Spendor D7 vs. Harbeth Super HL5+


Anyone who has heard both? Comparisons? I own the Harbeth. Curious about the difference with the Spendor. What brand and type of amp used. Thanks!
routeman21

Showing 2 responses by fsonicsmith

Prof has incredible listening and writing skills, but I do mildly disagree with him about the Spendors. In my case, I have a pair of walnut D7.2's purchased as nearly brand new demos. I also have a pair of DeVore O/93's which Prof has written much about. 
Prof is correct that the Spendors are brighter than the DeVores, but only ever-so slightly in my system. 
Prof does not seem to endorse the critical nature of wire to the extent that I do. Swapping out speaker cable was critical for me. I had Cardas Clear and it was good, if not very good. But replacing it (I am still holding onto them and won't part with the Cardas) with one-third as expensive Auditorium 23 benefited both sets of my speakers in my system, using ARC tubed electronics (Ref 6 and Ref 150SE). The Auditorium speaker cable "sorted out" the music as the Brits would say. Perhaps a little less sparkle and clarity but everything sounds more of a whole cloth to use yet another cliche'.
I am very very happy with D7.2's. They don't put out a wall of sound the way the DeVores do, but they do image much better and portray a deeper soundstage. The Spendor's are a bit surgical and precise compared to the DeVores, but they are by no means bright in my system unless the source is bright. I have been listening to the Spendors for four months now as my DeVores sit in the next room over from my listening room. I miss the DeVores. In two months I will carefully mark with blue masking tape the perfect spot I found for my Spendors and then move them out to make way for a return of the DeVores and then six months after that....such is my plan. 
If I had a larger room, I would own O/96's. I listened to both over and over at the 2018 Axpona and preferred the O/96's to the O/93's. The O/93's are more polite, the O/96's are party-girls. I know calling a human a "party-girl" is not currently acceptable, but since I am referring to an inanimate object, I will stick with calling them that. Not "sluts", but definite party girls. They boogie in a really good way. I by nature do not dance, but I have never encountered ANY loudspeaker that makes me want to dance like the O/96's do. And air-drum and air-guitar.