The best speaker you ever heard?

mbls have to be set up right in the right sized room and with the right amp and electronics running them to demonstrate their distinctive charms appropriately.

I've heard the exact same system set up this way at the dealers and not as well at a show. You would not have known the performance at the show was lacking unless you heard them set up just right. They can do a wide and deep holographic soundstage with very accurate placement of individual instruments within it like no other I have heard when done right. And all other aspects of the sound were spot on as well.

Im being sarcastic here. The best speaker you ever heard was years ago when you were younger and a fledling audiophile. You heard speaker X and were blown away. Reality check. First off, your hearing was better back then. 2nd, the speaker was driven by some well matched components.

Mapman,
As usual, you've hit it right on...
The MBL's because of the 360 degree dispersion is quite a bit trickier to set up--and the room becomes an increasingly greater part of the sound.
But, yes, when right that 3D, soundstage with instruments lurking in a place in space, takes on an almost 'visual' quality...'Help me ObiWanKinobi'....that kind of holography.
Larry

Lrsky, Are you talking about the MBL 101 E Mk II or the 101Extremes? It would be $60k for the 101Es, $24k preamp, $43k amp. I have no idea what the Extremes cost. I add the big MBL amps as I know these speakers are inefficient.

The 'big boys', I don't remember the model numbers and am too lazy to look it up Tbg.
All I know is, that the promise of 'live music' was as closely realized as I have ever experienced.
Before, room, power, etc. all conspired to 'limit' the experience. Not this time. They were everything, if money were no object, that I'd chose for the perfect system.
I'd do it realizing that all elements necessary for great sound would have to be attended to. Do what the great Winston Ma, did (First Impressions Music and a friend an colleague) when he built his 'listening room' in his beautiful home. "MAKE IT PERFECT" only if you want the sound to be as good as it can be.

But, they really were/are magic in all facets of sound reproduction for my taste--Dynamically accurate, Tonally accurate, Spatially Accurate, (if this sounds a little like a Jim Thiel seminar, it's because that's where I learned it).

Having played Alto Sax for more years than I care to admit, I've been in live music scenarios thousands of times...the unamplified kind...and wow, that's what these are capable of.
If only...$$$$$$

Best,
Larry