what speakers to buy

• If you want end game speakers that you won’t grow tired of 3 years from now, look toward the British brands such as Spendor, ProAC, and ATC, but consider Vandersteen as well.

I’ve heard that kind of thing often, and I understand it’s usually put forth with the best intentions. But I’ve learned to put no stock in anyone’s claim that some brand of speakers, any brand, are "end game" speakers.

Anyone involved in high end audio for a long time can see that people settle on a wide variety of speakers they may feel as "end game." You get people who found they could only live with Quads, and people who found they could never live happily with Quads. Same goes for Spendor, Harbeth, and any other classic or popular brand one might mention. Plenty of audio forum threads show people settle on widely varying speakers as the most satisfying - that’s why there are horn devotees, panel devotees, lowther devotees, higher order crossover devotees, low order, it goes on and on.

There’s just no reason to expect some brand of speaker will be particularly satisfying and "end game" for other folks.

I was quite hyped on Harbeth, for instance, which are so often touted as "end game" "get off the merry-go-round" speakers. I read all the reviews, really enjoyed when I heard them at shows etc, and ended up with the SuperHL5Plus. It was a very nice speaker, but I sold it within a month or two because I realized it just wasn’t doing all the things I desire in a speaker, and that my Thiels did everything, to my ears, in a more satisfying manner.

This is not at all to knock people's speaker endorsements. I thrive on hearing what other people love about a speaker like anyone else, and it can help guide me towards new gear. It’s just that the "end game" speaker moniker has been a little pet peeve of mine simply because in any practical sense, it’s just not very predictive.

Well, from the patterns I've noticed, more listeners end their search and upgraditis with the British monitor brands and Vandys.

Of course it's all personal, and everyone here is tooting the horns of their favorite brands. I simply jumped on that wagon, not unlike the Focal, Revel, and Golden Ear fanboys. 

Hey Dragonbutzz , additional thoughts. I had Zu cables . I went to Anti-Cables and now have Morrow . Like them both over Zu. Also had the lower priced Zu power cords. Then ran Pangea and now Silnotes . At $100 per cord , the Silnotes are hard to beat . So for budget consider the Silnotes power cords and the Anti-cables Level 3 or Morrow Level 4 speakers . . Also try to audition ( or maybe somebody can chime in on ) Bryston Middle T . They look like what you might want . But I haven't heard them . Big beefy " Meat and Potatoes " speakers . But sound is everything . I do very much like the Acoustic Zen Crescendo , but even used they are expensive . But  if I was using the Rogues , I'd avoid built in subs ( but that's my opinion ). With a low power system I'd put the Tritons on a very short list . So that's it for today's ramblings . I just blew up my Dennis Had Inspire and I'm off to Fed-X to ship it off to N.C. for repairs 😫. Too bad your not in Central California, I'd let you try my JBL 4312A's with custom Sound Anchor stands . Regards , Mike. 

Always a fan of of floorstanding monsters but Origin Director 108’s changed that, 109’s are going to tested but the company (which created Speakercraft) has engineered the finest architectural in ceiling, in wall speakers Money can buy in 2 short years. So good, the produce Bang and Olufsen’s 107 that run 10k. Currently, I’m moving new 108’s at 1k, 104 at $500 and we will order you any a/v item at 20-50% savings. (Text) 1-950-0143 for anything you planning inside, out, auto and landscaping,

so looks like i agreed to buy a pair of legacy signature se speakers. going to pick them up next friday. think these will fit the bill. guess next weekend i will post my impressions and whether i feel i did ok or not. i'm pretty stoked about it. thanks everyone for all the great suggestions