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Scaling up from Harbeth P3ESR?

N

novak

pfm Member
Hi guys,

I'm a long time fan of my Harbeth P3ESR (Jadis Integrated and Chord Hugo in the chain), but now I'm in a larger room, I'm wondering whether I should up the scale up a little. The Harbeths sounds as wonderful as ever, but are very polite in the bigger space, and I could do with a bit more impact. I don't listen loud, so I'm looking for something that sounds great at background level, as well as a bit more volume.

The obvious choice would be a bigger Harbeth. I have had M30.1 but always gravitated towards the P3ESR as they had a bit more speed and clarity. C7ES3 are of interest, but surely they'll be updated soon... and I think they might be too large, visually, in the room.

I was thinking about a few alternatives below if you could share thoughts / experiences that would be great...

- How about the new Spendor A4? They seem to be rated well so far. I heard the A2 briefly, but in another room and only for a couple of tracks. Seemed ok, a little boxy perhaps, but nice dynamics for a small floorstander. They look neat, too.

- Any rumours of a new Harbeth C7? Worth waiting for?

- Back to Shahinian Arc? Always liked these, I like the way you can enjoy the music from several locations in the room.

- Neat Iota Alpha, or the bigger Neat Iota Xplorer due to arrive?

- Anything else?

I would generally like something that sits quite low to the ground, ideally below 850mm.

Any help much appreciated!
 
Hello!

I'd say around 5m x 7m with a large bay window at one end, and double doors open at the other, so it's quite an open space.
 
Paul, you are welcome to borrow my Tannoy Greenwich for a bit if you like.

I'm also a big fan of the P3ESR and have found Tannoys to be a logical next step from Harbeth. They will offer you the same level of transparency and tonal accuracy, but with more sensitivity/agility, deeper bass and a grander scale. Shouldn't be too obtrusive in a room of that size.
 
eastone said:
I'm also a big fan of the P3ESR and have found Tannoys to be a logical next step from Harbeth. They will offer you the same level of transparency and tonal accuracy, but with more sensitivity/agility, deeper bass and a grander scale. Shouldn't be too obtrusive in a room of that size.
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I believe that Ian is correct, with a good sized room. If I had a 5m x 7m room, and a good reserve of gold pieces, I would invest in a pair of RFC Canterburys; these are custom made by Paul Coupe to an incredibly high standard, using HPDs and his own crossover design. Incredible speakers, with a level of naturalism and clarity that eludes just about all the modern speakers I've heard.
 
eastone said:
Paul, you are welcome to borrow my Tannoy Greenwich for a bit if you like.

I'm also a big fan of the P3ESR and have found Tannoys to be a logical next step from Harbeth. They will offer you the same level of transparency and tonal accuracy, but with more sensitivity/agility, deeper bass and a grander scale. Shouldn't be too obtrusive in a room of that size.
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Interesting, I'll check these out. Which models, aside from the Greenwich, would you recommend? There seems to be so many through the years.
 
Elephantears said:
I believe that Ian is correct, with a good sized room. If I had a 5m x 7m room, and a good reserve of gold pieces, I would invest in a pair of RFC Canterburys; these are custom made by Paul Coupe to an incredibly high standard, using HPDs and his own crossover design. Incredible speakers, with a level of naturalism and clarity that eludes just about all the modern speakers I've heard.
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Oof! They're certainly not cheap. I'm certainly intrigued by the Tannoy options though.
 
Jodet said:
Proac Response DB3 or DT8.
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Thanks Jodet, DT8 are too dominating in size, I want to avoid anything too tall, 850mm max.

Haven't heard the DB1 or 3. I once tried the R1 and R2, quite liked them but thought the Harbeths sounded better overall. It was a while ago, in a different room, with different electronics through.

Worth mentioning, I'd like to avoid stands if possible... hence the small floorstander option would be ideal.
 
I have had the P3's and M30.1's and the latter are definitely a step up in terms of scale but, for me, nowhere near as much as I had anticipated.

The ProAc SM100's fixed that and are well worth auditioning.
 
novak said:
Interesting, I'll check these out. Which models, aside from the Greenwich, would you recommend? There seems to be so many through the years.
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My experience is limited to the Greenwich and one pair of 12" Monitor Golds. Others here will have a lifetimes knowledge to impart if you're pursuing that direction.

But given your size restrictions, I'd have though Eatons or Devons would be worth looking at.
 
I had a pair of Tannoy Kensington SE after having the P3ESR for a while, and I don't think they were much like Harbeths in tone or spaciality.

As you like Harbeths I'd say stick with the brand. Tannoys will look very large in your room if youre concerned about the C7 looking big.
 
novak said:
Oof! They're certainly not cheap. I'm certainly intrigued by the Tannoy options though.
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No, but they are final speakers. No use if you're a hobbyist that likes swapping, or if, like myself, you haven't got the space, but if you have, the money is well spent. They are nothing like the Tannoy Prestige models, which from what I've heard are nice, but rather rich and plummy. Paul's Tannoy models are an open window, or as close as I've ever heard it. They can be used close to the wall, so they don't take up as much space as Harbeths, or the majority of ported speakers, but yes, they are damn big.
 
Nagraboy: They are certainly less saturated in tone than Harbeths, but I still find Tannoys rich and believable. Having got used to the different presentation I'd now say they're the more natural spatially.

Part of the difficulty in progressing up the Harbeth chain is that the P3ESR is fairly unique. The 30 is more polite, the 7 less balanced and the 5, which is probably closest to the P3, is going to be too big.

I think Tannoys tick a lot of the OPs boxes - scale, impact, low-level dynamics, excitement - without sacrificing tonal accuracy.

Neats or Shahinians might give PRaT and spatialisation but they throw tonality out the window.

The last point about size I'll concede, given the 85cm restriction, but not all Tannoys are huge, and they are all capable of being tuned to the room thanks to the treble energy / roll off controls.
 
Interesting thread, because I have an almost identical system: Jadis Orchestra integrated and Harbeth HLP3ESRs and M30s.

I bought the M30s as I thought they'd give me more scale, but in truth I prefer the dynamics of the HLP3ESRs.

I've also tried Compact 7ES2s but couldn't get on with them in my room, and quickly sold them on.

I've stuck with the HLP3ESRs and really like them (the M30s are in another system) but still have an urge to try something a bit bigger and would be interested to know what the OP decides! I've a feeling the HLP3ESRs are hard to better.
 
If I didn't have an interest in music that demanded the bottom octave, I think I could've lived with the P3ESR forever. I have wonderful memories of them, with at least three very successful amplifier combinations, all of them wonderful in their own way.

In many ways my search in the last few years has been to replicate the qualities I liked in the P3 but with more extended bass.

Quite a tall order as it turns out, and the room issue is key, as you point out Mike. I could never get the bigger Harbeths' ports to integrate.
 
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