On my books, "top" means that there is no sour taste in my mouth from the time I made the purchase to the time I sold it, and I’d consider buying the same brand again solely based on how much I enjoy the ownership.
A few that I could quote (in any order):
Viva
Ayon
Burmester
Kharma
Sonic Frontiers
Lamm
MBL
While I am at this, excerpt from my curse list:
VAC
Antique SoundLab
Jeff Rowland
NBS
Kora
Ming Da
Krell
A few that I could quote (in any order):
Viva
Ayon
Burmester
Kharma
Sonic Frontiers
Lamm
MBL
While I am at this, excerpt from my curse list:
VAC
Antique SoundLab
Jeff Rowland
NBS
Kora
Ming Da
Krell