Spendor, Harbeth...why so hot ?

I am not surprised at some of your negative experiences. The "natural" voicing I commented on is not for everyone. With so many speakers that have a "forward" flavoring in use today, the initial impression can be that this sound is a bit dead, flat, or leaving detail behind. (I never found my C7ES that way, even right out of the box.) It may take several days of listening to really appreciate what is happening with the BBC monitors. This sound is not for everyone...say if, during a concerto, it is really fun for you to hear someone in the third row break wind, there are better choices. With the Harbeth C7ES, I giggle because I can smell it, it becomes that real. [:)]

I'm sure plenty of people who don't like this style speaker have built some wonderful sytems that I would enjoy. To each his own.

Take care,

Charlie

Charlie, they're talking about Spendors. Nobody will ever find the Harbeth Compact 7 dead, flat or lacking detail. But you're right that they are not designed to call attention to themselves, just to the performers you've invited into your listening room.

Charlie: would that be the woodwind section? It's been a long time since I have attended a concert or played in band.

David, you must get out more. Really. [:)]

I've heard the smaller Spendors and they definitely weren't my cuppa. Whatever the technical terms, to me they just sounded "small" and generally, disappointing. We swapped them out for the comparable ProAcs and that pretty much put an end to it, for me. Regrettably, I've not seen nor heard the Harbeths, but the comments above seem to be pretty much the universal opinion on them - I don't think I've ever seen anyone say a bad thing about them.

chas