# Your favorite Top line Speaker Manufacturer



## r3cc0s

I personally really enjoy a number of speaker lines which are not quite as mainstream, yet however I had an aching curiosity as to whom are your "commercial" favorites?

 Mine comes through as being the Focal Utopia line

 but others that come to mind that possibly sound as good are:
 Sonus Faber, Dynaudio & Monitor Audio (Plantium series)


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## krmathis

Voted 'Sonus Faber'.
 But 'B&W' and 'Final' are up there as well.


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## chesebert

Voted SF, although I do love Quad, and Dynaudio is great once you get over their 'beginner' line...honestly once you get over $10k with most of those brands listed, you will do ok


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## hughwi

I have an old pair of KEF Q60's and love them to bits, however, a mate has a really nice pair of Quad's... and my old B&W's were nice, up there with Mordaunt Short...


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## Riboge

You called them "top line" one place and "big name" another, so I don't know if it's the most fame or quality your after, but if it's the later then GamuT.


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## Uncle Erik

I voted for Quad as my favorite on your list. Though I'd put Magnepan pretty high up, and I'm still enamored of my ProAc 2.5 clones. Not originals, but I imagine they're wonderful, too. Though maybe a bit esoteric, I lust for a pair of Lowthers or Supravox field coil drivers.


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## guzziguy

You might want to consider adding an "other" choice to your poll. I really enjoy Joseph Audio speakers.


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## hendry

My Choice is : Burmester, Audio Physic and Kharma


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## thejoneser

Other: Magico.


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## hendry

yes magico, little speaker with great sound


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## darkninja67

Dali and Monitor Audio definitely need to be added to that list. I now own Monitor Audio GS60s and they easily beat the B&W speakers in the same price range IMO.

 And the Dali Helicon (not my personal cup of tea) are some of the best speakers for the money. Talking used on Agon here though as the price increase makes things more difficult.

 EDIT: been drinking and somehow missed the MA selection. My bad.

 EDIT 2: I must really be hammered as I miss the "Big Name" part of the thread. Did not see it in the main title though. Dali is a fairly big name in the world but not really in the USA (yet)


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## tom hankins

Absolutely THIEL! Not only love the sound, but the people at Thiel are great.


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## majid

B&W 800 series all the way. I love the looks of the Sonus Faber homage series, though. Too bad they cost almost as much as the Cremona violins they are named after...


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## VeipaCray

Voted B&W for their outstanding 802D speakers. 

 If it were on the list, I'd tip my hat towards Wilson Audio as well.


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## Jaw007

Martin Logan


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## Jelle Schrijver

He, where are my Magnepan's???






 And these look very promissing:
Ikonoklast; like the simple design filosofie. And if the rumor is right, you can play these baby's on very low volumes...





 And this new technology looks promesing; planot, there soon planning on selling the plans to build one yourself. See more over here under march 8th


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## johnsonad

Where are the Wilson's!


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## brainsalad

x2 on the Wilson's and how about Soundlab's ?


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## Duggeh

Accept no less ;P


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## XaNE

B&W


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## lextek

I voted for B&W. I also love Totems.


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## 883dave

My vote would go to Wilson Audio


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## Budgie

Not hardly a big name, but take a look here-
Transmission Audio Inc.

 be sure to scroll down to the bottom of the page. The M6 is a true exercise in excess.

 Another favorite-
VMPS :: Ribbon loudspeakers & subwoofers


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## Arainach

Too many good choices, but I had to vote for B&W in the end. Although at any given price point you might be able to find something slightly better for your tastes, it's tough to find a speaker that does such a fantastic all-around job and that is so consistent - I can't think of a single model in the lineup I wouldn't want to own.


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## Laura123

i think anytihng with the 'bose' name on it is good quality.


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## Drag0n

Anthony Gallo Nucleus Reference lll are my favorite speaker of every speaker i heard so far up to $25,000usd. And theyre only $2400usd without the sub-amp.


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## Drag0n

So far B&W Speakers are totally blowing away every other speaker in this poll, but id believe its because more people heard of them, and not that everyone who voted has auditioned every brand and came to this conclusion.


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## TJ Elite

As a proud owner of a pair of 803S speakers I felt compelled to vote for B&W.


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## warpdriver

I like B&W's just because they are the giant of the high end loudspeaker business. Probably the most successful high end speaker maker. They probably sell more speakers than all of the high end brands (I think I heard that) While not every speaker they make are worthy of top praise, I look forward to hearing their speakers and they rarely disappoint. So I voted B&W. They often make speakers that sound emotional maybe at some expense of accuracy. 

 However, I think Vandersteens are awesome, and I own Dynaudio active speakers and have been a long time fan of Paradigm. If I was buying for myself, I would likely buy something else rather than the higher end B&W's because I think they are too pricey compared to other speaker makers. They are like the Rolex of speakers. Good watches Rolex are, but they keep raising the prices so they are no longer very good value compared to other brands


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## Old Pa

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Drag0n* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_So far B&W Speakers are totally blowing away every other speaker in this poll, but id believe its because more people heard of them, and not that everyone who voted has auditioned every brand and came to this conclusion._

 

I, too, was surprised that B&W was coming in to be by far the favorite, although brand recognition as the reason is fairly idle speculation bordering on "sour grapes". I lusted after B&Ws for the twenty-five years that I had my Dahlquists and then Frieds. I'm happy as can be with my present B&W 800 Nautilus.


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## anom

I went to the Rocky Mountain Audio Festival last year and the Wilson speakers were above and beyond anything else I heard there. Simply amazing.


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## bahamaman

Another vote for Martin Logan.


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## Gaara

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Drag0n* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Anthony Gallo Nucleus Reference lll are my favorite speaker of every speaker i heard so far up to $25,000usd. And theyre only $2400usd without the sub-amp._

 

Same here, but I haven't heard anything for more then $10k. I haven't heard them but have heard very good things about Odyssey Audio, I have always wanted to try the Loreleis.


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## FoolmanCool

The B&W 802d sound awesome....I haven't listened to anything else on the list due to price and availability


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## r3cc0s

I really should have put "Other" but unfortunately I cannot change the poll

 A large name is Cables has a speaker that I actuality was really surprised to hear was a set of Acoustic Zen Adagio speakers running off of a setup utilizing musical fidelity KW series DAC & pre/power Amp combo plus it's own A5.5 CDP as a transport

 Partnered up with MIT Magnum Ref series cables and VD Nite power cables... these puppies really Sang

 It's surprising to find a transmission line speaker, let alone one that works so well and utilizes a "ribbon" tweet which helps provide the speed/resolution and spacial imaging that it does

 Speaker is a giant killer IMO for the reasonable price of 4K
 However, I think the MF KW series equipment & cables accounted close to another 15K worth of inventory


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## Hopstretch

Aerial. Would happily sell my Granny for a pair of 20Ts. Any offers?


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## Scrith

I like B&Ws, and I would probably own some right now if it weren't for Dynaudio. I was very happy with the Contour series, but now that I have some Confidence speakers I'm even more impressed. They just sound right to my ears, with a certain unforced sweetness that makes other speakers sound slightly artificial.

 I've also used Totem speakers at home and can recommend the Model 1 Signatures. They use Dynaudio drivers, by the way.


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## r3cc0s

mani-2s are also one of my favorites


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## dcstep

Vienna Acoustics


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## RobR

Sonus Faber for me, although I only have the Concertino's.
 when the lottery comes in that will change!!!


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## milkpowder

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *Hopstretch* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Aerial. Would happily sell my Granny for a pair of 20Ts. Any offers?




_

 

Aerial Acoustics do indeed make absolutely fantastic speakers.
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 I can't really decide... so it's a tie between Focal JMLab, Sonus Faber. B&W, ProAc and Magnepan come in a close second.


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## Sovkiller

Axiom Audio... 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 ...cost effective and very good sound...


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## Trapper32

B&W


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## lator

I choose Acapella. I recently acquired one of their budget line speakers and could not be happier, well maybe with these babies in the picture.


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## dcstep

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *lator* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_I choose Acapella. I recently acquired one of their budget line speakers and could not be happier, well maybe with these babies in the picture._

 


 That's a "budget line" items??? What kind of budget are we talking about?

 Nice indeed. 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 Dave


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## Hopstretch

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *lator* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_I choose Acapella. I recently acquired one of their budget line speakers and could not be happier, well maybe with these babies in the picture.





_

 

Definitely not for gynophobes!


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## iKonoKlast

So... I don't get it. Why is B&W so popular? Do they just have good marketing?


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## dcstep

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *iKonoKlast* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_So... I don't get it. Why is B&W so popular? Do they just have good marketing?_

 


 I think it's partly the name developed over the last few decades, but they also sound pretty good. They're not my cup of tea, but I can understand why so many like them.

 I remember hearing the 801s in the early 1980s, they were exceptional for the time.

 Dave


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## Old Pa

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *iKonoKlast* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_So... I don't get it. Why is B&W so popular? Do they just have good marketing?_

 

Actually, with their dealer requirements, B&W speakers are not widely available or available at particularly good prices. They have, however, made excellent speakers with a particualrly pleasing sound signature for decades and they have done constant R&D to discover and incorporate new technology into advancing their speaker line.


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## TKO

Where's Revel? No poll for quality speakers can be conducted without Revel.

 Cheers.


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## selfdivider

I'm partial to BBC design philosophy, so I'd have to say Harbeth (would love to try the new 40.1!). I can't believe that B&W gets the nod over Wilsons, etc. in this thread! The 802Ds sound great, but there's no way they sound better than other speakers mentioned here. I even preferred ProAc Response speakers to them which were much cheaper, not to mention the Harbeth Super HL5s, which I ended up purchasing. I also love the Devore Silverback Refs. In general, I prefer more natural-sounding, musical speakers over the hi-fish ones.


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## selfdivider

I just saw that the poll didn't include companies like Wilson, etc... if I had to vote, I'd go Kef or Quad, but the common man in me casts a vote to Vandersteen, for their amazing 2CEII Signatures, a total bargain at $2K. They totally spanked some speakers that cost 2-3 times that when I went auditioning.


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## penpinzzz

*Wharfedale*

 for this time


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## iKonoKlast

What is B&W's sound signature like?

 Also, if I were to get a pair of their speakers for a computer setup, which should it be?


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## skindog

B&W for me, been an avid Tannoy (surprised tis isn't on the list) lover before owing the 607, 611 and P60, but personally i've heard nothing better than B&W in their respective price range..


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## chesebert

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *selfdivider* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_I'm partial to BBC design philosophy, so I'd have to say Harbeth (would love to try the new 40.1!). I can't believe that B&W gets the nod over Wilsons, etc. in this thread! The 802Ds sound great, but there's no way they sound better than other speakers mentioned here. I even preferred ProAc Response speakers to them which were much cheaper, not to mention the Harbeth Super HL5s, which I ended up purchasing. I also love the Devore Silverback Refs. In general, I prefer more natural-sounding, musical speakers over the hi-fish ones._

 

did you, for your main system, spec everything from the 6moon recommendation of the 'musical system'? cuz you even got the PS1..


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## milkpowder

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *selfdivider* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_I'm partial to BBC design philosophy, so I'd have to say Harbeth (would love to try the new 40.1!). I can't believe that B&W gets the nod over Wilsons, etc. in this thread! The 802Ds sound great, but there's no way they sound better than other speakers mentioned here.* I even preferred ProAc Response speakers to them which were much cheaper*, not to mention the Harbeth Super HL5s, which I ended up purchasing. I also love the Devore Silverback Refs. In general, I prefer more natural-sounding, musical speakers over the hi-fish ones._

 

I'm not surprised. ProAc Response line has an ultra-high-end sound without the ridiculous headline-grabbing, blatant attention-seeking, multi-hundred thousand pricetags that some other manufacturers like to attach to their "statement" products.
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	







 I would take a pair of ProAc D80 over the (slightly more expensive) B&W 802D.


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## pataburd

Aliante, but they weren't listed.


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## immtbiker

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *dcstep* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Vienna Acoustics_

 


 Vienna Acoustics all around! Beethovens won Stereophile Recommended Components Class A 4th year in a row. Strauss in the front, Maestro in the center and Beethovens for the surrounds.


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## chesebert

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *immtbiker* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_Vienna Acoustics all around! Beethovens won Stereophile Recommended Components Class A 4th year in a row. Strauss in the front, Maestro in the center and Beethovens for the surrounds._

 

I think you mean Class B is the rating for the Beethoven; just look at the waterfall graph and you will know why.

 Having heard Beethoven on a number of occasions each over 2hrs long all by myself I can say that the spkr is very musical but is not without obvious flaws in human voice and piano. But in the end the spkr is musical unlike some of the other manufacturers listed 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 oh and it has some problem removing itself from the musical landscape 
	

	
	
		
		

		
		
	


	




 on a site note: I hope you have a cover for you TV, because having that reflective surface makes a audible difference (personal experience) for the worse


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## immtbiker

Those reviews are for the Beethoven _Grands_. I have the predecessor Beethovens from 2004 which attained an A rating when it came out. And those are my surrounds. The Strauss' exhibit none of the forementioned problems associated with the spider cone bass drivers that Jon Atkinson measured in Stereophile. 
 I had the B&W Nautilus 802 (pre-diamond tweeters) on trial for a while, and in *my *livingroom the Vienna Acoustic's blew them away in almost every category, including price. The bass on the 2004 series 802/801/800 is slightly bloated and slow to react (friends that had them and sold them and got Utopia Be's and Wilson Watt Puppy 7's in place of them).

 But I always appreciate when someone comes in and corrects me. It means that people are paying attention.

 What kind of cover works best? 
 At monthly Audiocircle meetings, members throw a towel over their flat panels, but I'm sure something must work better.


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## dcstep

I've listened extensively to the Vienna Acoustic Beethoven Concert Grand and Baby Grands extensively. They have very much the same character from top to bottom. VA designs their speakers to roll off as must as dictated by the cabinet size and speakers, so you don't end up with good bass down to a point and then it turns ugly or one-note ish. Instead they keep the character intact and let the speakers roll off as they must. The Concert Grands actually have a little more bass extension, but you have to listen to some relatively focused recordings to hear it.

 The Strauss and the Mahler take much larger steps into the low ranges and that frequency depth difference is much more obvious than either Beethoven.

 I've never heard a bad VA speaker. I can hardly wait for the new reference speaker due out soon. In 2009 I plan to get a larger room where either the Mahlers or Reference will have room to breath.

 Dave


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## SACD-Man

gotta add Wilson to this list.


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## SACD-Man

I forgot Vienna


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## Old Pa

Quote:


  Originally Posted by *immtbiker* /img/forum/go_quote.gif 
_The bass on the 2004 series 802/801/800 is slightly bloated and slow to react_

 

Depends on the amp. The big B&Ws are dependent upon having a beefy, high current amp to control their bass drivers. And the 801 is decidedly different and hard to control with that single fifteen incher.

 I've heard good things about the Wilsons, too, but without an area dealer willing to discount significantly there was just no way.


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## bbird1927

Dynaudio !!
 Next target : Contour


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## Carmantom

I voted for Dynaudio for how well they sound as a commercial vendor. My favorite the time I've been in this hobby is North Creek Audio. Probably a company a lot of people have not heard of.

 George's kits and designs are world renown. He redesigned the crossovers for the Bose 801's and designed many of the top manufactures designs.

 Well known for kits and designs worth 3-3 times what showrooms would ask for.


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## Zinfin

Zellaton, especially their larger speakers.


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## shultzee

Salk.     It does take 3 months to get them however.


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## legion1capone

B&W
Magnepan
Ohm


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## bagwell359

Verity - all generations of the Parsifals

Apogee - Duetta & Scintilla - this technology is begging to be re-released into todays markets with improvements in driveability.  Use an ML type cube for low bass perhaps.

ProAc - from the original Tablette and EBS to the Response Series

Quad - 57 is the legend but 63 and two in 900 series are better for anything bigger than 4 piece chamber music

ML - CLS IIz and several of the larger hybrids

MG - from the III to the I and II to the 3.* series to the 20's and the fiendishly great .7i and 1.7i

+ marks for ribbon/EMT tweeters

Brands that don't make the list?  Bose, Bertagni, JBL, beats, lots more


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