The best speaker you ever heard?


In my opinion, the speaker is by far the most important part of the audio system. After all, it is the only part you hear. OK, the other stuff really matters a lot, but without a great speaker... No go.

I am a bit 'speaker-obsessed' I guess, and now I am wondering: What are the best speakers you have ever heard, and what made them the best?
njonker
Got to hear the two top Wilson speakers recently.  I thought they were much better than in the past generation, but still didn't do it for me.  Vandy 7's still sit at the top of my personal perch.
First time I took a hit off a joint baba o'riley was playing on a tabletop radio and i've been chasing that sound ever since.

All speakers being compromised it's hard for me to single out "best."

But in terms of realism, the most realistic sounds I've ever heard from a speaker came from the MBL 101s (one time at a reviewer's house, another at a dealer).  It made all other speakers I've heard sound like they were just "trying" and like collections of boxes and tweeters.

That's not to say the MBLs are perfect of course, just that when playing the right material I haven't heard anything that real.