Полочная акустика — Harbeth M30.3 XD2

The M30.3 XD2 carries the Monitor name within the Harbeth range and is designed and handmade in England at the company's works in Lindfield, West Sussex. This two-way stand-mount model sits in the middle of the line-up, and its XD2 designation marks a new cone material and crossover compared with earlier versions. The UK price was GBP 4,250 per pair.

Key specs that matter

A 200 mm in-house RADIAL4 mid/bass works with a 25 mm ferrofluid-cooled tweeter, crossing over at about 3 kHz. Harbeth quotes 50 Hz to 20 kHz within 3 dB, with the loudspeaker in free space and its grille attached. Sensitivity is 85 dB for 2.83 V at 1 m on axis and nominal impedance 6 ohm, and the power handling rating is 150 W programme. The suggested amplifier starts at 25 W per channel. Height is 460 mm, width 277 mm and depth 275 mm, plus 12 mm for grille and binding posts, and one speaker weighs 11.6 kg without packing.

Engineering and use context

Harbeth builds the cabinet on a thin-wall principle, a practice derived from BBC monitor work, in which panels are not made thick and heavy but damped instead. The rectangular box has front and rear panels held by screws. A front-facing reflex port is cut into the baffle, above the tweeter and to one side, so the rear panel carries only the terminals. The RADIAL4 cone is injection moulded, with the XD2 generation aiming at a stiffer and lighter diaphragm with an improved profile. The newly developed crossover was designed to tie the woofer and tweeter together more closely. Harbeth states that the response stays smooth off axis. A single pair of 4 mm Harbeth-branded binding posts accepts bare wire, spades or 4 mm plugs, and there is no second pair for bi-wiring. Five veneers are offered, Black Ash in satin, Cherry, Oak, Walnut and Rosewood, and each is natural wood that varies in colour and grain. The baffle is covered by a detachable grille.

Pairing

Response is optimised for use away from walls, and the tweeter is 320 mm above the cabinet base, which means stands should bring it level with a seated listener's ears. The load that Harbeth describes as easy to drive suits both valve and solid-state amplifiers above the suggested minimum, and a room of about 20 m2 fits the model's size.

Alternatives

Within the same Harbeth range, the C7ES-3 XD2 offers a bigger two-way stand-mount, with a 520 mm high cabinet and a rating down to 45 Hz.