What are some of the most underrated and overrated loudspeakers you’ve auditioned?

Underrated:
PSB- most all of them 
Totem Forest and others 
higher end Monitor Audio
Spendor
Wharfedale 
Klipsch Forte III and some of the Heritage line
Epos 
Bryston
van L speakerworks
Many budget pieces from big names like JBL, Polk, Yamaha, SVS

Overrated:
B&W (some)
Devore (great but very pricey and performance can be inflated by reviewers)

Joseph Audio (expensive speaker with off the shelf drivers, no low diffraction cab or waveguide even, can easily be replicated for a cheaper price).

Ah, naive "argument-from-cost-of-materials." And "you can DIY this stuff."

Never gets old ;-)

The Joseph speakers have garnered rave reviews and have been consistently rated at or near "best of show" year after year at audio shows, by picky audiophiles and reviewers. You can’t just go on "materials used" but on the skill of the designer in achieving through much time and effort the balance between the drivers, crossovers, cabinet etc. And it’s one thing to achieve the sound, another to have a viable speaker-selling business.


The "I could build that in my basement for cheaper" crowd never seem to get out of their basement to show they can produce a speaker that can receive that much conformity in praise, while being a viable product.

Told ya this thread would go well...;-)

What’s the best sounding bose speaker?  All the ones I’ve heard were mediocre.  Best Bose systems I’ve heard were in cars.

I think bose is crap.  When people say they like it, I smile politely and then lie to them and say “yeah, it’s pretty good”.  

Bose is more marketing and life style than hi-fi and it has nothing to do with price.   

Next up, beats headphones!

To my ears:

Over:
KEF, B&W, Piaggi?Swiss, Vandys, Magico 

Under:
Joseph Pulsars, Ascend, Sanders, PMC

Great but too Pricey:
Borresen, Vimberg

+1 for PSB being underrated. They get lost in the mid-price shuffle but the Barton's make a really good speaker.