Looking for Speaker Input

Having worked in the electronics business in China and Japan for a couple decades I can say that in general Japanese goods far exceed the quality of Chinese. There are exceptions of course where, for instance an American company tightly controls every aspect of the manufacturing processes (think Apple). But, in general, Japan, the culture and companies are dedicated to high quality and endless iterative improvements. They are absolutely dedicated to doing a good job. China is very different, culturally and from a manufacturing perspective all over the map. So, no question you can get a good piece of equipment from China, but lots of research and knowledge is required to be guaranteed good tech and quality construction.

I think you are correct. My last jump was from a ~$12K speaker to ~$32K. The difference was substantial. I had verified I wanted the sound of Sonus Faber about ten years earlier by getting a used set of Cremona.. and within a week decided this was the right brand for me. So I ordered a set of SF Olympica 3 (trading in the Cremona), which I really enjoyed for six or seven years and then upgraded to the SF Amati Traditional. These sonically fit my room (25’ bye 36’). and musical tastes well Additionally they are the most beautiful speakers I have seen. Click in my user ID to see the system.

While my system is detailed it is overwhelmingly musical and performs very well across all musical types. But you must like the house sound of the speaker company you choose. Given your equipment, if you play rock most of the time look at B&W. For great imaging high end speakers look at Wilson. Very highly detailed Magico. Given your systemI would stick with established high end companies.