Oh man, I'd hate to have to make this decision. My wallet made my decision for me.
My knee jerk reaction would be to say get the Harbeths. On the other hand, the Minuets are very nice. I have a pair.
I also listen to a very wide range of varying types of music and I have been on the hunt for the "perfect" speaker for me.
Just to play devil's advocate, I'd say that the Harbeths are a good bit less efficient. Just going by the specs, the Minuets should play about twice as loud for any given amount of power, for the times when you can. The Harbeths are also rated pretty low for power handling, at 50 watts. The Minuets are rated at up to 300. I also didn't like the Harbeths playing rock music, although they did everything else very well.
The Harbeths also don't go as low as the Minuets do. I often run my Minuets without a sub and don't miss it at all. When I do run a sub, I have it crossed over at 50hz, for what it's worth.
I think that I would characterize the Harbeths as being very civilized. They don't play all that loud and they don't go very low, but they sound excellent with what they can do.
The Minuets are a great bang for the buck speaker. I've had Dynaudios, Paradigms, System Audios, etc. and the Minuets have sounded the best in my room. What I've found with them is that they sound good no matter what. I mean, I can set them up to sound really good, but they sound at least good regardless of how I set them up. They are very forgiving.
To tell the truth, I feel kind of silly recommending the Minuets over a pair of Harbeths, but the Harbeths just weren't for me, although I will acknowledge that they are recognized as being a better speaker.
If you can afford the Harbeths, I'd recommend finding a used pair of Minuets. You can get them for $500 and under. Then I'd find a used pair of Harbeths and get those too. If you decide that the Harbeths are for you, then stick the Minuets in storage because everyone should have a pair at their price.
If the Minuets are for you, you can sell the Harbeths.
For their price and the countless number of hours that I've enjoyed the little Minuets, I cannot fault them for anything. Hours literally fly by when I'm listening.
My knee jerk reaction would be to say get the Harbeths. On the other hand, the Minuets are very nice. I have a pair.
I also listen to a very wide range of varying types of music and I have been on the hunt for the "perfect" speaker for me.
Just to play devil's advocate, I'd say that the Harbeths are a good bit less efficient. Just going by the specs, the Minuets should play about twice as loud for any given amount of power, for the times when you can. The Harbeths are also rated pretty low for power handling, at 50 watts. The Minuets are rated at up to 300. I also didn't like the Harbeths playing rock music, although they did everything else very well.
The Harbeths also don't go as low as the Minuets do. I often run my Minuets without a sub and don't miss it at all. When I do run a sub, I have it crossed over at 50hz, for what it's worth.
I think that I would characterize the Harbeths as being very civilized. They don't play all that loud and they don't go very low, but they sound excellent with what they can do.
The Minuets are a great bang for the buck speaker. I've had Dynaudios, Paradigms, System Audios, etc. and the Minuets have sounded the best in my room. What I've found with them is that they sound good no matter what. I mean, I can set them up to sound really good, but they sound at least good regardless of how I set them up. They are very forgiving.
To tell the truth, I feel kind of silly recommending the Minuets over a pair of Harbeths, but the Harbeths just weren't for me, although I will acknowledge that they are recognized as being a better speaker.
If you can afford the Harbeths, I'd recommend finding a used pair of Minuets. You can get them for $500 and under. Then I'd find a used pair of Harbeths and get those too. If you decide that the Harbeths are for you, then stick the Minuets in storage because everyone should have a pair at their price.
If the Minuets are for you, you can sell the Harbeths.
For their price and the countless number of hours that I've enjoyed the little Minuets, I cannot fault them for anything. Hours literally fly by when I'm listening.