Your ''best kept secret'' speaker choice ?

The best kept secret for me is that some very unlikely speakers can inexplicably sound wonderful in a listening room through sheer synergy. For example, the last time I had this reinforced to me was when some Chario Academy 1 speakers came my way at very low cost. They ended up being the best speaker I have heard in one of my systems. Apart from the fact they required me to get some good stands and change cabling to suit their particular coloration, they have trounced speakers costing several times their worth. But when I put them in my other systems, they sound pretty ordinary - which I reckon they are. But in that particular room....

VMPS if you can afford it.

Green Mountain, North Creek, Ellis, EFE, Devore are honorable mentions in bang for performance buck.

DIY drivers from madisound

Having been a speaker manufacturer 25 years ago and getting out of the game to re-enter the consulting arena, I have to say Penaudio stopped me dead in the water. Silverline follows them. But, at the end of the day, let your ears decide, not any thread. Fun thread Sonicbeauty! Good topic!

Limited exposure and imo highly gifted - Duevels.

...but of course we're the VMPS dealer here in NY ;). You're always welcome to schedule an appointment and decide for yourself.

Regards,

Rupesh

ACI Sapphire. I'm surprised no one has mentioned ACI yet.

For 25 years they chosen not to advertise but to make their reputation on word of mouth. For my money the ACI Sapphire is a fantastic value. Scan-speak tweeter, Vifa woofer and extremely solid enlosure. It compares favorably to the Totem Mani-2, and although the Mani outperforms it, it's also over $2000 more.

I also own the Quad 11L, which as someone said, is not well known in the US. It's a decent speaker and good value. It seems well engineered and performs beyond what you'd expect a speaker of its size.

With the Quad 11Ls I was pleasantly surprised. With the ACIs I was blown away.

dahlquist dq10. i bought one - for little money - for my second system. with a good amplifier like my 20 watt class a monotriode vaic valve 52 b it is nothing less ... then a dream. the human voices eg are simply unbeliaveble, word class... a speaker with 30 years!!! they are some minor flaws (imaging ore bass) but in specific areas is a speaker hard to beat at quite any price class. (my other speakers are eidolon's and I have had dozen of speakers in the last 20 years, maggies, logan's, quad's, ensemble's etc etc)

One only hears of the Apogee Scintilla in derogatory amp eater terms occasionally. Almost no one has heard them. That is a pity. IMHO the Scinilla is the greatest speaker ever devised. It is the only speaker I know that is fully articulate, seamless, flat lined, and powerful, at all audible frequencies, from below hearing (20 hz) to beyond hearing (20khz).

Silverline Sonata MK.lll. The best kept secret for now but not for very long. I was blown away with the musicality of these speakers, the effortless tonal balance, smoothness, detail and extension both the high's and low's.
Visual stunning and handcrafted with the finest materials.

just who can keep a secret ?

It did get attention though..... as all do

...another nod for Von Schweikert. yeah, some secret ;*)

BOK

Gale 401c in teak, circa 1908. Or, was it 1980? Probably the latter.

I would like to include Eminent Technology. Have the LFT-IV and LFT-XII and both sound great. Only 300 pairs of LFT-IVs were ever made. Eminent Technology makes a great planar magnetic that is an electrostatic equivalent.

PSB 500- with great "best buy" reviews, this baby is still underrated. For anything in its price range, it has amazing clarity, presence and depth.

Reimers. For less than $4000, the Wind Rivers are amazing in every respect, and for less than $6000 the Tetons are that much more so. If you can manage a way to hear them, do it!

ESP . Fairly well known but simply incredible.

World class mid/tweeter ribbons. Sweet, dynamic, detailed, airy, effortlessly loud RIBBONS! They're Swiss, and not very well known/visible in USA, but read the reviews.

The newer aluminum "C" series has been getting a lot of attention recently (Stereophile Class "A").

I would look at Source Technologies, the owner/designer John Sollecito was the "J" in JSE Engineering in the 80's, and he also developed the highly reviewed "Harmonic Recovery System" He's been building speakers for a solid 15 years - all price ranges.
The website is not one of the best, he doesn't devote much effort to it, nor does he advertise or attend shows.
www.Sourcetechspeakers.com

Piega P10s.

My previous response was supposed to have "Piega" in the subject line.

klipsch rb-3 and rb-5...these will surely cause a few snickers, but for compact 2-way speakers they can compete with any product!

After a couple of decades in this hobby and many dozens of speakers, I find the Europas the most musically enjoyfull speaker I have owned. Fully broken in, placed right, for $880, these speakers are a serious steal. Roy knows what he is doing and hit the nail on the head with these gems.

I would put my vote in for Eminent Technology. Great sounding push/pull planar with detail just like other planar or electrostatic speakers by Magnepan or Martin Logan. Their LFT-8s can be had for under $1400.00.

Tyler Acoustics!! Last speakers I will ever buy!
gthomas

Polk Audio LSi's.

Everybody thinks Polk...mid fi big box speakers.

In my experience the LSi's out performed Paradigm Studio Reference, PSB stratus and Energy Veritas. Polk has done a horrid job marketing the line, and nobody with any decent electronics carries the line. A real shame, because a big company like Polk really went all out and came in with a great affordable high end product.

ACI Jaguars

DUEVELS "LIVE"

FJ Ohm's. Great for small rooms, and they look exquisite.

It would help if people posted links to their favorite speaker so we could see what they're talking about.

Norh 6.9 and Diapason Adamantes.

On Magnepans:
I really do not believe people cannot find better in a box as I have. If you like that illusion that's great,but there are other speakers that do transparency just as good and are not as difficult to manage in order to get great sound.

Some issues that a speaker buyer needs to consider:
They are room dependent
Hard to drive
Lack dynamic Bass
and a few other attributes which plague them for a choice for people looking for speakers. The traits which Magnepan gets correct are considerable also,but I feel Box designs get a truer illusion to what the actual event is.

That's just my opinion and I have owned and heard a lot of systems with Maggies.

a second vote for Apogee Scintillas!

I have to agree on the GMA Europas, most musically enjoyable speaker I have owned. For $888 it the best value along with the Maggie MMG.

Here is some link for the Amazing DUEVELS. Enjoy!

http://www.cd-konzert.de/news/Enews.htm

http://www.cd-konzert.de/loudspeaker.htm

I'll third or fourth VMPS. The first speakers that mated to my room (with the help of the controls on the back), and gorgeous ribbon midranges that don't suck up amp power. YMMV of course.

I'd love to hear DQ-10s, and Apogee Scintillas (or the Apogee original speaker) - just scared of dealing with the weight, unrepairability and current hunger of the latter.

Patrick

Some Duevels Links, check it out!

http://www.cd-konzert.de/news/Enews.htm

>http://www.cd-konzert.de/loudspeaker.htm

I would have to say the best kept secret are the Seas' Thor's I just built, a MTM design. Ck it out on Madisound's web site. Need any help feel free to email me.

Amrita Jovian Pillar, BFS component of exceptional merit

Legacy Signiture III. Very efficient, I drive mine with an Audio Research Classic 60 with no problems at all. Change out the binding posts for the good Cardas copper ones, bi-wire with good speaker wire and you're in business. Prior to buying the Legacy's, I had several different brands of electrostatic speakers, incluing Martin Logan. Until I heard the Legacy speakers, I couldn't stand box speakers because I could either hear the box, or the tweeters sounded mechanical, or both. The Legacy Signiture IIIs are in a league of their own at the price ... retail with oak finish is around $5000. I bought mine used on Ebay for $2400. The're big ... and weigh 140 pounds each. Superb highs, mids to die for, bass to make you bleed, sound stage excellent. If these babies don't do it for you ... then you need to upgrade your electronics.

ACI,

They have the Jaguar / LFM's which I own, the Sapphires, Talismans, Panoramas etc.

In addition they make some great subs: The Titan, The smaller Force, and the monster Maestro.

Here isd a link to the ACI forum on Audio Circles where the Maestro is reviewed

http://www.audiocircle.com/circles/viewtopic.php?t=12886

Definitey Tyler Acoustics speakers. I own both the Linbrooks and the Taylos. Both can hold their own with best speakers anywhere near their respective price points.

I also agree with the Legacy and ACI recommendations too. Both companies make fine speakers.

---Dave

SANSUI SP-5500's....$$$

SP Technology

I don't think that this list would be complete without including the Ohm Walsh line. I just took delivery of a pair of Micro Walsh Talls and and they are "giant killers" at their $1000 price point. Huge, three-dimensional sound stage and full, articulate bass response to die for... and all in a tiny footprint. (If you have seen the Totem Arrow, these are almost identical in size.) Oh, and did I mention that they are coherent and articulate? :-) only sold direct from Ohm via their website. Really, more people should give these a try, particularly since you get a 120 day in-home trial. :-)

Salk Sound, Small internet based company which makes excellent built and sounding speakers.

For seasoned ears and those with exquisite taste -
Single Driver designs, horns build by small, dedicated and passionate companies which do what they love and love what they do. Same goes for other, awesome products - TT, carts, preamps, amps, DACs etc.

My lips are sealed.

MBL for their unique radiator design that like no other speaker can match.

Magnepan for their exceptional price-performance and un-beatable tweeter and seamless integration. If correctly amplified, bass is not a problem. My 3.5 with 400W amp blast the drum like a big hammer - different from Wilson's high concentration impact though.

Tannoy for their phase coherence and great soundstage.

With those 3 I feel pretty good already.

If I have to add one more then I will add Stax Head Speaker which create a headstage and crystal clear sound.

I've tried many many and those are the one I keep.

Soundlab speakers.

I still am shocked at the psb alphas, for the price it's a great speaker.

The Swan F2.2F stunning build and it competes with super speakers all for for under $6k.