Although the original poster was referring to the overall trajectory of loudspeaker technology over the past decade or so, I'd also like to toss into the mix the factor of loudspeaker VALUE for the price.
My own sense and experience here is that there has been a gratifying "bang for the buck" improvement over the years, and that's even taking inflation into account. There are some astonishingly good loudspeakers out there for well under $1000 these days, and the values get even better if you are willing to consider used equipment.
Case in point: I had to sell my old pair of original, 1985-vintage Vandersteen 2C speakers about a year ago due to moving into a much smaller listening room than the one I had 20 years ago (read: low wife acceptance factor). This led me to reacquaint myself with what's out there now, over 20 years down the road, and I have to say I've been very impressed. I had the opportunity to listen to Totem Arros, Ohm Micro Walsh Talls, Ohm 100s and Silverline Preludes in my home. I ended up settling on the Ohm 100s and I'm extremely pleased. But in the other speakers I mentioned measured up extremely well, and although they are quite different in character than my old Vandersteen speakers, I am very impressed by the value that's available now. If I remember correctly, the Vandersteen's set me back around $1200... and those were 1985 dollars! :-)
So I think that one of the exciting developments in speaker technology over the past 25 years is that there are some great bargains available out there. It's true that the cost-no-object designs of the most expensive manufacturers have probably gone up in price, but in some ways, I find the ability to get wonderful sound out of less expensive products to be even more interesting.
My own sense and experience here is that there has been a gratifying "bang for the buck" improvement over the years, and that's even taking inflation into account. There are some astonishingly good loudspeakers out there for well under $1000 these days, and the values get even better if you are willing to consider used equipment.
Case in point: I had to sell my old pair of original, 1985-vintage Vandersteen 2C speakers about a year ago due to moving into a much smaller listening room than the one I had 20 years ago (read: low wife acceptance factor). This led me to reacquaint myself with what's out there now, over 20 years down the road, and I have to say I've been very impressed. I had the opportunity to listen to Totem Arros, Ohm Micro Walsh Talls, Ohm 100s and Silverline Preludes in my home. I ended up settling on the Ohm 100s and I'm extremely pleased. But in the other speakers I mentioned measured up extremely well, and although they are quite different in character than my old Vandersteen speakers, I am very impressed by the value that's available now. If I remember correctly, the Vandersteen's set me back around $1200... and those were 1985 dollars! :-)
So I think that one of the exciting developments in speaker technology over the past 25 years is that there are some great bargains available out there. It's true that the cost-no-object designs of the most expensive manufacturers have probably gone up in price, but in some ways, I find the ability to get wonderful sound out of less expensive products to be even more interesting.