Attention: Dunlavy Audio Labs out of business

Twylie,
I can relate to the difference between Aerial and Dunleavy.
I've never met Michael Kelly in person but I used to sell his speakers and have logged perhaps 100 hours on the phone with him. He has a remarkable resume and doesn't talk about it. His focus is always on the products and the service.
I was given a tour of the Dunleavy factory in Colorado Springs by John himself in 1996 and the topic was him at all times. He had a trophy room and a wall full of press clippings from his days working for the government. A nice man but terribly self-absorbed. The factory, by the way, only had a handful of employees and was doing nothing the day I visited.
The passing of this, and other such companies, can best be viewed as a market correction. And we really don't need to lament their loss.
My friend Steven Stone has had Dunleavy VIs for years now and I've been impressed but never envious. They are too big and cumbersome for me. Back then I had Aerial 10Ts and I felt they were just as good for far less money and required far less adaptation to accomodate. But he loved those speakers and still uses them. That's what makes horse races.

Why do you want to return these speakers? Have they suddenly begun sounding bad? Doubtful. You can get aftermarket replacements should they be needed, and keep in mind that unless you abuse the blazes out of speakers, they tend to last a long time and operate trouble-free. You may want to rethink your initial reaction. Though I don't own any Dunlavy, I can tell you that the ones I've heard are most impressive. (In your situation I too would probably be aggravated but would most likely stand pat after cooling off.) They still will do a terrific job, as they tend to be indifferent to the fact that they company's out of business.

resale should not be an issue LPgal. If you did your homework and really liked the speakers before you bought them i really doubt you will find anything to replace them with because the dunlavys have an open sound that i haven't heard in other speakers. electrostatics with bass is the only way i can think of describing them. You won't be able to pry mine out of my house

Unsound, I think that Thiel is there in terms of phase and time coherence (the sealed cabinet part may be a bit of an issue -- is a cabinet wholly sealed if it has a passive woofer?). I have read that Thiel may not have the same quality of parts that Dunlavy did though the Thiel construction is superb.

One huge difference after reading the posts above is that Thiel seems to have it's act together in terms of customer service (very, very good) and general business acumen. As Brian states, this may be a good opportunity for someone to pick up where Dunlavy left off. Will used Dunlavy's be worth more now?

Ozfly, Thiel previoulsy made sealed boxes such as the CS 3.5's and the CS 5's. Except for the very first Thiels, all are time, phase and amplitude coherent. Thiel's new sub woofer is the only sealed box in their current line up. No, I don't think a passive woofer qualifies. I have yet to hear complaints about Thiel parts qualitity, in fact I have heard the opposite. I have heard complaints about Dunlavy parts quality. Obviously, I have a preference for sealed boxes. Yes, Thiel certainly seems to have their professional act together. I still think it a shame that Dunlavy is no longer, especially considering the future direction they were promising to go to.