There is an award-winning speaker designer and manufacturer in my hometown of Kingsport, Tennessee, that has been in business since 1958: WATKINS STEREO & LOUDSPEAKERS. Their newest speaker, the Watkins Generation Four, received The Absolute Sound's "2017 Golden Ear Award" and their "2021, 2020, 2019,& 2018 Editors' Choice Awards". From a review in The Absolute Sound:
"Had I auditioned the Gen Four blind behind a curtain and had to judge its value in the hierarchy of high-end audio I would have been happy to recommend it even at a price tag of $7k. Its asking price at a fraction of that is partly due to the direct sales model—there is no dealer markup. It simply sounds like a much more expensive speaker. And I should add that the Gen Four felt comfortable in the company of far more expensive components in the price range of $15k and upward."
In addition, the Watkins WE-1 loudspeaker was chosen as editor's choice by Stereophile Magazine. Owners of several U.S. patents on loudspeakers, Bill Watson designed the "Infinity-Watkins Dual Drive Woofers", renowned for their ability to reproduce low bass.
They sell them Factory Direct for $2,495.00 a pair.
https://www.watkinsstereo.com/
"Had I auditioned the Gen Four blind behind a curtain and had to judge its value in the hierarchy of high-end audio I would have been happy to recommend it even at a price tag of $7k. Its asking price at a fraction of that is partly due to the direct sales model—there is no dealer markup. It simply sounds like a much more expensive speaker. And I should add that the Gen Four felt comfortable in the company of far more expensive components in the price range of $15k and upward."
In addition, the Watkins WE-1 loudspeaker was chosen as editor's choice by Stereophile Magazine. Owners of several U.S. patents on loudspeakers, Bill Watson designed the "Infinity-Watkins Dual Drive Woofers", renowned for their ability to reproduce low bass.
They sell them Factory Direct for $2,495.00 a pair.
https://www.watkinsstereo.com/