Speakers in the 5-6K$ region & their components

 Sounds real is right, but kind of. My impression is a little different.

For any given type of technology, Be or AMT or whatever, there are excellent and crappy versions.  In and of themselves, diamond or Be tweeters are not all that.  Still, there are great versions of each.

As was mentioned before though, the truth is for commercial designs, the quality of parts in the crossover may or may not be all that. As far as I can tell, with few exceptions, the speaker prices are often set solely on driver cost. Since that's true, there's usually very little cause to spend a lot in the crossover.

Also, some one mentioned upgrading crossover parts as a good idea.  While I often recommend it, I've seen a lot of commercial speakers with really wonky crossovers that, while they would benefit from a better tweeter cap, really desperately need a new crossover design.

Best,


Erik

I like the Magnepan 3.7i. I also like the Vandersteen Treo CT. Both require some quality power.
I have heard them both and they sound stellar.

Some one mentioned Chapman Audio speakers. I heard them at he RMAF a couple years ago. Very, very nice. Relaxed but still involving. A small company in Washington state. They are transmission line so the cabinet resonance is much better controlled then most speakers. You probably noticed that with your adagios. 

Jim

Thank you all for your recommendations, I’m looking into the relevant websites. The problem with those who sell directly is that I can’t audition, so the only option is a calculated guess. And yet, I’ve learned of some interesting manufacturers I’ve never heard of.

A few words about the main compromise in my price range:

As I see it, there is one main compromise in my price range, which is the very fact that given that level of quality of the components, I’m limited to 2 Way designs. It IS a compromise. Deep bass, the way I perceive it, cannot be generated from a single 6-6.5’’ driver, even with great excursion capabilities and with the very best cabinet design. There simply isn’t enough radiating area to push the necessary amount of air.
For those who prefer the deep bass over the benefits of high end components, there are speakers such as audio physics’ relevant specimens in the price range, the Vienna Acoustics Beethoven grand/baby grand and In the mid 2000’s there were the Von Schweikert Vr4jr just to name a few. They are all made of middle of the road components (some even simpler), good designs and usually decent cabinets.
I used to own the Beethoven grad for about a year. It had wonderful bass and dynamic range, and it’s a fun speaker I’ve enjoyed tremendously at a certain time. However, It lacked the clarity and precision of simpler speakers made of superior components I’ve auditioned or owned and was quite "colored". Same goes with audio Physic (although to my taste they are better, at least the ones from the mid 2000’s which I have experience with).

In any case, I willingly accept the compromise in the number of drivers and radiating area. I do not accept a significant compromise in the components themselves, not at this price point.

Why do you only consider 6.5" driver, why not 8" of equal quality ? The difference can be big.