Smeyers: "I think the Tone model (with some digital eq tweaking) is one of the best speakers I've ever heard regardless of cost."
It probably is! But just a few musings your comment inspired. With so much junk out there, any great speaker costing close to $2k should be "one of the best". The same could be said about offerings from Tyler, Salk, GMA, VSR, Spendor, Harbeth, Quad, and many more. The list expands many times if we include used.
Such a clasification is useful for first time buyers, when avoiding junk is one of the urgent needs. Later, you don't want merely "one of the best" because you alreday have one of those. What you want is an upgrade meaningful to your listenting tastes at a price you can afford.
It is also true that as incremental differences become smaller, only they may be attractive to those who seek the last ounce of excellence and can afford it. Otherwise one can certainly enjoy great music on many speakers in the "less than $2k" region.
It probably is! But just a few musings your comment inspired. With so much junk out there, any great speaker costing close to $2k should be "one of the best". The same could be said about offerings from Tyler, Salk, GMA, VSR, Spendor, Harbeth, Quad, and many more. The list expands many times if we include used.
Such a clasification is useful for first time buyers, when avoiding junk is one of the urgent needs. Later, you don't want merely "one of the best" because you alreday have one of those. What you want is an upgrade meaningful to your listenting tastes at a price you can afford.
It is also true that as incremental differences become smaller, only they may be attractive to those who seek the last ounce of excellence and can afford it. Otherwise one can certainly enjoy great music on many speakers in the "less than $2k" region.