Spendor D7 vs. Harbeth Super HL5+

avanti1960,
WOW, great comparison! Did the SHL5+ need much break in? Mine are at 100-150 hours of break in and I believe they are getting better although Harbeth states that they need very little break in.

These are my first Harbeths. I have mixed feelings with them. This is why I'm considering the Spendor D7 or D9. I currently own the Ascend Acoustic Sierra Towers and, as of now, prefer them to the Harbeths. The Ascends have more sizzle and snap up top and I prefer this but am looking for a more costly speaker like the Ascends that can give me more refinement than the Ascends can. The softer, more natural presentation of the Harbeths is different for me and may take a while to adjust to. I'm not sure yet so I guess I'm looking for more musicality in a speaker similarly designed to the Ascends even though the Ascends sound musical to me.

I am using a Conrad Johnson LP70s tube power amp which I don't want to change. This is the amp that I'm using for comparison. Also, I own the Conrad Johnson ET250s hybrid power amp. This amp brings out some solid state shrillness in upper end of both speakers so I don't use for comparison.

I do have the Harbeths towed in less and, as you stated, there is an emphasis on the midrange. I'm happy with the bass as I have them paired with a subwoofer. They are about 28" from the front wall. I do not have more space to move them further out into the room. There is plenty of sidewall space. I don't have a boomy situation except for a handful of recordings.

Thank you for your continued input.

My experience was just the opposite.
I owned the Spendor D7 and owned the Harbeth SHL5+ previously.

The midrange in the SHL5+ was marvelous, effortless, warm, and very easy to live with. I really enjoyed those.
The bass was not of my taste, not too much and not so defined and precise.
That´s why I start a search of new pair, and after a long time looking for I arrived to the Spendor D7.
Much, much better bass, more, clear, precise, and scary defined. 
I also found than the midrange was not so romantic and engaging as the SHL5+, but it was definitely  more natural sounding allowing better instrument/voices separation and realism to the presentation.

As the other OP, I noticed that the upper midrange was far too forward, but after 300-400hrs of burn in it was gone.

At one point prior to the 300hrs I was ready to sell the Spendor, but chatting with some others owners calmed down my anxiety.
And it pays a huge reward.

IMHO the Spendor D7 are a tremendous value proposition at their price point. They offer a lot of refinement and high-end sound for the price.

Its very difficult to match the natural, accurate and transparent sound they produce. 
 The SHL5+ is a different kind of speaker, more centered in romanticism and engagement, but not natural sounding as D7s.

So finally is up to you. Try to demo both of them with good amplification and take your decision.
 
Amplifier used in both of them:
Exposure 3010SD
Mcintosh MA252
Leben CS600X
SimAudio Moon 600i

Perfect match for Harbeth SHL5+ was the Moon 600i.
Perfect match for Spendor D7 was the Moon 600i for music that needed more grunt and grip, and the Leben CS600X to increase romantic/engagement factor in more relaxed music like Jazz.

If you are looking for a speaker in this size range then you might want to consider the ATC SCM50 from the classic series you can find them new for just under 10k and used for $5,750.00 right now on USAM.

@routeman21 
be careful straying from harbeth, they can get their hooks in you ! 
i went to spendor after my first harbeths, the c73s3 and eventually came back.  both my harbs took at least 250 hrs for the sound to plateau.  
before i forget-  grilles off!  too laid back with them on, especially my old c7s.  
every speaker worth owning requires (at least for me) lots of work to get the best sound and synergy in your system.  
position fine tuning including height, speaker cables (kimber 8pr sounds great with harbeths and not bank breaking) interconnects (nordost purple or blue brings transparency and air for example).  
"work them" per above and see if you aren't happy.  

I have found that all HARBETH models love great tube amps. Overall they are at their best reproducing classical, jazz and vocal recordings. I eventually ended up with PRIMA LUNA INTEGRATED "HP". But the real magic came to pass when I switched to a double quad of KT150's. The "150's" brought out a new character in my HARBETH speakers that wasn't there with any other amplifier tested, and the most interesting fact was that the HARBETH's did not loose one ounce of that superb midrange mentioned in other reviews.  Another area to look into, that I discovered, made significant improvements in the balance, tactility, presence and drive that the HARBETH / PRIMA LUNA paring produced, was going to large gauge (min. 10awg) power cables and some quality power input conditioning and well designed shielding. This improvement made as much difference in the overall reproduction of the audio spectrum, moreso that any other tweak I have every tried. Especially, soundstaging and bass slam. Have fun but for God sake don't give up on HARBETH. Eventually you will hate yourself for it. I think you would really love the 40.1's. It is a bit of an investment, however.