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Harbeth P3ESR XD - Friday Musings...

Since Tony L. has brought up the LS3/5a and the ‘other makes’ ( again...) I’d thought I’d comment.
I currently own Stirling V3s, which I’ve been very happy with, and have acquired a pair of ex.
BBC Radio Leicester Rogers LS3/5as.
I am very surprised how good they actually sound.
 
Not that different, actually.

The Stirlings are superior in terms of imaging and depth
and the bass is subjectively deeper.

After listening for a while to to the Rogers you adjust to them.
They give me as much musical satisfaction as the Stirlings do.
 
I recently replaced my Revel F206s with a pair of P3ESR XDs. I have to say that these speakers impress me in a very big way. Powered by my Sugden A21P, they are exactly what I’ve been looking for in my smallish listening room. Size wise they remind me of the Keesonic KUBS I once owned in the late 70s. Starting to work through my record collection and really enjoying what these little marvels can do.
Peter
 
For me (YMMV, naturally) with the orchestral music I mostly listen to, small speakers simply don't cut it. I find them incapable of recreating the sense of scale - and a surrounding acoustic - that is essential to a convincing portrayal of live music in my smallish listening room.

There isn't space for big speakers, though I know from hearing them how persuasive they can be... but omnidirectional speakers do fit into the room, and give an entirely convincing portrayal of a performance space bigger than its walls. Once heard, in my circumstances, nothing else could compete.
 
I thought that too. Until I paired them with a modern high-end sub. Within my listening volume range, I reckon P3ESR SE+SVS gives me everything the (much larger) speakers did, with no compromise. The SVS is a stunningly good sub, and I’ve got it dialled in to give deeper, more even bass than I ever managed with such larger speakers such as Audio Physic, ATC100 actives or my Tannoys. Flat in room to 16Hz, tighter than I dared hope for, and with proper slam…
 
alanbeeb said:
Which SVS sub did you go for in the end? And which stands did you get for the Harbs?
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SVS SB3000 (the full-fat, non-micro version) and Solidsteel SS6 with SS5 top-plates (special request: the footprint of the P3 is exactly the width of the SS5 plates so it looks much better).
 
Short update: still quite gobsmacked by how fundamentally ‘right’ the P3ESR + SVS sounds. Sure, I’ve a few tweaks in place (including one I cannot come out of the closet about) but for my purposes this is as good as it needs to get.

For a bit I was worried that I’d come to regret “downgrading” from the Legacy Ardens to these tiny speakers, but I genuinely think they’re the better speaker in the range they operate. Both superb speakers, but the P3ESR just has a “way” about it that almost- but never quite - came from the Ardens.

I’ve learnt a lot from this exercise, and genuinely think this has been a fortuitous- if unexpected- change.

Now it’s just records and cds and (maybe) a Qobuz account for me :)
 
JTC said:
Short update: still quite gobsmacked by how fundamentally ‘right’ the P3ESR + SVS sounds. Sure, I’ve a few tweaks in place (including one I cannot come out of the closet about) but for my purposes this is as good as it needs to get.

For a bit I was worried that I’d come to regret “downgrading” from the Legacy Ardens to these tiny speakers, but I genuinely think they’re the better speaker in the range they operate. Both superb speakers, but the P3ESR just has a “way” about it that almost- but never quite - came from the Ardens.

I’ve learnt a lot from this exercise, and genuinely think this has been a fortuitous- if unexpected- change.

Now it’s just records and cds and (maybe) a Qobuz account for me :)
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It’s great when that happens. I have also finally alighted on two sets of speakers that align perfectly with my room/spl use cases to perfection after rotating through an unfeasibly large number of speakers and room arrangements, including your lovely ESLs.
 
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We tried my little REL T-Zero sub with a friend's P3ESRs. Filled in the bottom end really nicely, subtly, used at lower settings. Sounded great.
 
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Fretbuzz said:
We tried my little REL T-Zero sub with a friend's P3ESRs. Filled in the bottom end really nicely, subtly, used at lower settings. Sounded great.
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Nice. I checked the recommended REL model for the P3ESR on REL's speaker pairing 'calculator' page. The T7x is the minimum recommendation for the P3s in small to medium-sized rooms, T9X for large rooms.
 
Personally I’m so glad I went for the SVS SB3000 over a Rel - it’s an incredible sub. Outstanding, especially given its parametric eq etc.
 
JTC said:
Personally I’m so glad I went for the SVS SB3000 over a Rel - it’s an incredible sub. Outstanding, especially given its parametric eq etc.
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Same here. I love how easy it is to integrate the SVS sub. Stellar products.
 
ryder said:
Nice. I checked the recommended REL model for the P3ESR on REL's speaker pairing 'calculator' page. The T7x is the minimum recommendation for the P3s in small to medium-sized rooms, T9X for large rooms.
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Interesting. No idea how the larger ones sound. The wee zero (which I use in the office system) is definitely worth checking out if anyone is on a budget or just after a touch more bass. Not room-filling, but that bit of reinforcement.
 
ryder said:
Nice. I checked the recommended REL model for the P3ESR on REL's speaker pairing 'calculator' page. The T7x is the minimum recommendation for the P3s in small to medium-sized rooms, T9X for large rooms.
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Interesting. When I spoke to a REL rep, he told me the Zero or 5.
 
I guessed it, the site recommendation is to rough, the Zero is a good solution for such tiny rooms but I think they also look how expansive the speakers are and take that into account for the recommendation.
 
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