I haven't heard the Harbeth, but I have heard the Calibre several times. It seems that the 30.1 has stellar reviews, so it must be very nice to listen to. It looks like the Calibre will have more extended bass, if that matters.
Regarding sensitivity, the 30.1 is rather low, at 85dB, with the Calibre at 90.5dB, so the Calibre may be easier to achieve higher sound levels with lower watt amps.
Also, the tweeters are completely different(soft dome vs. Air Motion Tweeter) and that will come down to personal preference, and I would think extensive auditioning of both would be in order, prior to plopping down this kind of money.
BTW, if you ever get a chance to hear the Calibre powered by Raven Audio tube amplification at an audio show, you are in for a treat.
Two totally different sounds. You either are a Harbeth fanboy or not.
These are yin and yang speakers with completely different qualities some of which were mentioned before.
Harbeth has a very midrange oriented sound with good presense in the midrange, good midbass performance and very little real lower bass and a smooth but recessed treble, they are inefficent and do not play super loud, most of their models are classic two way designs. sometimes augmented, they tune the cabinet to resonate in time with the music.
Harbeth fans tend to like Jazz and light Classical, not the best rock speakers.
The Legacy Calibre's are a much more impressive speaker, these play loud and rock out as well as having a nice balance overall.
Legacy goes for a high tech driver approach with a completely dead cabinet, German built Heil AMT tweeter, a custom Italitan seven inch composite midrange and a very long throw custom built eight inch woofer with 1 inch of linear throw augmented by twin passive radiators.
The Legacy's will play loud, throw a huge image, have fantastic top and bottom range, the bass hits hard and is nearly in a true subwoofer range.
Very clean and extended top end with a great detail in the treble.
The Legacy's are very efficient and play loud, they will excel at all music and are very dramatic, monitors which sound like a large floor stander.
Another cool atribute is that the speakers can come active as well which means you would just need a dac/preamp or a dac with variable output.
One caveat with the Legacy's is that they are really stand mounted loudspeakers and would have issues on a shelf where the Harbeths would sound great no matter how you position them.
We are Legacy's dealers and were blown away by the Calibre's which we recently heard setup at the New York Audio Show.
Legacy is not imported here, so I cannot comment on their products. However, I htink two things need to be added about Harbeth speakers. They have a very flat frequency response and are not just midrange speakers, even if their midrange is to die for. Second, that midrange quality originates in their own advanced Radial cone technology, with their proprietary cone material that was developed in a UK government funded scientific research project. I have Harbeth P3ESRs in my desktop system, and all I can say is that they are the only speakers that I have heard that come close to the clarity of my Quad electrostats, and are similarly free from that feeling that you are just listening to sound from wooden boxes.
interesting stuff. i currently have the harbeth C7ES3 and love them but was impressed by the Calibre at the AXPONA audio show in Chicago. they will definitely play loud and clean with lots of punch but the program material was not broad enough to provide a full range demo. I really cannot lose the clarity and musical timbre that the Harbeth's provide but I was impressed with the Calibres enough to seek them out for a demo, which I will do. The other thing is they are bi-amp compatible, which makes thing interesting for the ultimate in volume and dynamic capability. Keep those listening impressions of the Calibre coming.....
If you want to keep the clarity and musicality but also want more volume and punch, why not add two (or even four) subwoofers? Alternatively, get the Super HL5+, or look into your amplifier: is it powerful enough? Alan Shaw himself believes in big and powerful solid state amplifiers.
good thoughts and I am carefully considering the plan for my next upgrade. i have a decent sub and it sounds great but to get it to play the bass with the most impact I would need to high-pass the main speakers, something I am not willing to do. the Harbeth SHL5+ are on the list as well, I love their sound but they are more challenging to bi-amp. The Legacy's on paper have the potential to be an incredibly dynamic performer- because of their efficiency and because bi-amping is an easy deal because the crossover for the woofer low pass is a very low 400Hz. as long as they have the transparent, open sound that I am after could be the winner.
Avanti I had my concerns with the Calibres for their price they are $5,500 plus a set of stands, which means $5,800.00 pretty close to the Signatures so originally we weren't intersted in flooring them.
After hearing them at the New York Audio Show, we were convinced.
The Calibre is a force unto itself. The biamped version is totally off the charts. If you consider a set of Calibres with the internal 750 watt amplifiers and a Wavelet processor which is also a preamp and a dac and you would have a fantastic compact system that is a two piece system that totally rocks.
All you would need would then be a streamer and viola a tiny Aeris.
This is a wonderful system for a reasonable price point, under $12k for an entire system that puts many more expensive setups to shame.
D2girls if you are asking us for a price on Harbeths please go to a Harbeth dealer.
We are not Harbeth fans, have heard numerous models including the 40.2 dont understand all the hype.
In our opinion way too much money for way too limited range.
Stunning cabinets and a nice midrange in the Harbeths, give me a pair of ATC for 2500 less okay not so pretty but one of the best monitors at 4k or a set of the Calibres if you want a truly impressive true floor stander in a compact box.
I’ve had my Legacy Calibres since Sept ’17, and while I have not heard the Harbeth’s, I can say that these Calibres are monsters! The sensitivity rating is typically an in-room measurement, so it may vary a little bit, but based on other speaker’s I’ve owned, they seem more on par to a 86-87 dB/2.83V/1m kind of speaker system. The bass capability and resolution is nothing short of stellar.
But what they may lack in some sensitivity they make up with with a S*&^load of power handling. I don’t listen to jazz/light classical/ or other wussy crap. I listen to Napalm Death, Carcass, Slayer, Emperor, Sepultura, Morbid Angel, Suffocation, and other cool bands :) at EAR-SPLITTING SPL levels and massive solid-state amplification, and they take the abuse and punishment like no one’s business. I use a total of THREE PEAVEY CS800X’s for my pair of Calibres. They could care less.
Let's step back for a minute. I know people are anxious to give their two cents on these options, but I find it very strange that these are the two speakers being considered.
How did you come to consider these two speakers over others? Did you audition them?
If you are considering these blindly without audition, I would ask what speakers have you owned or heard in the past that you liked best. What does your room look like? What type of music do you like? How loud do you play your music? What associated equipment are you using?
In general, both companies are respected speaker makers, but they are vastly different. I don't think your decision should come down to random opinions from the internet. You really need to listen to both before buying, or you run a 50% risk of being disappointed. They are THAT dissimilar.
Nevertheless, if you want opinions versus an audition, I'd say this....I like what I've heard from Legacy recently, but their style of speaker making is fairly common (although they've added room correction aspects to certain models which is more unique). Harbeth is legendary for delivering a unique sound that captivates fans for life. They don't need to come out with new models every year and constantly change technology because what they do works at a core level for their fans.
IMO, every audiophile owes it to themselves to own pair of Spendor or Harbeths in their life time. It may not ultimately be your taste, but it's important to hear it and realize that it's not always about mixing a bunch of high tech drivers in a rigid box like most companies do.
Don't get me wrong. The performance you can get from Legacy is technically great and can be enjoyable, but it's more common. When someone hears a Spendor or Harbeth, they typically remember it. This could be good or bad, but that's why I say you need to audition them. Don't trust random advice categorically saying one versus the other.
I see no problem with someone wanting to explore 2 very different speakers. Even though they are very different from each other, they both will provide a FAIRLY neutral presentation, they will both provide a good sound stage and both will image well... You need to look at their strengths Legacy: More Dynamic, Much more extended top end and forceful bottom, more analytical mid range. Harbeth: Reasonably, accurate bass, more romantic upfront midrange, More neutral, leaning toward laid back in the top end. I disagree with labtec about the Legacy being more common, in fact, it is a 180. The Harbeth use a very traditional design, their strength is their custom tailored midrange. The Legacy with its midrange material, ribbon tweeters, new cabinet designs and alined crossovers is all more technically advanced than the Harbeth. In the end, they present music differently. You need to discover your taste.
I love the Harbeth speakers ... especially the 40.2's. I always seek out their rooms at shows and just sit and listen to the music. Wonderful and very involving.
I've owned the Legacy Signature III's for many years and they are in my main system.
This may be apples and oranges, but with laborious tweaking and proper placement, the Legacy's are every bit as musical, involving, transparent as the Harbeth's with better bass and highs to boot. Easy to drive too.
Harbeth 40.2 = $16,000. A used pair of Legacy Signature III's = $1200 - $2500.
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