The Super HL5plus XD succeeded at being exceptionally refined, robust, and fun, in roughly equal parts. It was ultradetailed but never surgical. Its immaculate resolution never sounded less than natural, smooth, never processed. The seamlessness the SHL5plus XD bestowed on music, in both tone and dynamics, coupled to its ability to disappear completely, startled me first, then soothed me.

I found the SHL5plus XD transparent, in the sense of faithfulness to the recorded event. It didn't turn bad recordings into good ones, but it made listening to well-recorded sounds a special, consuming experience. The SHL5plus XD played with more ease, fluidity, and seamless dynamics than most speakers. Not to sound daft, but at the same time, they seemed to exude a spiritual quality, a life force beyond that of conjoined wood, paper, metal, and polypropylene. They practically gleam from the inside out. This speaker was at once literal—natural—and something more. Magical. Luminous. To the sense of a piece of music recorded in a specific time and place, they added something more, as if those (cabinet?) resonances were not just physical but emotional—as if the speaker tapped memories buried in the music.

By this point, you must think I've snorted fairy dust. I am not suggesting magic in any literal way. I'm trying to find ways to communicate the faultless musicality, exquisite voicing, tone, articulation, lyricism, and mojo I heard from the SHL5plus XDs, which seem to add up to something more than those individual elements. My Spendor BC1s sound sweeter, warmer, soggier. They have a rounder, less dynamic low end. But they lacked that spiritual quality the Harbeths exuded.

The SHL5plus XDs did a fine job with female jazz vocals, staying true to their vocal tone and rhythmic phrasing and presenting them on a soundstage that's wide and deep. On "I Walk a Little Faster" from Born to Blue (Decca, FLAC 44.1kHz/16bit), Beverly Kenney's creamy vocal was intimate and (dare I write it?) kissable; this recording places Hal Mooney's large ensemble of brass, piano, strings, and acoustic bass far behind her.

By contrast, vocalist June Christy is an upbeat life force regardless of material or accompaniment. Her 1954 debut 10", Something Cool (16/44.1 FLAC, Capitol Records), is often credited with kicking off the cool-jazz vocal movement, but Christy's singular strengths transcend any such genre limitations. Her soulful style shines on this debut, which includes a relaxed take on "It Could Happen to You," a resolute version of "The Night We Called It a Day," and a take-charge reading of "A Stranger Called the Blues." Christy's vocal set is large and centered; the Harbeths draped Pete Rugolo's subtle orchestrations around in a way that transforms us into engrossed listeners at a small local bar. The Harbeths' knack for creating a sense of intimacy and closeness within a large soundstage was uncanny and, again, practically spiritual.

Yet the Harbeth Super HL5plus XD is easily the finest standmount speaker I've heard, and it challenges most floorstanders for pure musicality and enjoyment. It manages to combine high definition, warmth, soundstage dimensionality, intimacy, lyricism, gracefulness, refinement, insight, and clarity, and to weave those elements into a beautiful, sensuous, fulfilling whole.

Link do recenzji: Harbeth SHL5plus XD – Stereophile