Midrange Better Than Harbeth or Spendor?

I second Reynaud with a good single ended tube amplifier.

Really, the ATCs are so fine. I like Harbeth and Spendor alot, but the midrange of ATCs is less nasal and more open. Downside is the ATCs are VERY critical to source and amplification.

The Ambience ribbons have a fantastically natural sounding midrange-with oodles of resolution and image precision too-and I am a "BBC sound" fan.I used Tangent RS4 and Rogers Export Monitors for years.
In my opinion a good wide range ribbon is more tonally natural than a good electrostat-but most stats are still very good compared to the vast majority of box speakers.
The old B&W DM70 hybrid stats have superb midrange.

I would find an old pair of Spendor BC1 or BC3. I had a pair of SP8, and the BC3 stock had better midrange, but BC3 modded made the SP8 sound unrealistic.

I had a pair of Proac Resp 3.5 that were better than the SP8, esp in the midrange but also much better in the bass.

If you're not into modding the BC1 will probably have the best midrange you'll find.

Old Rogers Studio 1 should also be considered. Or Celestion SL700 if you can find a pair.

I'm a bit surprised that no one's yet mentioned Quad. I've never owned Harbeth/Spendor, but at audition I've admired both brands' mid-band a lot, but have always ended up going for more full-range alternatives. Same deal with the (older) Quads I've tested.

And, slightly off thread:

To my ear, part of the mid band appeal of all these speakers MIGHT be due to their octave to octave balance - gently rolled at both ends. I say this because so many speakers with this balance strike me as having remarkable mid-bands. In addition to the older Quads, you could add Lipinski, older Sonus Faber, and many single driver models to this list. This effect is also sometimes evident to me on speakers where only the total energy below the mid band is rolled relative to the mids and extended high end. I'm thinking about older Pro-Acs and Merlins here. You may be picking up on this, too.

Marty