At CanJam, the Harbeths won my heart over the Amphions (which were no slouch either). A question I have, however, is how the Harbeths perform in a non-nearfield environment (and the Amhions, too). I didn't get a good sense of this at CanJam and would appreciate impressions.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Hairy Primate
At CanJam, the Harbeths won my heart over the Amphions (which were no slouch either). A question I have, however, is how the Harbeths perform in a non-nearfield environment (and the Amhions, too). I didn't get a good sense of this at CanJam and would appreciate impressions.
I was about to type, "How the heck would I know," but realized that would show a lack of sensitivity and dedication to the products we carry. Guilty. I guess I should go home and rig them up in my main system and compare it to my big rig speakers. Gimme til next week and I'll do it over the long weekend and let you know.
(edit - Sorry, Monkey, I pushed 'edit' instead of 'relpy' on your post (I have mod privilidges here) so you post says I edited it---but I didn't change anything.)
Up until now, all the people I've talked to that own or heard Harbeths have used them in a normal stereo setup. It never occured to me that one could set up a desktop system with them (I'm not sure how the BBC arranges their monitoring stations)
I was intrigued by a pair of Harbeths in my search for my perfect desktop/nearfield speaker.
I never got a chance to hear them though.
Does anyone here use a pair of harbeths in a nearfield situation?
How are they?
Absolutely awesome at CanJam. They just disappear. The soundstage is deep and relatively wide (but it's the depth that amazed me). And the sound signature is very sweet. They just sing.
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Aha! Mission accomplished. I set up the system at home and had all the sales and marketing folks over for a listening session.
Short version? (I've got a lot of accounting stuff to do today.) The Habeths are spectacular. The Amphions (large and small) were good, but the competence of the Harbeths is just stunning. Imaging, naturalness, lack of harshness, depth, just in every possible way, they are a joy to hear. The place where the Amphions do well is if you like a bit of pizzaz to your sound. I like the HD650, but if you are a beyer 880 fan (tipped up a bit in the highs and lows) then you might like the Amphions. But me, I think the Harbeths are the way to go whether you're close up or far away.
Thanks, Tyll. It sounds like they retain their great characteristics in a non-nearfield setting.
And I completly agree with your comparison of the Harbeths to the big Amphions. The Amphions have a bit more bite to them, more sting on the cymbals for instance.
The next speakers I buy very likely will be the Harbeths.
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Harbeths
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