Top Ten Speakers of All Time?


Well its time for a new Top Ten Thread. WOW-Have I learned a lot.Thanks to all Audiogon members.Have had several e mail thanking the Top Ten Threads. We have a lot of new members just starting their High End adventure. Info was much appreciated. I will start the thread for the Acoustat 2+2 and Model 2 of which I still own and continue to enjoy. So lets have your top ten members. --- MANY THANKS ---
ferrari
Quad ESL 57, Kef 107/2, Soundlab A-3, Magnepan Tympani, Rogers LS3/5a (15 ohm), Spendor S100, Stax F-82 (?), Celestion SL600, Apogee (original), Beveridge 2s...You can tell some of us live in the past :) Most of the current designs is just old wine in new bottles...don't be fooled by the latest and greatest.
I don't know if i've heard 10 different speakers that have absolutely amazed me. As such, i'll have to stick with speakers that have "intrigued" me over the years. This does not mean that i think that they are the finest made or that i've even heard all of them under "optimum conditions". Some, like the Plasmatronics, i've never heard at all. I'm sure that there are TONS of others that deserve mentioning, but these are what stuck out in my mind right away. Many different brands or models are simply refined variations of someone else's previous idea or an existing design.

I do think that most of these listed have specific traits that one might find "endearing" or "special". They do some things so well or differently that you could overlook specific "drawbacks" that you might notice later. Most of these were different enough at their time of introduction that they were "groundbreakers" and as such, i've always loved things that were "out of the ordinary" or "freaks" that carried themselves well : )

Listed in no specific order, the Beveridge's, Hill Plasmatronic's, Ohm A's and F's, Quad's, K-horn's, Dayton-Wright's, the BIG Infinity's, Shahinian Obelisk, DCM Time Windows, Dahlquist DQ-10's, the Radialstrahler's, etc... These were all speakers that caught my eye / ear for various reasons. As you can see, most of these are pretty good sized speakers with some "mid sized" candidates thrown in for good measure. For "little tyke's", i think that the early Spica's come to mind the most.

Believe it or not, i also have to ( honestly ) mention the original Bose 901's. Whether we like to admit it or not, without Dr Bose's "breakthrough" research and initial product release back in 1968, we might not have had "wide dispersion" speakers for some time after that. This is not to mention his idea of a crossoverless full range design ( like the Ohm's ) and the use of multiple smaller drivers for transient response. Honestly, I think Amar was onto something, he just didn't know how to properly impliment it. Sean
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I would agree with the Beveridge 2SW2, 15-ohm Rogers LS3/5a, and Hill Plasmatronics! -Sam
The Acoustat 2+2's are one of the most musical pairs of speakers that I have owned.I have enjoyed the Kef 107,Magnepan Tympani IV,The Martin Logan sequel II,Infinity 9 Kappa,and too many more to mention.I have owned a few of the Acoustat models,but the 2+2's really have something special.They will best anything that I have heard in the 2 to 3k price range.