[UltimaNoctis]

No? Take a look at the prices I listed. The Bowers & Wilkins Diamond 800 is only $15,000 - $25 000 depending on the store/date they were sold. There are probably more than a 100 speakers that cost more than that. Yet I put them on the list as many have claimed it is the perfect loudspeaker. Though very arguable. Same goes with the Revel Ultima Studio 2. $12,000 is significantly cheaper than some of the $100 - $300 000 speakers you can find on higher hi-fi etc. 

As for your question... I would rather tell people I have $500,000 speakers if they truly were the greatest speakers ever made.
Quote:

Did you create the list by price alone?

My vote is for the Linkwitz Orion3. Mine aren't done yet, but I have everything save for cabinets. Those will get done (hopefully) this year.

Still, they'll run me about $5,000. If you have any doubts about them, visit the Linkwitz Lab site. I haven't seen any speaker so thoroughly documented and tested. Linkwitz truly knows what he is doing. He set out to create the best possible speaker and turned it into a DIY build so it'll be as affordable as possible. This is the best that one of the preeminent audio engineers could do. No audio jewelry, no snakeoil, and it certainly doesn't bow to conventions.

Aside from that, I'm happy with the Quad ESL-63. It doesn't get the lowest octave, but those things can turn out square waves accurately and certainly sound like it. You can get used pairs in excellent condition for $2,000 or less. I doubt any of those five and six figure speakers would better a good pair of Quads.

As for $100M in discretionary cash, I'd keep the Quads and have some nice solid black walnut Orion3 cabinets professionally built for me. I'd use the rest of the money to gobble up a bunch of rental units. Figure I could pick up about 2,500 units and collect roughly $2M a month in rents. Then I'd travel the planet, attend any concert that interests me and drop around $500k a month into charity, scholarships, and angel investments in small companies. The universities I attended would get many more endowed chairs, too.

Yeah, I could spend $500k on speakers. But that could also get a company off the ground and create jobs. It would also put people through college without evil student loans.

And I'd still have a stereo as good as anything out there. Maybe not the bragging rights, but who cares? Would you rather tell people that you have $500k speakers or that you created 20 jobs last month?

 

 

[UltimaNoctis]

Quote:

Not a single electrostatic or planar speaker that I saw glancing through your list.  Nobody has heard most of this stuff so it'd be impossible to answer.  I've heard the B&Ws and they sound like crap...Quads are WAY better.  Most expensive doesn't mean best.

That's a load of bullocks you are talking there. Nothing sold on the market can really compare to B&W 800D. Only perhaps something like these rarer 'exclusive' speakers.
 
And I talked to KSS and got this answer about the Snell THX vs any other speaker in the world like B&W 800D, Revel Ultima, Wilson Audio etc...
 
"It all depends on the size of the audience and the nature of the acoustic space. But for the KSS Cine Beta "Trinity" Theater, the Snell THX M & C was the most accurate sounding choice because of it's highly controlled dispersion pattern. The music speakers you mention produce much better results when used only in pairs, Rather than in a surround system. For the Trinity Theater, each of the 8.8 channels is completely identical with all drivers and crossover components specially scratch built under my supervision to produce playback accuracy from 10 Hz - 102,500 Hz +/- 1/8 dB."

 

[sachu]

pointless thread...and so i am thread crapping..

 

[jp11801]

this list is kinda silly in that many high proced speakers just plain old suck.  I've heard the Wilson stuff and fun for a few minutes but ultimately colored and way hyped in the top and botttom end. MBLs, areyou kidding me way to dispersed counding for me, the YG speakers I heard a few at RMAF and I would not pay 1/10th the price for them.
 
Best I have heard are the GOTU horn systems and the Oswald Mills Audio big speakers (68K) field coil mid range speakers. The Merlins were great at RMAF and I absolutely love the Alon/Nola stuff aside from just a few clunkers (viper 1)

 

[sachu]

Quote:

this list is kinda silly in that many high proced speakers just plain old suck.  I've heard the Wilson stuff and fun for a few minutes but ultimately colored and way hyped in the top and botttom end. MBLs, areyou kidding me way to dispersed counding for me, the YG speakers I heard a few at RMAF and I would not pay 1/10th the price for them.
 
Best I have heard are the GOTU horn systems and the Oswald Mills Audio big speakers (68K) field coil mid range speakers. The Merlins were great at RMAF and I absolutely love the Alon/Nola stuff aside from just a few clunkers (viper 1)

Jonathan makes some amazing stuff..heard those at RMAF but they need 5-10 times the space to really sing. 
 
 

 

[n3rdling]

Quote:

That's a load of bullocks you are talking there. Nothing sold on the market can really compare to B&W 800D. Only perhaps something like these rarer 'exclusive' speakers.
 
And I talked to KSS and got this answer about the Snell THX vs any other speaker in the world like B&W 800D, Revel Ultima, Wilson Audio etc...
 
"It all depends on the size of the audience and the nature of the acoustic space. But for the KSS Cine Beta "Trinity" Theater, the Snell THX M & C was the most accurate sounding choice because of it's highly controlled dispersion pattern. The music speakers you mention produce much better results when used only in pairs, Rather than in a surround system. For the Trinity Theater, each of the 8.8 channels is completely identical with all drivers and crossover components specially scratch built under my supervision to produce playback accuracy from 10 Hz - 102,500 Hz +/- 1/8 dB."

What did I say that was wrong?  Are you saying that I'm lying about not liking the 800D?  They sounded like a bassy, boomy mess with decent imaging to me.  Have you actually heard the 800D?
 
I also don't think it's wise to take manufacturers' claims as gospel.  They're all going to say they create the best speaker in the world.  
 
We're not on the audiogon forums here, we're allowed to think stuff sucks and is overpriced crap.
 

 

[SR-71Panorama]

link

 

[Gatepc]

 
Quote:

this list is kinda silly in that many high proced speakers just plain old suck.  I've heard the Wilson stuff and fun for a few minutes but ultimately colored and way hyped in the top and botttom end. MBLs, areyou kidding me way to dispersed counding for me, the YG speakers I heard a few at RMAF and I would not pay 1/10th the price for them.
 
Best I have heard are the GOTU horn systems and the Oswald Mills Audio big speakers (68K) field coil mid range speakers. The Merlins were great at RMAF and I absolutely love the Alon/Nola stuff aside from just a few clunkers (viper 1)

I guess we all have our own opinions on sound and thats why its important for anyone making an investment in sound to always hear the audio equipment first. I have not heard the horn system you speak of but every horn speaker I have ever heard I have really hated. But I guess to each his own.
 

 

[Scottsmrnyc]

You neglected to mention the Nola Grands and the Nola Baby Grands. I still like my Cerwin Vega D9s as well as my new Cerwin Vega CMX 212s; for a lot less money; but still sounding nice.

 

[DaveBSC]

In my humble opinion, having actually heard them, the Rockport Arrakis is just about as good as it gets. I've heard some of those $20K-ish speakers on the list like the B&W and the KEF, and sorry, they aren't even in the same ballpark as the best speakers on the market. Any Rockport will stomp them into the ground. The KEF is ok but overpriced, and the B&W didn't impress me. I've certainly heard worse, but no way would I ever buy a Nautilus anything. I agree that NOLA speakers should be on the list. I've hated every Wilson I've heard, I do NOT understand what all the fuss is about over them. Not even close to accurate speakers or even enjoyable. I've also been thoroughly unimpressed with the JMLab Utopia series.
 
One speaker I would like to give a second chance to is the Dynaudio Evidence Master. The room I heard them in was tiny given their size, and I wonder if the uneven and lumpy response I heard from them was due to that. I've heard the top of the Confidence range and they were lovely, especially given that their price is far below mediocre B&Ws and Avalons. I would also very much like to hear the top Soundlabs to see if panels can really compete with speakers like Rockport or NOLA on their terms. Quads are extremely good with certain types of music within their limitations. As an all rounder though? Sorry, but no.
 
Another on the audition list is the new Egglestonworks Andra III. I've heard some EW speakers years ago and they were nice, but flawed. Supposedly the Andra III is pretty amazing though. I have absolutely no interest in any 20 Gigawatt, 11.11 channel whatever. "Hey dude I have a 10 million dollar sound system, let's play some Xbox on it!" Ugggh.

 

[sterling1]

As entertaining as this thread is, is it even possible to discern what's best in this category? And, best at what,  the illusion of "real"? No doubt. we'll have some good reading ahead from creative writers. And, those with too much time will, I'm sure, contribute to the discussion ; but, I've gotta tell ya, this thread will not come to a conclusion about anything, except the realization that what we now own is not the best, and, perhaps with the budget, we could find something better. Gee, and until now, I was pretty much satisfied with my 20 year old JBL L100t3's.

 

[Uncle Erik]

To me, the five and six figure offerings seem more like a way to maximize profits than a way to maximize performance.

 

[jp11801]

Quote:

As entertaining as this thread is, is it even possible to discern what's best in this category? And, best at what,  the illusion of "real"? No doubt. we'll have some good reading ahead from creative writers. And, those with too much time will, I'm sure, contribute to the discussion ; but, I've gotta tell ya, this thread will not come to a conclusion about anything, except the realization that what we now own is not the best, and, perhaps with the budget, we could find something better. Gee, and until now, I was pretty much satisfied with my 20 year old JBL L100t3's.

 
actually I disagree as while I own a pair of Alons I'd take a pair of GOTO horns
 
absolutely spooky reproduction also the Moth Cicadias are great if you don;t need great bootom end. The Moths are a no brainer for someone that loves small combo jazz.
 
The Efficion speakers are ones that I'd also likely give up my speakers for as well, they were outstanding when I heard them at the VSAC show. Heck I'd love a pair of Altec Lansing VOTs if I had the space.

 

[Karo]

Anything with Alnico magnets/drivers.   The musicality and response are unmatched.  Would like to own some Altecs or JBLs.
 
Apparently the main advances have occured in cabinet construction.

 

[Hi-fi Wigwammer]

The finest loudspeaker system i've had the pleasure of hearing (home audio is my main hobby ahead of headphones TBH) is the Living Voice Vox Olympian/Elysium horn system.
Partnered with a Kondo KSL-M77 pre, Gakuon 211 monos, SME 30/ IO-J and CEC TLOX/Kondo DAC the results were breathtaking. Incredible dynamics, tone, timbre and imaging. Just pure music - so alive.