European -vs- US high-end

An odd sidelight to this is that there seem to be some brands that enjoy a much better reputation on one side of the pond than the other. Cambridge Audio comes to mind--I've seen it praised here in the US, but I gather it has something of a mid-fi reputation in the UK.

Korean web site. This is slightly off-topic but not that far. I looked at the korean audio club website recently. Every single system had a room diffuser between the speakers and lots of room treatment, panels pillows, pucks, you name it. Plus most equipment sat on spikes for vibration control. I do not recall any setup which contained a big rack full-o-stuff, or a HT entertainment center. I have not commonly seen systems in person on on the 'net with that attention to detail and passion for room control here in the US, not even at high end dealers. So, I guess the point is that there is much we can all learn from each other.

Tenor,Wytech,Coincident,PSB,Mirage,Verity,Sonic Frontiers,Anthem,.I can go on and on.
As good as any and by far better value considering the value of a lonnie.
Hey we even had one at center ice at The Olympics.
Brought us Hockey gold times 2.
We are not only the best at Hockey we RULE AUDIO as well.

Alright Natalie, I agreee with you to a point, as I have owned only Canadian speakers (paradigms and now Verity's) but you must look to your cold weather USA brethren in Minnesota to find one of the worlds greatest High End meccas. The Minneapolis area is home to Audio Research, Magnepan, Bel Canto, NBS, Atmasphere, and Van Alstine in a 20 mile square radius! Must be the cold weather.