Great post, thanks.
Martin Logan Monolith IIIx (with the active crossover).
Ironically, I never really got them to work in my room! They're gigantic! Bass integration, beaming, room bounderies...
But what they did right was startling and mesmerizing. And it started my journey into audiophilia nervosa (which may not have been such a good thing). But I believe I found my forever love: Vandersteen 5s. Fussy, but not recalcitrant like the MLs.
I learned that what you admire, and what you can get to work, are not always the same thing, and that the biggest component in your system is your room. And that anyone telling you that your thing is mid-fi and their thing is better, well, it's nonsense unless they've heard your system in situ.
Fun reading all the answers! What a wonderfully odd hobby we have.