Your thoughts on best audiophile speakers in $10,000 neighborhood?


I know the best way to select a speaker is to auditioon them at a dealer or in my own home. However, living in a rather rural area in northern Michigan, there's only one reputable dealer (Sonus Faber) in town so I may end up relying on reviews and your feedback. 

I used to own Vandersteen Model 2Cs in the late 1980s, but finally want to step up my game. I currently have a legacy Nakamichi receiver / amp with 1000wpc, but will probably upgrade that once I select a new pair of speakers. Currently I'm playing mostly LPs on a Technics SL1210G. I now listen mostly with a Mark Levinson 5909 headphone connected to a small Class A pre-amp, so I treasure detail and transparency and don't lean toward "warm" speakers.

Room is good size since it encompasses living room and opens to dining room and kitchen behind it. Cathedral ceiling is about 12 feet high. 

I'm considering the following speakers: Vandersteen Treo CT, Wharfedale Elysian 4 (perhaps too big for my room), Monitor Audio Gold 300 and the Sonus Faber Sonetto VIII. These all fit within my budget. What are your thought about any of these...or do you have others to recommend?

Thanks for whatever guidance you can give me.

 

aphilc

italian Zilgali QA series speakers outperform everithing i have heared so far - almost Wilson sound at 1/3 price.

Another vote for the ATC SCM40a speakers.  They are tri-amped and this allows the mfg to voice the speaker and amp together, and with an active crossover further control is possible.

I have SCM7's with Benchmark amplification in a small room, (plus subs), and that tweeter really is amazing.

another vote for maggies (if you can deal with the looks and demands on the rest of the system)

Be sure to pay special attention to the specs of the speakers, if they are too hard to drive you'll need a new amplifier too.

If I were in your shoes I'd look at a sensitive speakers, over 90 db efficient. Sonus Faber usually fits there, but others have recommended Pure Audio Project or Volti....which would be worth a look as well.

The Vandersteen you are looking at seem like a more difficult load....the Wharfedale and Sonus Faber would be easier to drive.