Buying used vs new speakers from a technology perspective

My $.02: its price to performance.  Generally better with used speakers but there may be something you can only get with the new model but you'll pay -- the ratio will be higher.

However, I do like that many of y'all just HAVE TO have the newest thing, because I'll take your old newest thing at 40%!

Changes in speaker technologies  are far more incremental than monumental, KEF Meta being a perfect case in point. Foam surrounds definitely have a 'use by' date, especially if exposed to sunlight (UV), and caps do age, although their lifespan is generally decades. But basic design and execution are far more timeless. Witness vintage Altec, JBL, and even the humble Large Advent.

@ronboco 

Thanks for the kind comment!  Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to audition any Rockport speakers.  I did something unusual for me in terms of the way I usually shop for my hifi gear in that I decided to buy my latest speakers new from a dealer.  My main motivation was to support my local hifi specialty shops, so I was limited to the brands and models listed in my previous post.  Rest assured if I had Rockport models local, I definitely would’ve given them a long listen!

Arvin

Short Answer:  

Yes, speaker technology has advanced.  But, it would resemble something like a "smiley face" if you put it on a graph. The greatest gains would be at the low end and extreme high end of the spectrum.

Long(er) Answer:

Speakers commit errors of omission AND commission. They cover up, vail, compress, and remove things that were included in the original material (omission).  They also create sounds that they shouldn't via resonances, microphonics, etc. (commission)  The entry level has benefited the most from manufacturing efficiencies, upgraded material quality, as well as more attention to reducing resonance, early reflection, and vibration.  "High end thinking" has migrated into lower price points and has produced surprisingly musical "budget-priced" speakers.  On the extreme high end, the level of precision is off the charts compared to decades past, and prodigious attention to enclosure integrity has produced products that come closer to mimicking the sonic characteristics of a live performance than any time in audio history.

That being said, speakers in the target range of $3k-$10k (per pair) have been "getting it right" for quite some time.  They used good parts and knew how, and where, to use them.  Cabinets were robust. And they paid attention to magnitude of "little things", that when aggregated, produced something truly remarkable.  But, modern speakers in this range are, indeed, incrementally better.

It is my view that unless you have form factor or esthetic requirements that can't be satisfied by earlier designs, you'll be happy owning a used speaker worthy of representing the performance in it's class -- and, keep the change.

I bought used Martin Logan’s. The speakers are like new. I saved $7k. And that’s all you need to know about new vs used.