Where did you go after Harbeth?

I don't think an SET amp will properly drive your SHL5's. I found that my C7's liked power and sounded best with at least a solid 100 wpc amplifier. Though I never tried a SET or low power tube amp I have doubts about this pairing given my experience.

Daedalus DA-1.1's. I loved my Compact 7's and spent two years looking for a speaker that was as true and natural in the midrange and non-fatiguing as the Harbeths but had a bigger, more dynamic and "quicker" sound. Daedalus did that like no other speaker I auditioned. I would encourage you to add them to your list.

Daedalus are high sensitivity designs (i.e. 97db) and a number of owners are using them with low power SET amplification. Just so you know...

Sebastien:

That is a logical conclusion and SHOULD be correct given the sheer musicality of every Harbeth design BUT I do see quite a few pairs for sale here on the A'gon so some folks must be moving on to other brands (though some may be moving up in the Harbeth line). Honestly, I probably would not have sold my Compact 7's had I not moved into a much larger listening space. In fact, I even tried running my C7's with a sub (Rel Stadium III) which initially satisfied but over the long run I yearned for the coherence of an integrated design rather than separate subwoofer. I will say however that as good as the Harbeth's are the one area where they do not keep up with other designs is in delivering the speed, weight and dynamics found in good rock (and other) recordings. If you listen exclusively to chamber music, female vocals, acoustic music and the like I could see living with a pair of Harbeth's till the end of time. However, if your tastes are more diverse and run toward rock, large symphonic works, big band, etc. then a speaker that can reproduce the scale and dynamics of those genres might be preferred. The trouble is finding one that does the midrange as well as the Harbeth's and can play the smaller scale and acoustic material with delicacy and tonal accuracy. I have found that many larger designs (some very expensive) are colored in various ways or are overly lean, bright, etched etc. That is why it took me two years to find a full range speaker to replace my Compact 7's. I would always return to my Harbeth's after a demo or show and feel that (within their range) my Harbeth's sounded much better than the speaker I had just auditioned. This would happen over and over again--the Harbeth's would be bested in a few specific areas but their overall musicality simply could not be beat. Then I discoverd Daedalus and realized that I really could have it all--warmth, musicality, delicacy, tonal accuracy, dynamics, detail, no fatigue, etc. For me, Daedalus was the answer and I could finally let my C7's go without an ounce of regret.