Out of the hundreds upon hundreds of pieces of hi-fi that I've owned (and I'm not even 30 yet, how sad is that?).. there are only two products that *I* would classify as over achievers.
The first product to give me that impression was AV123's original X-LS monitor. Back in late 2005/early 2006, these speakers retailed for only $200 USD a pair. Their build quality, driver quality, fit and finish, and sound - were all well beyond anything that I have ever encountered at that price point. Even though the price inevitably went up as time went on, I still consider the original set at $200 to be the best value I've ever come across in loudspeakers. Morever, I got tons of people into hi-fi through those things. That in and of itself is worth its weight in gold.
The next product is the Vista Audio i34 tube integrated. At first glance, it really doesn't look all too special, but there's a lot of beauty beneath that plebian exterior. I've compared this relatively inexpensive $980 E34L (not EL34) tube integrated to integrated amplifiers costing up to $20,000 on reference-grade loudspeakers, and more times than not, I (along with other listeners) end up preferring the way the Vista piece makes music. It's always great to see the look on the visitors faces when I tell them how much the amp costs. While I'd hesitate to call it reference class, it truly is a little over acheiver that no one has really ever heard of.
The first product is no longer in production, and that is AV123's original X-LS monitor when it was released four-five years ago. At the time, the monitors retailed for $200 USD a pair.
