Why do Harbeth speakers have such a cult following

@jsautter

Yes, I always find it hard to land on just a single pair of speakers. I have 7 pair in 7 rooms currently. I like to hear different things. Maybe I’m always afraid I’m missing something. :^) The Ohm Walsh are still my go tos. I did think the Harbeth 40.2 brought something uniquely enjoyable to the table, which is what one would expect for the price.

Speaker lines I do not own that I would consider buying at present based on recent auditions:

Fritz
Joseph
Harbeth
mbl

Nothing yet that I would replace my big OHM 5s with yet, but the Harbeth 40.2s and mbl are the closest among those so far at least in size and overall ability. Both my Ohm 5s and harbeth 40.2 use a 12" main driver. Fritz and Joseph do seem to deliver a lot of sound out of smaller packages though.

@pdreher

That description jives with my 40.2 listening experience.  Very "organic".  I wish I could have stayed and listened longer.

@twoleftears 

So in your assessment, is the 40.2 just more of the 30.2 but both are similar sound-wise?

What is it about the SHL5 that is different?

Thanks.

Question for Harbeth experts out there:

Are the two way models as good with vocal clarity as the 3-way models?

I heard 40.2 over the weekend with some very elaborate Conrad Johnson amplification driving them.

Vocal clarity and detail ( Donna Godchaux on the streaming Grateful Dead track "Sunrise") was the thing that struck me most. The setup had the speakers well into the room with a lot of space behind which produced an interesting sound stage from the speakers to about half way back to the wall. Not 3-d really, but pretty cleanly left to right, mostly from just behind the speakers with some things a bit more forward, nothing back near the rear wall.

Also I read and hear people talk about Harbeth and CJ adding some perhaps warmer color to the sound. Gotta say I did not hear that at all. Things were very clean, clear and neutral top to bottom IMHO, nothing offensive whatsoever that I heard, which is what I tend to look for.

I had had some exposure to Harbeth Super HL5s and 40.2 at audio shows prior, enough to peak my interest, but this was my first more in depth exposure otherwise.