Demoing Harbeth Super HL5 Plus against my Harbeth M30.1s

Aston - Bentley ??

Are we not talking speakers here?

Not gleening a lot of info here - nice pics though

 

This guy moved up from the 30.1 to the

Hey raferx, just out of curiosity what is the wood type on the Eames chair? I mostly see those chairs in walnut, but yours looks a little redder and matches quite nicely to the Harbeth veneers.

 

LOL

 

What do you need to know? Glad to answer questions, I'm not a reviewer
Bentley= a little plusher, smoother ride, perhaps a bit of separation from a rough or bumpy "road" Big, roomy feel, bit of roll in tight corners, supple.
Aston= sporty but smooth ride, more "road" feel transferred through to the driver. Sporty, taut, faster off the mark and hunkers down in the corners.
Make sense?

 

It's cherry.

 

Ok yeah...OK ..i see your going for Jeremy Clarkson's job in Top Gear now the spots vacant.

 

Rafe, I really love the system you have put together. Whichever direction you go I can clearly see that music is at it's core. Enjoy.

As you can read in my signature I have gone back to Harbeth and don't regret it a bit. Speakers from the likes of Harbeth and DeVore Fidelity sound natural and satisfying.

 

Thanks Art. That's one from the heart.
Have a great weekend my friend.

 

I have no doubt that some speakers (including Harbeth) can sound great with zero hours. However in my 2.5 plus decades of mobile and home audio as well as speaker DIY experience I have never witnessed a speaker that did not sound better after significant extended use. Speakers are highly mechanical devices with flexible materials and moving parts. Along with phono cartridges that have suspensions and mechanical interface to the record grooves, they are the (2) components that can sound much different after extended use.
For speakers, the most common effect is more bass at lower frequencies. Bass response is all about moving air, and as the surrounds and cones break in, the cone travels more with each stroke and displaces more air. My ears have attested to this as well as frequency response graphs that represent before and after measurements. Midrange and tweeter drivers are also subject to break-in, and will tend to sound smoother and less harsh as they accumulate hours.
I have heard speakers sound different after as much as a year's worth of use.

 

Raferx - as an aside as you live in Vancouver - and some others on the forum live near Vancouver - there is an audio show there in May coming up. http://www.chestergroup.org/vancouveraudioshow/2015/visiting

 

I just want to reiterate (if it wasn't clear) that both speakers are very organic, incredibly musically involving, and very transparent to source, cables and amplification.
Any changes made upstream will be revealed immediately. Neither speaker will make bad recordings sound good.
They'll handle pretty much any amp (within reason) because of the easy load they present the amplifier.
Anything from 10 watts of good tube power to 100 watts of solid state will make them sing IME.
My preference is for Class-A amplification, as they will really present that difference.
Both the 30.1 and 5 Plus reveal incredible amounts of detail and nuance recording to recording, and can go from sounding grainy and a bit bright in the upper-mids to bass-shy or muddy from album to album. A true test of transparency to source IMHO as they really never do sound the same: they are just presenting the recording as you give it to them. Obviously careful, and thoughtful selection/attention paid to source, cables and amplification will affect this completely, as will placement. The M30.1 likes to be a bit closer together (4' 8" ~ 5' 6") for the best imaging/bass in my room, as opposed to the 5 Plus which likes a wider stance (6' 6" ~ 7' 6").
Both sound best at approx. 27" ~ 30" from the rear wall, and at least 25" from a side wall in my room. Pushing them closer to the rear wall will reinforce bass slightly (IME). My most preferred toe in is on-axis, although slightly less toe in with beaming roughly just off each shoulder has also been quite good with some recordings (mostly orchestral).
These speakers have a very uncanny ability to throw a huge sound stage well beyond the cabinets.
Close attention paid to room damping/acoustics really bring out a big improvement in 3D imaging, and improved treble/mid/bass response. Everything snaps into focus with razor sharp placement of instruments and voices, and very solid, tight bass. You can definitely hear exactly were artists were sitting for recording sessions (less so on mono recordings IME).
In Dave Brubeck's Time Out, (Analogue Productions 2x45) for example, Morello's drums come in from the rear-left with cymbal decay splashing ever-so-slightly to the middle of the sound stage, Brubeck's piano is solidly placed in the right mid-background, Wright's bass comes in almost right up the middle, just slightly at the back and left, but to the right of Morello. By the time Desmond's alto sax blows in at center-right and forward of Wright, everyone is clearly placed for the performance. They do not waver from position.
Again, these are not the speakers for everyone, (bass heads need not bother) but if you value an incredibly well-balanced presentation with a slight emphasis on the midrange, tight, accurate bass, silky smooth treble and true sonic reproduction to the original recording, then I highly recommend both these speakers. Their presentations vary somewhat, but what doesn't vary is outstanding performance, fit and finish.

 

Yup! I'll be there

 

Not to threadpoop, but I agree with this - despite Alan Shaw himself disagreeing vehemently!

I put 100+ hours on my P3ESRs before they arrived at their current state of grace. About halfway through this "break-in", they sounded alarmingly distorted and "broken"; in fact I thought maybe I'd damaged them somehow, by feeding them Led Zeppelin II too soon. But a day or two later, everything sounded great!

 

Thanks for sharing your Harbeth journey. I received 30.1's and Resonant Wood stands (one of which was lost by UPS, just my luck) last week and I'm a week or two away from setting them up in my soon to be complete listening room. I'll share pics when I'm all setup. I bought them without ever hearing them (though I once owned SHL5's) and your experience with them was just the push I needed. Can't hardly wait!

 

Awaiting your impressions as well.

 

Rafe,

Did you ever compare the 30.1 to 40.1 at any point? Not at home I know. Maybe at a store?

Thanks!

 

Have you ever tried placing the speakers on the short wall? Cardas placement in your room would place the speakers about 5 feet from the front wall (speaker front) and 3 feet from the side wall (center of woofer). Cardas has always worked well for me. I spent ten years with a pair of HLP3's and consistenly found, regardless of room, the greater the distance to the wall behind them, the better they sounded. This arrangement would also get you away from the wall behind you which is always beneficial, IMO.

 

Fascinating read Rafe, when I saw the latest pics I wondered how you'd find the comparison. The M30.1's remain on my upgrade list, but I'm still loving what the P3ESR's do so much I may never quite get around to it Whoever mentioned Manley Snappers above was spot on imho, it's a combination (along with the superb Croft Micro 25R pre) that leaves you wondering just what you'd want to improve, but SET's have a certain magic too, and I can well see why you're experimenting, the journey is all part of the fun imho!

And having marvelled at the quality of your photography with a rather lesser camera, it's no surprise to see your game has upped with a dslr........although obviously I'll tell you to try a Fuji X series camera sometime

Happy Sunday

 

I haven't directly compared the 30.1 to the 40.1, but I have heard the 40.1s many times. One of the best speakers I've ever heard.
I'd say it does everything the 30.1 does, but more. Imaging is crazy, and the bass and sheer power the speakers are capable of projecting (as well as the most delicate, airy passages), has to be listened to to truly be appreciated.

 

Thanks for the kind words.
There is a real, tangible magic to the P3ESR... the depth and breadth of imaging that little speaker is capable of producing is incredible.
One of my favorites of all times.
I'd love to hear them through a Croft powered system. One of my short-list amps and pre-amps is the Croft Micro combo.
You must be in sonic bliss a lot!

 

I shall be installing my Croft Integrated with my P3ESRs in a couple of weeks ...

 

Just wanted to thank Don again at Don Leman Audio for the demo. Check him out if you're in the Vancouver area, he carries Sugden, Blue Circle and Harbeth. Great guy!!!

 

How have you addressed this in your room?

 

I read the entire thread and looked at the exceptional pics and came away with the same question. My experience tells me room acoustics are an important element for getting great sound.

 

Lots of exposed hard surfaces. I'll bet that little hallway is probably a pain in the neck as well.