Amp for Harbeth P3ESR

I will try to demo as many amps as I can before I buy. I have given myself till next spring to listen and make decisions. It will be a shame letting these speakers just sit for a time, though I have some Beyer T1s to keep me company ;).

My budget is right now $900 but will grow as I collect more from my summer job. I am shooting for a little under $1500 for the amp and will worry about my source after that. Though I am interested in the Uniti and then adding a subwoofer later. Maybe a castle classic sub to keep it british?

I am just going to enjoy the journey while I can. I am also considering selling my headphone setup to free up funds, the whole point of this foray into speakers is to get a better alternative to headphones. Though they may have to stay. I can't say much now as I have not heard the Harbeths with more than a single amp but I do know enough to say they have a sort of magic that I was looking for.

The Harbeth forum heavily favors the british sound and british amps to power the harbeths. Maybe this is what I am looking for? As I certainly enjoy the Harbeth sound signature (which is decidedly British).
My Hi-fi guru - dertubemaster says I can't go wrong with a naim 5i -> P3ESR combo. (he also lists a source I can't recall off the top of my head). Maybe the XS is the solution (can I get one used for $1500 BY NEXT SPRING)?

If I am going to use a subwoofer I really do want the highpass filter as I have heard real differences from using one.

I have beautiful speakers and I guess I will just have to sit on them.

Any thoughts?

Thanks,
Sam

Sam, can't have a journey without getting em out of the box! kind of like going to Paris without boarding the plane.....

so enjoy that great Harbeth sound. I guess they do indeed sound like a box speaker...

Yeah, I guess I'd go for an interim amp (and source?) and enjoy the new speakers now. If you go used, you could sell later without taking much of a loss. A Rega Brio and Apollo would set you back around 900 used, and I bet they'd sound nice with the Harbeths.

I think I am going with a virtue amp for an interim amp. Any objections? I will be ordering one tommorrow I think.

Sam, an inexpensive solution with very little risk might be the new Wadia Powerdac 151. It is a small integrated with built in dac which lists for $1,195. It accepts only digital sources though and no pre-amp outs. I have not personally heard one but have a friend who was blown away at the sound quality for the money. I ordered one as I will be completely redoing my main system. I have no expectations but I will report back. At that price if you get a fair portion of the Wadia sound, it could be the sleeper hit of the year. I had a Peachtree Decco at one time which was also really good value.

Good luck, buying in this pricerange poses little financial risk,

GH