Harbeth

Harbeth is a British loudspeaker manufacturer. The company was founded over forty-seven years ago to commercialise the BBC's loudspeaker R&D, and its founder H.D. Harwood had been Head of BBC Loudspeaker Development. Its 1977 debut product was the HL Monitor (Mk1), built around a newly-patented polypropylene-coned bass-midrange woofer. Alan Shaw took over Harbeth in 1986 and serves as its designer. The company produces loudspeakers at its Lindfield production facility, building only to order, with 95% of production in-bulk and destined for export customers. Its current product lines include the XD2 series (P3ESR XD2, C7ES-3 XD2, M30.3 XD2, SHL5plus XD2, M40.5 XD2), the NLE-1 and NLE-3, and the Nelson.

Harbeth was founded over forty-seven years ago to commercialise the BBC's loudspeaker R&D. Its founder, H.D. Harwood, had been Head of BBC Loudspeaker Development through the 1960s and 70s. Towards the end of his career at the BBC's Research Department, Harwood identified a new type of film plastic suitable for loudspeaker cones; with the BBC's consent he was granted a patent, and upon his formal retirement the Harbeth company was created. Adverts in the hi-fi press announced his 1977 debut HL Monitor (Mk1), built around his newly-patented polypropylene-coned bass-midrange woofer, the world's first. In 1986 Alan Shaw took over Harbeth, and Harwood had already identified the next generation cone material after polypropylene. Harbeth undertook a five man-year Research and Development into Advanced Loudspeaker (RADIAL) project, supported by an industry-university sponsorship scheme and UK government R&D funding. Today Harbeth loudspeakers are produced at its Lindfield production facility, where batches are assembled every day; the company builds only to order, with 95% of production in-bulk and destined for export customers.

Natural-sounding loudspeakers; fidelity first; ultimate in audio performance.

• HL Monitor (Mk1)

  1977 debut loudspeaker with polypropylene-coned bass-midrange woofer.

• P3ESR XD2

  Loudspeaker in the XD2 series.

• C7ES-3 XD2

  Loudspeaker in the XD2 series.

• M30.3 XD2

  Loudspeaker in the XD2 series.

• SHL5plus XD2

  Loudspeaker in the XD2 series.

• M40.5 XD2

  Loudspeaker in the XD2 series.

• NLE-1

  Loudspeaker model.

• NLE-3

  Loudspeaker model.

• Nelson

  Loudspeaker model.

1. 1Harbeth Audio | Natural Sounding Loudspeakersharbeth.co.uk
2. 2An introduction - Harbethharbeth.co.uk
3. 3Harbeth Technology - Harbethharbeth.co.uk
4. 4Making your Harbeth's - Harbethharbeth.co.uk