I just listened to 3 models in the Harbeth line of speakers at a local dealer today. They were the SHL-5, Compact 7ES-3 and the M30. Out of the three speakers, the M30 was shut-in and laidback compared to the other two, and that didn't appeal to me. The SHL-5 and the Compact 7ES-3 on the other hand, were spectacular speakers. The sound they produced was unbelievably natural with great scale and dynamics. It is uncanny that the sound coming out from these speakers can be so real and unforced it's just like listening to the real thing.
Surprisingly the Compact 7ES-3 only goes down to 46Hz on paper but the overall sound of it is much more musical and coherent from top to bottom than my PMC speakers that go down to 35Hz. I was told that the midrange magic of Harbeth speakers is due to the design philosophy of all Harbeth speakers as more attention has been put towards this area. Now I realize why my PMC speakers, although rated to go down to 35Hz with a puny 4" woofer can sometimes sound a little forced when pumping out huge chunks of bass.
I didn't listen to the M40.1 since the gigantic speakers were way out of my budget but was told they share a resemblance to the M30 being in the Monitor family, so I guess the sound won't appeal to me either.
I'm now contemplating between the SHL-5 and Compact 7ES-3. The latter comes with the selected tiger ebony finish at a premium which is much pleasant-looking(to me) whereas the SHL-5 only comes with the plain cherry. Either way, I don't think I"ll be disappointed.
Surprisingly the Compact 7ES-3 only goes down to 46Hz on paper but the overall sound of it is much more musical and coherent from top to bottom than my PMC speakers that go down to 35Hz. I was told that the midrange magic of Harbeth speakers is due to the design philosophy of all Harbeth speakers as more attention has been put towards this area. Now I realize why my PMC speakers, although rated to go down to 35Hz with a puny 4" woofer can sometimes sound a little forced when pumping out huge chunks of bass.
I didn't listen to the M40.1 since the gigantic speakers were way out of my budget but was told they share a resemblance to the M30 being in the Monitor family, so I guess the sound won't appeal to me either.
I'm now contemplating between the SHL-5 and Compact 7ES-3. The latter comes with the selected tiger ebony finish at a premium which is much pleasant-looking(to me) whereas the SHL-5 only comes with the plain cherry. Either way, I don't think I"ll be disappointed.