Is it all worth it?

I still think the A40s might be well suited for the sunroom Mapman has them placed in. For that matter so might the Pioneer SP22s.

Yes I am listening to them now.    Very well suited for the sunroom. 

One can can call them whatever.    My point is they cost practically nothing these days and compete with new stuff citing many times more somewhat surprisingly.  

Yes se they are nothing special to look at and build quality is common.  All the more reason I started this thread.  It does not seem to even matter in this case.    

Mapman, well, let's have your list. When you say, "...compete with new stuff citing many times more somewhat surprisingly," let's hear the names and models of speakers these nearly free speakers compete well against. To what have you compared them directly to draw that conclusion? 

I own a pair of somewhat newer Boston Acoustics bookshelf speakers with the same construction and 6" bass and 3/4" tweeter. I got them for $10 at a garage sale, and I use them in my� garage system. 

I compared them directly (blind comparison, even) when I wrote the Audio by Van Alstine ABX Comparator article and pitted them against the Insignia 6" coaxial two-way speakers which were initially $50/pr. So, I had both of these in my main rig for that purpose.  I also have a pair of older Paradigm Micro speakers, which has more refined sound quality than these others. What speakers you have in mind that are "many times more" that the A40 beats? 

I can think of a situation in which some tiny bookshelf speakers with 3" bass drivers might sound "worse" to some ears than the A40, simply because the A40 would go deeper in the bass. 

ive only heard them in my sunroom.  Not a/b compared with any others other than triangle Titus I had in there prior.   But I'd expect they could compete with various smaller  monitors I've heard from companies like PSB and  B&W in local shops recently that we're going for between 500 and 1000 dollars.   Maybe against smaller Goldenears I have heard which were the best of the bunch.   Probably other similar small monitors that use very small bass drivers in a very small enclosure.   Would they win?   Maybe not.   But I find them completely satisfying in my sunroom.   I did not expect them to stay in there long when I first hooked them up.  I may put the Triangles into a separate new system now using a tube amp and not feel sorted.   The triangles are surely better speakers though.   The Bostons seem to have better dispersion.  That and their soft top end work well there.   The point is they sound exceptional for next to nothing and not many choices new for anywhere near that.  

Are the Boston A40 equivalent to a modern audiophile caliber loudspeaker?  I think not, but I speculate that they are capable of providing a satisfying listening experience when properly situated.  High end sound is not always a necessary element of listening to good music.