P3ESR Impressions

As requested, here are impressions of the Harbeth P3ESR I recently bought (used). I'm using them in my desktop system, with my ears about 40 inches (1 meter) from the speakers.

System setup: FLAC files > JRiver on Windows > USB > Lynx Hilo > Marsh Sound Design A400S > Harbeths. Music is mostly classical, with some jazz, bluegrass, pop/rock, folk, show tunes, in descending order.

The first thing I noticed on substituting the Harbeths for Audioengine A5+ was how good the Audioengines are. The change was not night and day, and no aspect of the sound jumped out as hugely better. Both models have relaxed treble, and no glaring problems. But over a couple of weeks of listening, I began to appreciate the Harbeths.

Things I notice most are their clarity, lack of irritation, and excellent timbre reproduction. Instruments and voices sound more natural, and the imaging is a better, without calling attention to itself.

The sealed boxes do give smoother bass response, as I'd hoped. This is not easy, because they are ~1 foot (30 cm) from the wall behind. I will probably use a subwoofer in this system with a crossover around 80 Hz, but even without it, the Harbeths are less lumpy in the bass when run full-range than the Audioengines were.

All these improvements add up to a more convincing, relaxed, and enjoyable presentation.

I have noticed that on recordings where, e.g., a chorus sounds a little "hooty" in the soprano range, the Harbeths are easier to listen to than most speakers. I though this was an unalloyed strength until I went to a choral concert and experienced the hootiness live. So perhaps a little euphonic sweetening in the 2-4 kHz range is part of the Harbeth recipe. Somehow, they do it without making instrumental timbres sound unnatural, and this quality makes older digital recordings sound better than one would expect. I will take it any day over overemphasized highs.

The slightly relaxed highs give natural ambiance reproduction, but without the sense of extra "air" of some speakers with a tilted-up response. The extra air is nice ear candy, but in my experience, it comes at the cost of irritation on subpar recordings.

In summary, I'm glad I chose the P3ESR. I would recommend them to anyone looking for a speaker this size with natural timbre reproduction of acoustic instruments -- including voice -- and smooth frequency response. For power music, a sub would be needed, and for laser-like treble (as found in sound reinforcement), look elsewhere.

Mike

 

Thanks for the review - definitely one of the best mini monitors out there...

 

A true "final purchase" audio component, for when one wants off the audio nervosa treadmill.

 

To the OP,

How is the bass from the P3ESR? Do you think that a sub is needed with this model? I am asking this question in the context of a 2 channel music system rather than a computer system though.

Has anyone compared the P3ESR to the Sonus Faber Minima?

Scott

 

Hands-down, one of my favourite speakers of all time.
And, as others have mentioned, an "I've arrived" mini-monitor. They do a surprisingly great job of tricking the ears into thinking there is more bass being produced than their specs suggest when properly positioned in a room.
Personally, I think they are at their best several feet out, not near field as the OP is using them, and they truly shine in a vinyl set-up – especially with tube power.

 

That’s true - they do trick the ear into thinking there’s more there, than what’s there! Something about the roll-off - your brain just fills in the missing last bit that a 5” driver just can’t quiet conjure...

 

If you can live with 75Hz then no ... however if it were me I would not even consider using this speaker without a subwoofer.

 

Scott,

The bass is good but doesn't go down very far. You can google for measurements. My experience is that a sub improves any small speaker by extending the frequency response and unloading the small speaker's woofer from frequencies it can't reproduce. That gives better dynamics and more a sense of unconstrained listening (plus better bass). It doesn't need to be huge -- I have a B&W ASW610 that I found used and that improved the Audioengines a lot. Haven't yet hooked it up with the P3ESR. I would look for a sealed-box sub if you're going to mate it with the P2ESR.

Mike