arafiq, you said, "Are there are any DIYers out there making products that can beat the usual suspects including KEF, B&W, Klipsch, Tekton, Harbeth, etc.? I'm sure there are, but I'm willing to bet that they are the exception not the norm. The whole argument is based on an outlier."
Correct, in order to compete they would have to be exceptional. Here is an outlier for you, Scott Kindt of Aspen Acoustics. See my review of the Lagrange L5 MkII at Dagogo.com. I currently own the preproduction model of the Lagrange L1, which is sonically quite competitive with big boy speakers like the Wilson Alexia or maybe even Alexx V. In conversation with Scott, I know that were the speaker to have a cabinet made professionally it would jack up the MSRP of the speaker a minimum of $5-6K. As it is, the speaker is right at $15K, a dream bargain for someone wanting upper end performance without the nose bleed price. That is what I call an outlier! :)
I heard the Tekton Moab finally at a local audiophile's home (good gear; ARC reference pre and Pass Labs XA60.8 amps, etc.) , and imo the L1 is a more prodigious and refined speaker. Of course, in order to make a definitive assessment I would need both transducers in my home. I will be reviewing the production model of the L1 for Dagogo.com when it is finalized. Like so many other companies, production is slowed because of driver maker Eton not getting the 11" woofer out the door, or at least not in sufficient quantity. :)
Correct, in order to compete they would have to be exceptional. Here is an outlier for you, Scott Kindt of Aspen Acoustics. See my review of the Lagrange L5 MkII at Dagogo.com. I currently own the preproduction model of the Lagrange L1, which is sonically quite competitive with big boy speakers like the Wilson Alexia or maybe even Alexx V. In conversation with Scott, I know that were the speaker to have a cabinet made professionally it would jack up the MSRP of the speaker a minimum of $5-6K. As it is, the speaker is right at $15K, a dream bargain for someone wanting upper end performance without the nose bleed price. That is what I call an outlier! :)
I heard the Tekton Moab finally at a local audiophile's home (good gear; ARC reference pre and Pass Labs XA60.8 amps, etc.) , and imo the L1 is a more prodigious and refined speaker. Of course, in order to make a definitive assessment I would need both transducers in my home. I will be reviewing the production model of the L1 for Dagogo.com when it is finalized. Like so many other companies, production is slowed because of driver maker Eton not getting the 11" woofer out the door, or at least not in sufficient quantity. :)