I stopped into the DIY room at this year's Capital Audiofest and they had a low-powered tube amp driving an open baffle pair of DIY speakers, with a 12" Tannoy driver facing the listener, and an 18" down firing driver for the low bass.
I was really impressed with the sound they produced! I asked the builder what he had in them and he said "about $1700", and further explained that the only reason the amount was so high is that Tannoy apparently doesn't sell individual drivers, so he had to purchase a pair of their speaker and remove the drivers from the cabinet.
Very impressive sound! Even more impressive for the price!