Speaker Technology over the last 10 years

MrTennis - You are impenetrably dense but I'm going to make yet another effort in the hopes that I can say this clearly enough. I have owned numerous panel speakers including models from Magnepan, Sound Lab and QUAD. I do not own panels today. I know what I am missing and I'm very happy with my horns.

I can tell from the way other people have responded to you and from reading thousands of comments on Audiogon and other sites that I am not alone in this. Please give it a rest.

By the way, if you were to hear a pair of really good conical horns, you would discover that they do things no panel ever will. But its O.K. for you to like what you like. Apparently it's right for you. Just stop the John the Baptist, Johnny Panelseed evangelism.

04-20-09: Unsound
I'm not convinced that todays speakers provide better value than yesteryears models.

Then you need to get out more. :-0

For under $500 you can get speakers with far more resolution, dynamic range, and linearity (the PSB Image B25 comes to mind) than was even considered possible 20 years ago. Adjusted for inflation, a $479 speaker today would have been $266 in 1988.

What could you have bought for $266 in 1988?
Not much.

I got a pair of ADS L1090 small towers in 1987 when they listed at $1100/pair. Adjusted for inflation that's $2100 today. For about that you can now get a pair of Mirage OMD-15s. They're physically the same size, are 6dB more efficient (equivalent to quadrupling your amp power), have more uniform in-room response, have nearly a full octave more bass extension, and can handle nearly 100 wpc more power. That's nearly 10dB greater dynamic range.

Johnny, perhaps I was thinking beyond budget speakers, I'm not at all convinced that "more efficient" speaker designs sound better. I can give you examples of some of todays speakers that are harder to drive, and have less bass response and cost much money than their predecessors. I'm not suggesting that they aren't better in some regards, I just wonder if they offer better value. BTW, you have no idea as to where I go and how often I do.

04-20-09: Unsound
Johnny, perhaps I was thinking beyond budget speakers, I'm not at all convinced that "more efficient" speaker designs sound better. I can give you examples of some of todays speakers that are harder to drive, and have less bass response and cost much money than their predecessors.

I've had low sensitivity speakers and higher sensitivity speakers, and all other things being equal, I'll take the more sensitive ones. It's like quadrupling your amp power and doubling your dynamic range.

But you raise a really important point: If some manufacturers' speakers perform worse and cost more money, they're ripping their customers off or have a bad business model.

But there are upscale speakers that are improving as well, perhaps at high cost, but are improved just the same. The Wilson Maxx 3 and latest version of the Alexandria are stunning, and are more coherent than their predecessors.

I also like what Sonus Faber is doing as well as JM Labs.

BTW, you have no idea as to where I go and how often I do.

Ahh, I was just goofing off, and had a goofy emoticon to prove it: :-0

Johnnyb53, while I tend to agree with you re: "some manufactures' speakers perform worse and cost more money..." In all fairness I suspect that sometimes some of those manufactuers' might have been working towards different priorities or market considerations. Never the less I find the higher prices of todays products not necessarily in line with higher performance, again value.
Perhaps I goofed, the "emoticon" went over my head.