Electrostat - M-L; Quad or Soundlab - reliable

Reliability is a valid concern, addressed well by some who have posted to this thread. I suggest that something which should be at least as important is performance. If you aren't delighted with the sound day after day, year after year, you might have the most reliable speaker but not want to listen, and that would be a pity. Follow your ears.

6550, while the problems you experienced are not common, they illustrate why customer service by the dealer is important. In the case of products purchased new, the dealer should be willing and able to diagnose the problem, including traveling to your home as necessary to help. As with any product, failure caused by abuse cannot be covered under warranty, but I know of an instance or two in the fairly distant past where it was the result of defective material, in which Sound Lab bent over backwards to help and took care of repairs outside of the warranty period without charge. They are diligent about finding the cause of failures if and when they occur, in virtually every case due to material supplied to them such as a run of bass transformers with bad insulation. Sound Lab stands behind its products and reputation. As a Sound Lab dealer, I truly try to go the extra mile for the customer, including providing setup assistance upon delivery, to sorting out issues if and when they occur down the road. I'm in it for the long haul and as such am fully committed to customer satisfaction. Having been on the consumer side of things long before putting on a dealer hat, I value that commitment above all else, particularly in the case of a specialized product like Sound Lab that isn't sold off the rack at Best Buy. Whether it's a client just up the street or one halfway across the country, I'm all over it because a day without music is like a day without sunshine, and I can't bear the thought of a single customer who isn't delighted. Seriously.