Harbeth 30.1 Questions

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by avanti1960, Jan 26, 2019.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. G B Kuipers

    G B Kuipers Forum Resident

    Location:
    Netherlands
    That's a good point. From your comments about cabinet resonances I would suggest that the Harbeths designs may not be your taste, ultimately.
     
  2. chrism1971

    chrism1971 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Glos, UK
    If you could choose one, would it be the 30s, ESL or 63?
     
  3. BIGGER Dave

    BIGGER Dave Forum Resident

    I've come to the conclusion that a speaker that sounds amazing in one person's home, may sound less stellar in another person's home. This unfortunately renders many recommendations meaningless. A speaker that sounds great in my living room, may not sound as good in your living room, and may not sound as good in another room in my home. The only true test is an in-home test.
     
    bhazen and timind like this.
  4. avanti1960

    avanti1960 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Chicago metro, USA
    absolutely home testing is the best way. yet I have still noticed that speakers kind of keep their "core values" in most settings. listening to KEFs R-series for example at friends homes, dealers, audio shows, my room etc. their character usually shines through regardless of setting.
    Not perfect of course but I would tend to be more interested in a speaker that received universal praise vs. one that had a few fans and lots of detractors.
     
    samurai and snorker like this.
  5. Plinko

    Plinko Senior Member

    30s? Who knows. You’re asking someone who has two too many speakers than necessary, lol.
     
  6. For those who have extensively compared the P3ESR to the M30.1, does the M30.1 convey a significantly larger sense of scale?

    I have the P3s and only briefly listened to the M30s at the same dealer. I know the M30s have more bass but I can't remember if they really sounded "bigger."
     
  7. Agitater

    Agitater Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto
    Yes. In the Monitor 30.1, the larger drivers, larger cabinet size and the crossover design all contribute to a speaker that plays bigger and reaches deeper, in addition to building on all the great things the P3ESR already does.
     
    mr. scratchy esq likes this.
  8. Hifi Kenny

    Hifi Kenny Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    The M30.1s are also more sensitive - 86db compared to 83db for the P3ESRs. The latter need lots of power to really get the best out of them.
     
    mr. scratchy esq likes this.
  9. Helom

    Helom Forum member

    Location:
    U.S.
    Stereophile's recent measurements of the Spendor A7s, shows they are very low in cabinet resonance. A British midrange without the boxy warmth character - might just be the ticket. Gene Rubin is a huge Harbeth fan but he sells the A7s as well. I'd solicit his opinion.
     
  10. Andy Saunders

    Andy Saunders Always a pleasure never a chore

    Location:
    England
    With bells on.
     
  11. LARGERTHAN

    LARGERTHAN Forum Resident

    Location:
    Eire
    Own the Plus, have used in various rooms - in short, they need ample space to be at their best, which is what you should expect with this sort of outlay. Boundaries hamper their performance, as does the inability to have correct toe-in or width between speakers in respect of soundstage. They can easily sound boxy if not optimised, which is decidedly not what a Harbeth should sound like.

    I'm at a painful juncture where I'm likely looking to part with mine in favour of the 30.1 due to spacing constraints. I love most everything about the Plus, but here it is hamstrung and I'd rather a better performing/ room optimised speaker.
     
  12. Linto

    Linto Mayor of Simpleton

    yet I drove my Rogers LS5/9 for years with 15 watt Quad IIs, sounded sublime, never took
    pre amp volume (Croft) above 4
     
  13. Hifi Kenny

    Hifi Kenny Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    The laws of physics and engineering can't be changed by low-powered tube amps. Your desired volume must have been below the clipping level. Unless of course, like many other tube fans, you love distorted sound,
     
    bever70 likes this.
  14. direstraitsfan98

    direstraitsfan98 Well-Known Member

    Location:
    QC
    I wouldn't recommend the harbeth 30.1 unless you have the space. Minimum 8 feet apart with minimum of 3 feet of clearance from all boundaries.
     
  15. Art K

    Art K Retired but not tired!

    Location:
    Corvallis, Oregon
    I find the tweeters on the Spendor A series to be a little too hot for me. I love the 30.1's!

    I also recommend Gene Rubin.
     
    thesisinbold likes this.
  16. LARGERTHAN

    LARGERTHAN Forum Resident

    Location:
    Eire
    Always assumed LS5/9 variants worked a little better in tighter spaces?
     
    Bananajack likes this.
  17. Helom

    Helom Forum member

    Location:
    U.S.
    Have you heard the new A series? I've yet to hear a Spendor tweeter as hot as a Harbeth, though I've only heard ones with the 22mm wide-surround and Scanspeak tweeters.
     
  18. direstraitsfan98

    direstraitsfan98 Well-Known Member

    Location:
    QC
    for me, I prefer the harbeth setup farther apart... the sweet spot seems to be 8-9 feet for me. imaging is just perfect at that point, recordings start to seem more accurate and you can more easily pick out cues. also for me i had nasty first point reflection issues with my harbeths. which was solved by placing 4" thick absorption panels... but I didn't want to do that long term.

    there's a lot of reasons why I sold my 30.2. horns work better in my room. oh and I just prefer horns. :p
     
  19. Guth

    Guth Music Lover

    Location:
    Oregon
    Probably not of all that much help as my experiences were with the original versions but I'll share my impressions just in case... I liked the original Harbeth C7's enough that I bought a pair. Later on I also had a chance to listen to the Monitor 30 at a local dealer for an fair amount of time. The Monitor 30 struck me as being batter at tracking the attack and decay of instruments when the music involved became more complex. The Monitor 30 also struck me as perhaps being a bit more "balanced" across the frequency spectrum than the C7. Sorry, but I just can't explain things as thoroughly and eloquently as Agitater always seems to do. (That's meant as a compliment to Agitater.) That said, it's hard to say just how the Monitor 30 would have fared in my own house hooked up to my system.

    I should point out that I don't tend to pay attention to things like cabinet design. I simply judge a speaker by how much enjoyment I get out of listening to music through said speakers. Had the Monitor 30's been in my price range I would have been tempted to bring them home simply because they struck me as very enjoyable to listen to music with. (That was after I had already rid myself of the C7's.)
     
  20. pmh200111

    pmh200111 Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Japan
    I've had both C7es3 and SHL5+ (still have) and if you want a more dynamic sound and less cabinet resonance then the 5's are the way to go. I've had them almost 4 years and am still thoroughly happy with them. As with all Harbeths, give em some power. The 7's are the only part of the line that jumped from a non-updated version to an anniversary edition if you get my meaning, so in that sense they are the oldest of the Harbeths currently available to buy new.
     
  21. Larry I

    Larry I Senior Member

    Location:
    Washington, D.C.
    I am with those who say that the SHL5+ is the one that has less cabinet resonance, if that is really what you want. It is a harder speaker to do system matching because it sounds less warm/romantic and a touch more analytical than the SHL5+. All of the lineup can be made to sound quite good in the right setup. I am not quite as familiar with the 30.1 as I am with the 30.2, but, I think this model of speaker sounds considerably better than the 7's.

    As to the question above of what speaker is preferable-- the Quad 57 ELS or Quad 63 or the 30.1, I would say "it depends." To me the 57 has some very magical qualities, but, it is not a generalist--it cannot be played loud, does not do heavy rock (particularly at high volume) and does not have the proper weight to do large symphonic works, but, it would be my choice because what it can do, it does VERY well. I never really warmed to the 63.
     
  22. Warren Jarrett

    Warren Jarrett Audio Note (UK) dealer in SoCal/LA-OC In Memoriam

    Location:
    Fullerton, CA
    I have heard all the Harbeths at shows, but at various times and with different equipment. If it wasn't for Harbeth, I would sell a lot more AN.

    My comment is this, in my opinion. The P3esr is the most perfect speaker I have ever heard at a show, just placed anywhere, good or bad room, and paired with any electronics. It ALWAYS sounds wonderful. Smoothness, musicality, detail and liveliness are just exemplary. No other speaker, not even the ANs that I sell, simply always sound great, no matter where or with what... EXCEPT for their low bass.

    Yeah, I need more and better defined bass, and therefore larger speakers. Even similar size ANs have better bass, but are much more sensitive to associated equpment and placement. So, if anyone here (as above) has compared the 20 or 30 to the 3, and reports it has similar sound with more bass, I would say "I want a pair of those".

    Unfortunatly, larger cabinet size always means greater sensitivity to room acoustic interactions, so home auditioning becomes very important.
     
    Last edited: Feb 21, 2019
  23. Art K

    Art K Retired but not tired!

    Location:
    Corvallis, Oregon
    I owned an A series Spendor.
     
  24. murphythecat

    murphythecat https://www.last.fm/user/murphythecat

    Location:
    Canada
    the p3esr to me is the one with the least cabinet resonance, but the p3esr needs a subwoofer and being highpassed ect
     
  25. gov

    gov Forum Resident

    Location:
    NYC Metro
    At this point, the AN stuff is the only brand I've heard (so far) that I'd consider giving up my Harbeth's for.

    Like @Linto with his Rogers, I've recently switched from driving my Harbeth's with 100w to 32W without skipping a beat (in fact I love them more now). Listening volume for me is 75-85db. I'm in love and until I move, this is the final destination. If I saw a cheap pair of 30.1's I might grab them to try but that's about it.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.

Share This Page

molar-endocrine