Bud - would love to hear how you feel about the HArbeth 30.1 after having Maggie 1.7s?
My wife never spent much time listening to the Maggies other than as background music. Since we've gotten the Harbreth's, she's asked to listen to music together almost every evening since they arrived. She is constantly telling me how good they sound.
Last night we sat listening to 7 Diana Krall albums with almost no words between us.
As for how they sound all I can say is that they get everything right. I'm surprised at how they can handle the loudest passages of classical music. They can reproduce organic sound. Oboes and clarinets have a wooden sound. Brass sounds like brass. Drums on Take Five are reproduced with perfect realism.
Music is seamless from top to bottom. There is good depth to the sound stage.
It's hard to justify spending over $6K with stands for those little thin-wall BBC monitors until you hear them. I took a chance buying C7's and once I heard them, I had to try the 30.1's. I haven't been disappointed.
My entire system is Bryston/Cardas Clear. I'd like to hear the 30.1's with tubes or an LFD Integrated amp.
If you can find a way to listen to the 30.1's or any Harbreth speaker you should make the effort to do it.
Bud
I should add that I always preferred listening to my Senn HD-800 headphones to my speakers but not anymore. Since we got the 30.1's I have spent almost no time with the cans.