Do you have a speaker that’s not a big name maker but punches above its weight? Why?


I have a Gato Fm6. My reference for last 10 years. Sounds amazing. Designer used to work for Gamut. Amazing clarity. Great open midrange and vapor like treble that’s detailed , transparent and vapor like!  What are others? 

calvinj

Can I mention my Curt Campbell and Jim Holtz designed, DIY, "Bordeaux"?

They punch at 5X over their weight category.

Aurum Cantus Aero Stricture tweeters.

Accuton 6" ceramic  mids.

2 Dayton woofers.

Cost me about $3500 total per pair, and some weekends of labor. 

The end results are speakers that sound as good as commercially available speakers that would cost $15K, with no exaggeration. 

 

 

@slaw  I am one of those who don't pay attention to or bother about the cables being used. Short answer- I don't know which cable. Maybe from Amazon. Either ways they sound lovely. Ordering another pair - of speakers- from Louis as I write this- the J8. Actually ordering two pairs- one for a friend in Dubai.

Revival Audio Atalante 3. Standmount or bookshelf; rear port. I'll spare you the usual adjectives. The designer combined Spendor and Dynaudio engineering philosophies.

I am fond of two speaker manufacturers that sold direct on the West coast, Speakerlab and Roger's Sound Labs. The Speakerlab K-horns and model 7s are both high sensitivity speakers, ditto the RSL Nevada and 6600H. RSL also had some models patterned on the JBL L100.

Another vote for Usher out of Taiwan. Beautiful speakers. They have some great entry level models like the S520, BE-718, and the Mini Dancer series. They also have many higher tier designs that compete with some of the best out there. The only downside is they can be hard to find depending no where you live. Especially the higher models. I'm considering grabbing their newish 50th Anniversary model, those look particularly enticing.

I'll also mention Lawrance Audio. They were a little more popular about 10 years ago, I never hear of them now although they appear to still be around. I have the Mandolins and the Violin SE, both sounds very nice and also unique looking.