Triangle, Living Voice, Sonus Faber under 3.5K

http://www.vonschweikert.com/vr3_5main.htm

I listened to the F30s not alot to like about them. Very boxy sound. Sonus Faber Concert Piano were very source dependent, also sound stage was amplitude dependent, low dbs
no soundstage, high dbs the sound stage is very large.
The speaker I would take the trouble to listen is the Totem Forest. Soundstage was large, imaging was focused, dynamics were not half bad considering their size. Stored energy (box sound) was minimum. Still I would probably go with Maggie 1.6s and add a sub for about $3000. Best Buy in the world

Steveallen: I disagree about the Avalons, they are the soundstage and imaging kings of dynamic speakers. Totem is next in line. The Wilsons depend on which model Watt/Puppy. The Thiel 1.6 offers alot of speaker for the buck.

I've not heard the L/V's, but have listened extensively to the SF GP original and the Celius. I found the GP to be just as Micheal Fremer described them in his reveiw in Stereophile. Easy to listen to for long periods, yet enuff detail to keep it intersting.

From what I;ve read about the 'homes' is they add a tad more low end but aren't quite as smooth at the upper-mid to tweeter area.

The Celius is the only speaker I have found that is reasonably priced to be possible replacements for my Apogee Stages.

They're smooth with a transparency that is hard to believe at their price. They seem to get vocals right on. And the bass only goes to about 40 hz., but it's the type that is believable.

For me if the vocals are reproduced in a reasonable way, then I can live with other errors. Other than constipation or a crossover that gets in the way.

I've heard some high priced speakers from Avalon, Theil and Wilson. And the only one of these 3 I could ever put up with are the wilson Watt/Puppy. Just to give an example that cost doesn't mean 'jack' in this crazy hobby.

I've recently auditioned the Revel M20's that Stereophile raved about and have in their Class 'A' listing. I found if they were priced around $500 I may be able to put up with them if I had too. Otherwise, I think they are WAYYY over rated. Now, the F 30's were a completely different story.Nice. But, not as likeable as the Celius.

Good luck
Steve