To echo Mrc and Zd, yeah we were having fun. Don't consider Bose ever as a speaker worthy of having. Its overpriced, plastic junk. But I stand by my assertion that it truly is the Top Brand!
In terms of sales and sadly, public perception, 9 out of 10 people do not know nor care about quality audio, yet they are all aware of Bose. This is due to their massive and brilliant marketing campaigns. So its the Top Brand.
Your question is kind of difficult to answer. We would really need to have some idea of budget and more importantly, application - multi-channel HT or 2 channel Music? IMO, most speakers can do movies in HT applications but not all can do music. Because of the overwhelming popularity of HT systems, especially being bought by non-audiophiles, the top brands are different than those being used by 2 channel folks. If I were to give a list, the brands would be grouped under these two applications.
Just keep reading, learning and most important - when your ready to pull the trigger, go out and listen for yourself. Audition, audition, audition! Good luck brother.