Harbeth SHL5 specific

[ryder]

Hi keithwwk,

I got to know from another thread here that the cherry finish alongside with the eucalyptus are both standard domestic finishes. That was the reason I raised up the issue of lack of standard finishes option for consumers. I have spoken to the local dealer Sam and was informed that he no longer brings in the eucalyptus and only the cherry, hence my post here to clarify on the situation.

http://www.harbeth.co.uk/usergroup/showthread.php?t=412

Re: Speaker Finishes

The current situation regarding veneer availability at June 2008 ...

Standard domestic finishes:

Cherry
Eucalyptus

Standard professional finish:

Texture grey - M20. M30 M40.1 only

Specials - not always available, tend to be for limited editions

Rosenut
Tiger Ebony

Very special:

Santos rosewood
__________________
Alan A. Shaw
Designer, owner
Harbeth Audio UK

[ryder]

I would appreciate if anybody who owns the SHL-5 in eucalpytus finish would be kind enough to post a picture of the speakers here for me to look at it. Thanks in advance.

[keithwwk]

I can find C7 only:

[keithwwk]

Oh..here is SHL5

[ryder]

Keithwwk, thanks for posting the pictures.

[Will]

C7-ES2 in Eucalyptus attached.

[ryder]

Thanks for uploading the picture Will. Speakers look great in eucalyptus. Unfortunately my local dealer does not bring in any speakers in eucalyptus finish and all we have are cherry and tiger ebony.

Cheers.

[Stephen PG]

Visited KJ West one to hear a pair of Harbeth SHL5 speakers, and by some considerable distance, it was (despite some minor reservations) the best audition I've ever attended.

The equipment.

CD player was an Audio Research DC8

Playing through a Krell S-300i integrated

Which are easily bettered by my Arcam/Avondale equipment!

The Krell integrated was noisy in operation, it seemed to use the same numeric volume control as my Arcam pre, but with an audible click with every change and it hissed through the speakers worse than a Naim pre, plus there was a very noticeable mechanical hum

The CD player was better, although the display was nasty and being a top loader it was seriously fiddly to use and eventually you are going to drop a CD edge first onto the exposed laser!

The overwhelming star of the show was the Harbeth SHL5s!

Stunningly well made, I hope my pictures do them justice!



http://i246.photobucket.com/albums/g...3/IMG_0463.jpg

http://i246.photobucket.com/albums/g...3/IMG_0464.jpg

http://i246.photobucket.com/albums/g...3/IMG_0465.jpg

http://i246.photobucket.com/albums/g...3/IMG_0466.jpg

http://i246.photobucket.com/albums/g...3/IMG_0467.jpg

http://i246.photobucket.com/albums/g...3/IMG_0468.jpg


What do they sound like, do I hear you ask?

Well, music, it’s as simple as that. They sound more like live music than ANY other speaker I’ve EVER heard.

Nice to see London again after so many years, pity its been well and truly buggered by “traffic calming”

St Pauls is still looking good.

All in all, twas a good day!

PS,

Keith,

I remembered to take the Karajan Sibelius, Tapiola was superb!

[keithwwk]

Hi Stephen,
Glad you enjoy the SHL5. Many thnaks for the lovely pictures. New collection for my Harbeth album.

PS: The Harbeth should avoid direct sunlight as showed in your 1st picture.

[ryder]

Sun is pretty bright in cold and wet Britain, pretty surprising.

Anyway, are those SHL-5's in cherry or rosenut? The grain lines seem to be pretty obvious.

[keithwwk]

I guess that is cherry. Rosenut is red color.
Cherry grain will be more obvious over time..

[Stephen PG]

They are Cherry veneered; they are also a peach!

Even in a small room, on rubbish stands and too close to the side walls, they are wonderful!

Example, I was shattered, I'd been up since 7am, when I got back home at about 6:30pm, so tired I bought myself Macdonald?s instead of cooking!

After a brief doze, I quickly set them up and listened until 4am!

They are that good.

I spent most of Sunday listening and they are indeed very easy to listen to for long periods.

Time to dig out the Wagner!

Only one real criticism, well not really a criticism, more of an observation, they are extremely revealing of poor recordings and worn records.

I have a treasured Brahms 1st Symphony by Josef Krips with the Vienna Philharmonic which sounded ok on my Royds. However on the Harbeths it is very obvious this LP has had all the high frequencies worn off it over the years and so far I've not been able to find it on CD.

Thanks Keith & Ryder, I do keep the curtains closed when it's that sunny.

[Gan CK]

They are Cherry veneered; they are also a peach!

Even in a small room, on rubbish stands and too close to the side walls, they are wonderful!

Example, I was shattered, I'd been up since 7am, when I got back home at about 6:30pm, so tired I bought myself Macdonald?s instead of cooking!

After a brief doze, I quickly set them up and listened until 4am!

They are that good.

I spent most of Sunday listening and they are indeed very easy to listen to for long periods.

Time to dig out the Wagner!

Only one real criticism, well not really a criticism, more of an observation, they are extremely revealing of poor recordings and worn records.

I have a treasured Brahms 1st Symphony by Josef Krips with the Vienna Philharmonic which sounded ok on my Royds. However on the Harbeths it is very obvious this LP has had all the high frequencies worn off it over the years and so far I've not been able to find it on CD.

Thanks Keith & Ryder, I do keep the curtains closed when it's that sunny.

Congrats on your new SHL-5s. God knows how much sleep i lost while listening to the SHL-5s during the initial months after buying it, so i can totally relate to what's happening to you right now. They make you want to skip meals, rush home after work...etc. And yes you are absolutely correct to say that they are extremely revealing of poor recordings despite sounding smooth & easy on the ears. Expect to lose more sleep in the months to come.

[ryder]

God knows how much sleep i lost while listening to the SHL-5s during the initial months after buying it, They make you want to skip meals, rush home after work...etc. Expect to lose more sleep in the months to come.

Well, I don't want to imagine that now since I'm losing sleep already thinking about the Harbeth sound I've experienced at the showroom. By the way Gan CK, what were your previous speakers prior to purchasing the SHL-5? I am using a PMC LB1 Signature, a pretty large bookshelf but it just got blown away by both Compact 7ES-3 and SHL-5.

[harbethpr]

I'm surprised that you're surprised that a Harbeth speaker with a Harbeth-UK made RADIAL woofer beats a conventional speaker with an anonymous mass-produced woofer!

[Gan CK]

Well, I don't want to imagine that now since I'm losing sleep already thinking about the Harbeth sound I've experienced at the showroom. By the way Gan CK, what were your previous speakers prior to purchasing the SHL-5? I am using a PMC LB1 Signature, a pretty large bookshelf but it just got blown away by both Compact 7ES-3 and SHL-5.

Haha that's very interesting actually...to start losing sleep even before you own the SHL-5s. )
Well, i have had the good opportunity to try just about almost every speakers that i could grab my hands on. Just to name a few like KEF, Wharfedale, Spendor, Rogers, Mordaunt-Short, Epos, Proac, B&W, Celestion, Tannoy, Monitor Audio, PMC too, Totem, Paradigm, JBL, JM Lab, Sonus Faber, Aliante, Red Rose...etc...the list goes on...all in all over the past 25 years, i think i've had about almost 200 pairs of spks to grace my living room. Yes you can call me a fanatic but i was indeed a loudspeaker fanatic. I feel that loudspeakers give the most difference to any setup. Wondering if you notice that i mostly had british spks. I love brit hifi, even amplifiers. I feel that they are more practical, simple, not excessively huge & unsightly, don't flash useless gadgets & above all excel on musical communication. My current LFD LE III is a very good example of solid british engineering in the simplest form. Same goes to Harbeth as well.

Btw, if i recall correctly, your PMC LB1 uses dynaudio drivers with its back top portion tapered off. The SHL-5 will be a big improvement over those PMCs in terms of tonality, transparency, detail & musicality. Go for it without hesitation.

[ryder]

GanCK,
That is one long list of speakers you got there! You certainly hit the bullseye in that the PMC LB1 Signature has a tapered back and utilises Dynaudio driver. I believe the limitation of the LB1 lies in the small 4.5" woofer, and I think I have had enough of small bookshelves with small drivers. After listening to the Compact 7ES-3 and SHL-5 which both have 8" woofers, there is totally no comparison. Speakers with small drivers just don't cut it and lose out in depth, soundstage, clarity and dynamics. The larger PMC EB1 may be a better comparison to the SHL-5 but due to the substantially higher price tag and the requirement of equally demanding partnering ancillaries in high-powered amps, the choice is clear for me. I also have a fondness for British gears and speakers having got my first pair of B&Ws and Arcam amp in the UK more than a decade ago when I was a student. I like the speakers more than the amps though, although I have to admit I am only exposed to Arcam electronics.

[Gan CK]

GanCK,
That is one long list of speakers you got there! You certainly hit the bullseye in that the PMC LB1 Signature has a tapered back and utilises Dynaudio driver. I believe the limitation of the LB1 lies in the small 4.5" woofer, and I think I have had enough of small bookshelves with small drivers. After listening to the Compact 7ES-3 and SHL-5 which both have 8" woofers, there is totally no comparison. Speakers with small drivers just don't cut it and lose out in depth, soundstage, clarity and dynamics. The larger PMC EB1 may be a better comparison to the SHL-5 but due to the substantially higher price tag and the requirement of equally demanding partnering ancillaries in high-powered amps, the choice is clear for me. I also have a fondness for British gears and speakers having got my first pair of B&Ws and Arcam amp in the UK more than a decade ago when I was a student. I like the speakers more than the amps though, although I have to admit I am only exposed to Arcam electronics.

Actually its not the size of the woofer that matters, its the quality of the driver & execution that matters more. Have a look at the Harbeth P3, it also has a very small woofer but has given nothing much away as far as sound quality is concerned. The larger PMC spks may require very expensive amplification to sound good. Not so on the SHL-5. As Alan has mentioned several times, the SHL-5 works pratically with almost any decent amplifier. As for british amplifiers, Arcam is good. Expose yourself to more british amps like Creek, latest Arcams, Cyrus & LFD. Listen not to its power delivery but to its tonality, musicality & the ability to involve the listener in a subtle way.

[ryder]

Quality of driver and execution do matter in sound quality but I am generally comparing between speakers with small drivers and big drivers. I have also listened and owned a fair share of bookshelves throughout all these years which include the B&W N805 and mid-range Proacs to name a few. No matter how good a small bookshelf is, the scale, dynamics and realism would not be comparable to a speaker with bigger drivers. If not, everybody would be contented with just well-designed speakers with small drivers and get say the Harbeth P3. In the end I believe the choice depends on priorities, room size and budget to name a few. Yes, the P3 as with other well-designed bookshelves with small drivers would sound excellent but they will not compare with larger speakers.

[Stephen PG]

I've had the demonstration pair for just over a week now, so I'll try and put my impressions so far into words. As I've already mentioned earlier in the thread, they are extremely revealing of poor recordings, but the more I listened to music through them, the more I realised this was a good thing. With speakers that homogenise all recordings into a single entity you are missing out on so much, whilst they may make poor recordings sound acceptable, they are also severely limiting all the great sounding CDs and LPs in your collection, which means you?ll never know which are the great recordings.

So far I?ve only found two that are poor, the Brahms I mentioned above and a real surprise, the Barbirolli Elgar Introduction & Allegro on the classic RWV Tallis fantasia recording on CD. This is first generation transfer to CD, so it?s possible there might be a re-mastered version out now. Curiously, the RWV Tallis fantasia on the same disc is fine, despite that edit!

A few of the highlights?

Beethoven: Violin concerto, Jascha Heifetz, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Charles Munch. This has always been a difficult piece to listen to, a superb performance, just slightly hindered by an average recording, or so I thought. I now realise this is a truly great recording that was being masked by poor speakers! I?m not ashamed to admit I was in tears when the final movement faded to silence.

Kind of Blue, Miles Davis, John Coltrane. Finally this sounds right! Since I bought this LP many years ago there has been a problem of getting the volume right, loud enough to hear the double bass correctly and the horns take your ears out and vice-versa.

John Surman, all his recordings! The ECM sound really seems to suit the SHL5s, and the two with Karin Krogs? vocals, wow, took my breath away!

There are dozens more I could mention but this post is long enough!