone ☎️ hung up. Great midrange driver everything else decent ,at best .
thsts why I refused to buy one ,but know several friends who have upgraded theirs ,with my assistance  with several speakers.

I've been around Harbeth's quite a bit and never noticed construction problems. The 30.2s are midrange oriented but still have nice bass and good upper-end extension without being fatiguing. Play them with a tube integrated and you'll be very happy.

It is related to speaker care and maintenance not a quality of construction issue.

Here is a link to a video of Spendor cabinets being crafted. The cabinets or Harbeths and some others are made in the same factory.

https://youtu.be/3DrOmtu3L8M

I have bought and sold many Harbeths. You are correct about the damage. The grill and corner damage is caused from trying to remove the grill incorrectly. Harbeth should mention in the owners manual that a magnet puller is needed for grill removal. The build quality is outstanding on Harbeths. BTW, when I sell Harbeths I supply a magnet puller for proper grill removal!

While looking at used speakers out there, I couldn't help but notice that besides being a lot of ham handed owners, a lot of these box speakers are coming apart at the the corners and their veneers are cracking.  My question is, English moist country made and then living in drier climates doom these to seperating or is it just knocking them over causing it?

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The cracking or peeling of veneers at the corners is likely due to rough handling of the speakers by owners. My Harbeth SHL5 speakers are good as new after 7 years of ownership. No issues with my current SHL5 Plus. 

The build quality with Harbeth speakers is very high. The wood veneer is solid and beautiful. Lower build quality would be from the likes of ATC or Proac to name a few. Other high end speakers usually have glossy finish as standard or optional.

I have owned the Harbeth 30.2 for less then a year, but they they are solidly built. Are they built like tanks like Wilson's? No. However, I damaged my right ear drum and it's very sensitive to high or sharp-pitched sounds/speakers. I did not enjoy listening to the Wilsons (just my opinion!), nor B&Ws. The Harbeth's have a wonderful mid-range and the smooth sound of the tweeter allows me to listen for hours on end. I cannot image them falling apart because they are built in a damp climate and moved to a drier one. Speaking as an amateur woodworker, the wood itself, whether used for speakers or furniture, has to have a low level of moisture before the wood is used or there will be problems very quickly. I cannot imagine any speaker company using high-moisture content wood. Hope this helps.

no problems with harbeths spendors grahams proacs or the like if they are cared for and treated properly, thin walled cabinets have nothing to do with it

Bad owners! 

Separation?? I haven’t noticed any speakers exhibiting this issue in all my browsing of dozens of listings. Nor have I read of anyone experiencing this problem in all my years on the forums. 

I suspect you’re mistaking pics of chipped corners for separation. 

 I’ve owned my Spendors for four years now and the veneer is as good as new. My Stirlings were manufactured in 2012 and they’re also in mint condition. 

BBC speaker philosophy tends toward thin-walled cabinets. So that could be a factor. I have a pair of Spendor SP2 with me for 34 years and saw me thru a bunch of apartments and girlfriends. And there is not a scratch on them. So, yeah, clumsy ownership is the deal.

Look at a great speaker Magico,Vimberg or Rockport much better sound and construction quality.