Harbeth Compact 7 or Merlin TSM

The 300B may have trouble driving the Harbeths...its something to look into if you want to keep using that amp. Maybe some people that own that speaker can comment on that.

I have experience with some other Harbeth models and have owned Merlin VSMs. The Merlins are every bit transparent and revealing as people hype them up to be. They are capable of reproducing the human voice extremely accurately. Although, if you want musicality, the Harbeths will sound better to your ear if that is what you are searching for. The Harbeth sound is a perfect match between resolution and musicality where else the Merlin just gives you a boat load of resolution and transparency...if your amps are good enough that is. For your description, I would recommend the Harbeth hands down. Just my two cents.

tthean, which version of the tsm?
bobby

macd, what version of the vsm did you own? earlier versions sounded somewhat raw and as time passed their musical nature was profoundly enhanced. the tsm is a lot more forgiving than the vsm and latest tsms are renouned for their easy listening character.
i would not recommend anything earlier than the mme if musicality is important to you.

The sonic characteristics of both are well docemented in the discussion
here on agon already. It is a personal judgement call in regard to which
will sound more "musical".

Merlin would be my choice for transparency and detail and overall
versatility. Harbeth could be fun and more distinctive sounding
compared to most good modern designs.

Thanks everybody for your inputs.

MACD: One of my friends used to have a pair of original Harbeth Compact 7and he used a SE300B amp to driver them. From distant memory, the sound was warm and very musical. I still remembered every time when I visit him, I always wanted him to play some music for me. His living room is about the size of my currently listening room.

Bobby: My budget is to look for a pair of used (either brand) in the mid $2k range. It seems like the VSM is better fit my need as they are more sensitive then the TSM. Too bad they are out of my budget.

Also, what is the main difference between the new Master series with the MMr series?

Thanks,
Tuck