What speaker could safely be ordered without hearing it first?

Polk R-700 from Crutchfield... if you don’t like ’em, you can send ’em back! Yes, they have easy return policy.

With caveats and a basic understanding for room size (no LS3/5a in large rooms) placement (no Magnepans up against the wall), and power (MAs are esy to drive, moderately efficient, Maggies need more) I can't imagine anyone being disappointed with Monitor Audio's current line up, especially the Silver series or Magnepans. The Wow/$ ratio is just too much in thri favor.

@grislybutter Castle is UK based. So these speakers show up on the local classfields in Europe for rock-bottom prices because the brand recognition is low (you can thank Castle for that). 

Where is the OP now? Did you decide which one?

Hi everyone,

Great to see so much participation, thanks much for this. I just want to reinforce of course I want to listen first, but as many of you have acknowledged it’s not always possible. Heck I live in Chicago and there are some brands that you can’t get near without flying. Also I totally get buying used and then flipping out of them if it doesn’t work. Many have asked about budget. So far I’ve not been blown away by much but that’s a story for a different thread. I’d say 10-30K.

Some strong votes for Joseph, Magico, Harbeth and even Montior Audio. My current MA’s shine as noted below.....I’m surprised I didn’t get anyone voting for Wilson.

I do also want to add that my room is VERY well sorted. Have had the main Axpona setup guy from my local award winning dealer over and he said my setup was "near perfect" and that "I’ve seen people spend a lot more and get a lot less" than I am getting out of my current setup. Just because you don’t have some fancy diffuser on the wall doesn’t mean you can’t use furniture for first order reflection, as an example.

I’ll try to take some of the comments and feedback and answer as best I can.

@falconquest forgot about Legacy and you are correct, nearly universal praise.

@ltmandella and good reminder on ProAc....getting a lot of love here but reviews seemed to indicate very bass heavy. Good looking and great fit for my room size wise.

@fertguy thanks for compliment on table. I grew up with that heavy thing and shifted it back home when my step brother passed.

@hysteve recently heard the Magico A3 and really liked it, but that’s also a story for my other thread. A bit low on WAF but not out of the question. the ones with color are really neat.

@mbmi your post made me look up the X3...and a local dealer has them and some Focal’s I would like to hear. Thanks for this that does look like great value.

@wsrrsw on the bluesound upgrade I hear you...but demo’d a Lumin at home and the sound was marginally better but the user experience atrocious. Have my eye on HiFi Rose.

@phishhhhh4 2 nights Alpharetta this weekend, very much looking forward to it.

@kennyc "If the OP is asking for the the best choice without trying, then maybe it’s a probability question aka maximizing the probability of success by choosing a popular seemingly universally appraised speaker." Nailed it! This is the crux of the question.

@soix shout out to you for suggesting a very fun song.

@panzrwagn using MA Silvers today...and paired with my very friendly room noted above i’m having a hard time....some demo’s that should rock my world don’t because the dealer rooms don’t always cooperate and speakers that should be a clear upgrade leave me wanting more. In home might be the play?

@jayctoy no decisions yet. But have to say i’m intrigued by something like this, which is a good example of "not able to listen first".

https://www.audiogon.com/listings/lisb5bd1-raidho-td-3-2-speakers-full-range

Thanks all, more feedback welcome. Again shocked I didn’t get a vote for Wilson on this one.