Personal speaker evolution

Macdad -- That's essentially what I did -- a whole new system in one rather significant bite. Seriously upgraded my two-channel capabilities with the Ayre stack and 5a's. Will say I got what I consider a screaming deal on demos from my local dealer. They've been "tuned" to my room now and I'm loving them.
Happy listening.

My first was a little cheap receiver and speaker system sold by JC Penny with their brand on it. It was awful sounding, even by standards back in the late sixties when I bought it. The speakers were small monitors, six inch two ways I believe.

1973-1979. Pioneer CS-R300 monitors

They were two way with an 8" or 10" woofer and horn loaded dome tweeter. They were mated with a Kenwood receiver and actually sounded pretty good. I could not quite afford the JBL L-100's that all my buddies either owned or wanted back then. The Pioneers in this series sported a brightly colored cloth grill covering the top half of the speaker and black covering the lower half.

1979-1994. Genesis Physics II+. Paired those with a Yamaha receiver. They sounded pretty nice, but were a tad bit boomy in the low end.

1994 to present. Klipsch KG5.5

After hearing a pair of La Scalas that I could not afford, I just had to have Klipsch, as I fell in love with their superior dynamics. Although at times the KG's can sound a little harsh in the upper mids, I have been quite pleased with them over time. They come with dual 10" woofers and the horn driver. They have been played with Harman Kardon, Yamaha, JoLida and now Emotiva receivers or amps, and actually sound quite a bit better now with the Emotiva power than any other used before.

I am presently shopping for a good deal on some new or good used speakers to replace the KG's. I am leaning toward Klipsch Cornwall III's, but I have not heard them before and won't make a purchase until I have done so. If anyone has any idea where I can hear them within the state of Texas, please advise.

JBL L80, $400 at the BX in 1992.
Totem Model 1, $1200 dealer demo in 94', plus $400 for Target R4 stands.
Reference 3A MM. $1500, used.
Sonus Faber Electa Amator, with matching steel/walnut stands. Original version, $3200 dealer demo in 99'. I will never let these go! Occassionally they're augmented with a Sunfire True Sub Mk II, used $900, depending on the need for the last 12Hz. I feel I'll have to spend significantly more money to improve upon these. They get better with my evolving system, and only when I have a house with a dedicated room, AC, etc., will I "upgrade." Then it will be a coin toss between B&W 800 Matrix, (if I can find a pair,) Vandersteen 5A's, sonus Faber Extremas, or something I haven't come across yet.

I forgot to include my speakers from my "bedroom systems." In high school I had a Sony boombox of some sort. It had a nice tone quality and decent output compared to most. And it was only $80. Later, I put together a bedroom system with Signet SL260s, used, for about $225. For the last several years, a Tivoli Model One has served the purpose. I purchased it new at The Good Guys.

Harman Kardon Muniette
AR Acoustics
Paradigm Reference Studio 100v2
Infinity Overture 3
B&W Nautilus 805
B&W Nautilus 801