Harbeth demo

Hi,

I certainly understand about the small ones because I had LS3/5as for years. Wonderful speakers, if used as you describe with the P3ESRs.

When is the home dem for the 40.2?!

Chris

Christoph, I see that you're currently using Super HL 5s, what's the biggest difference with the 40.2?

I have the 40.1s but I haven't heard the 40.2 yet.

Claude

hi claude, hard to describe; more of all, more bass, more room, but not fat; with a 300 (the crofts were a little too weak for them) or better a loudspeaker to forget loudspeakers for the rest of the hifi live, i think. but - i wonder about myself, i would prefer the compact7 over the sl5 and the 40.2...because of the tonal balance, it sounded different than the other speakers, they have something very special, music sounds right with them, no hifi, only music. so no home dem of the 40.2, but of the compact 7 se

hi Chris, my dealer also is a sound engineer for records. he only uses this speakers for mixing!!

by the way, we only listened to records, no one wanted to hear digital sources...

I have SHL5s and they bring me the most pleasure of any speaker I've heard. They help me balance out the modern approach of much gear for a leaner sounding reproduction in order to highlight more detail. I would only sell them for another Harbeth. They sound fantastic with Naim amps and also my Leben valve amp.  

I'm pretty jazzed about the combo of the 40.2 (the HL5Plus would be great also) with the 272 pre-amp streamer and the 250DR amp.  Add in those super lumina speaker cables I think I'll be smiling.  I'm starting over, sold everything except my LP12. Just need to work out the details with my dealer here in the US.

Do you believe that A Naim Nait 5i2 can successfully and fully drive the Compact 7-3ESR speakers ?

yes, i think the nait 5i2 can drive them with great results. christoph

Probably I can help you to answer this question better as I have owned various Naim amplifiers including Nait 5i-2. Yes, the Nait 5i-2 have no problem driving a pair of C7ES3 but not quite exerting the grips that I wish it could especially the bass department. I often found the annoyed bass boom due to the bloated bass when playing a more bass heavy track. With the bass traps installed in the corners and pulling the speakers out do not help either. I sold my Nait 5i for a Nait XS but to no avail, source was using CD5XS/FCXS. When I upgraded to 202/200 then I thought that the bass started to sound tight and control. With further tweaks and a more powerful amp such as Nap250.2 the bass is now totally controlled and very tuneful. 

With due respect, I am not trying to induce an upgrade here. My system is installed in a dedicated room which can cause room gain. If the C7ES3 are playing in an open space such as the living hall, this might not be an issue. As usual, best advice is to go for home audition. Having said this, I have owned C7ES3 for more than 3 years and they still amaze me how good they play music. C7ES3 are quite different from the rest of Harbeth range, the high is more extended and better speed although SHL5 have more weight and scale.

Boaz

I had Compact 7ES 2s for years, first with a Nait 3, then with 102/140, 102/250, 252/300... They were wonderful to listen to at every step. Compact 7s are easy to drive, but good enough to show exactly what gets better with each upgrade.

claude 

+1

This is the same for all the small and mid size BBC type monitors that are true to the original design principles, as they inherently present an easy load to the amp.

I've had the SHL5 and Compact 7-ES3 with a Nait5i (non italic).  I thought the amp did very well with the SHL5s.  I decided to go with the Compact 7-ES3 after a 2-3 years.  The Nait5i sounded fine, but something was bothering me about the music.  When I upgraded to the SN (now a SN2), as mentioned above, the bass really tightened up, and the overall presentation was better.  I did not try the NaitXS.

It is interesting how speakers interact with an amplifier. 

I would like to hear the SHL5 Plus one day, when I could have a bigger space for them. 

I've been using Harbeth for 10 yrs now.  From time to time, I think of trying something different  - primarily Magnepan's MMG/.7/1.7 or Duevel's Planets/Enterprise - but I'm always so pleased when listening to music through the Harbeths. 

pat

I had spendors and harbeths for about 30 years now, and to own and to hear these bbc type monitors over such  a long time i think i am lost for all other speakers. christoph

After 15 years of LS3/5a ownership that's what I thought too. Then I heard a CD5i, Nait 5i, Naca5 and Arivas. Seek, and you too can find redemption in the Church of Naim, eventually.

Chris

Not really true. Those small monitors inherent BBC design are in fact not an easy load to amplifiers, they are much harder to drive than one could imagine. As per P3ESR technical data, its sensitivity is only rated 83.5 at 6ohms. The odd 15ohms LS3/5a speaker is even harder to drive than one can imagine. At one time, my friend brought his Stirling LS3/5a and my Nap200 volume knob had to dial up to 11 o'clock to get the decent loudness compare to only 9 o'clock for my C7ES3. Many small monitors such as LS50 or ProAc Tablette demand a more powerful amplification to sound good.

 Hi mikapoh,

I think you misunderstand.  An easy load to the amp doesn't necessarily mean high sensitivity: It means that the speaker has an impedance curve that is fairly smooth and doesn't drop too low and also that the speaker doesn't have excessively high transient current demands.

High sensitivity is just about volume (and some of the old BBC designs were inherently limited in their max volume anyway).

An easy load is mainly about getting good sound at moderate volumes from simpler amplifiers.

However, because difficult loads stress the amp, they do tend to reduce the max volume the amp can give for any given speaker sensitivity, but this additional effect is usually quite small).

The LS50 and ProAc Tablette are a case in point, they may be small but they are not "BBC type monitors" built in a way that's "true to the original design principles"; exactly the type speaker I wasn't writing about!

Thank you all for your thoughtful answers!

I do love the Nait5i2 - but always wondering what can be improved...