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Spendor and Harbeth = "Better KEF"?

Hawkeye83

Hawkeye83

Super Member
I've yet to hear any Spendor or Harbeth...I always got the impression that they were similar to KEF, but considered "better"...which would be a very good thing, IMO! Am I right there, that Spendor and Harbeth are considered higher end than KEF? Or not necessarily? I sure love my KEF's and if these brands are supposedly even better, I'll need to check them out in the future.

Would there be a Spendor or Harbeth model comparable to KEF 107's? I know very little about Spendor, but I hear a lot about Harbeth 40.1's being the bees-knees. I've heard that many Quad owners eventually go to Harbeth...supposedly similarly "open"/natural sound, but less "issues."

Anyway, just curious how these three brands "rate" vs each other.
 
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Different KEF would be how I would describe them. KEF made some fine speakers.

Lee.
 
I own all three brands. I don't think any are more high end than the others. Definitely different.
My KEF 103/3s and 102s deliver the classic sound you are familiar with over your 107s.
The Spendor A6r (2way floorstander) have all the midrange magic we love about British speakers.(and can rock)
And when acoustic music and vocals are the material of choice, the shoebox sized Harbeth P3ESRs leave me slack jawed. Just crazy imaging and micro details.

Go have listen. Variety is the spice of life!
Happy listening
 
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I’ve only heard Harbeths once at a NY audio show, they were 40.2’s and they were driven by $90k worth of VAC tube gear. Needless to say they sounded fantastic - not sure it was “$100k fantastic” (or even $50k fantastic) but it was pretty great.

I had a pair of 80’s Spendor SP2/2’s and really liked them, they are smooth, polite and refined, much like your 107’s are (I’ve also spent some time with your exact KEF speakers as you know LOL). I like the 2/2’s so much that I bought their bigger brother, the SP100. They have the same house sound as the SP2/2’s but a lot more of it. Easy to listen to, great instrumental tone, and very articulate without a trace of harshness. The guy I bought my SP100’s from bought them new over 10 years ago, and had exstensively auditioned everything in the Harbeth line - his conclusion was that the SP100’s were the more “musical” speaker.

My main speakers are restored Quad 57’s from 1959 - I would say that although I like the sound of both the Quads and the Spendors it is really an apples to oranges comparison. The speed, transparency and visceral thrill that the 57’s deliver is unmatched by any other speaker I have heard so far. A completely different animal.

IME One advantage Spendor or Harbeth has over the classic KEF’s is that they can be driven by tube amps with greater success than the KEF 104, 105 or 107 can which opens up a greater range of amplifier pairing possibility.
 
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I heard the Harbeth Super HL5 Plus at RMAF, driven by some exotic (single giant tube linestage, transformer volume control) Vinnie Rossi electronics. It was one of only a handful of rooms that I'd compare with my Quads in my system. Interestingly, Paul Seydor at The Absolute Sound seems to hear things like I do, and makes similar comparisons.
 
Thanks for the input, guys. Essentially what I was thinking! KEF's like power, which IS frustrating. I thought my 103.2's sounded good on a smaller tube amp, but the amp either had issues or the speakers took it out...so that experiment didn't last long. Definitely wasn't playing them with any type of volume either.

I am familiar with the Quad sound, having owned 57's for a year...which is one of the things drawing me towards Harbeth. Looks like the Spendor SP100 should maybe also be on my radar.

Got to go for now, but good talk guys. Maybe I just wanted to feel validated that my KEF's weren't huge piles of crap next to the other two brands, haha! Thanks for your support :)
 
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