Are the new Ohm Walsh speakers Audiophile quality?

I've been consulting with John Strohbeen since the late 80's regarding my Walsh 4's.  One thing I love about the man is his direct answers to direct questions; no hesitation, no BS, just a straight answer. Here's a sample of some of his answers over the years.

Q. The felt on the backside of the cans are coming unglued and curling at the edges, should I re-glue them?

A. Don't bother, peel them off, sound wise they make no difference.  They're there because some people hear better with their eyes than ears.

Q.  The 'tufflex' batting inside my cabinets have disintegrated, can I buy replacements from you?

A. You mentioned that your wife makes quilts; well, steal some batting from her stash, about 1" thick put them 1/3 of the way down the cabinets making sure that they're tucked into the corners and you're good to go. (worked like a charm)

Q. For a few years you were using aluminum tweeters and now it appears you've gone back to soft dome.  Why?

A. Aluminum tweeters spec out better but I just don't like their sound so I went back to the soft dome.

See, you don't have to Google ad nauseam and get wrapped up in analysis paralysis, just call John. 

@uncleang... Yup, that's our JS!  I have met him numerous times, and called him on occasion, and JS is BS-free.  12 years and counting with my Walsh 2000s.  Loving them more and more.  Wish I could say that about my wife!

BS free is particularly a nice thing these days.  Can't put a price tag on that.

FYIMy beloved Walsh 4s have been in storage for a few years and before bringing them back to replace my "2s" I sent them to Ohm to have them "refurbished. When I spoke to John I mentioned that I would love to do the full upgrade to the 4-3000 but it was not within my budget. He mentioned that there was a "tweeter upgrade" that was just what I was looking for. It is typically offered when the "maintenance" also needs to replace a tweeter. I did not need my tweeters replaced but wanted more brightness that the later 3000 tweeter would offer. In this upgrade you get your surrounds replaced, upgraded tweeters, and modifications to the crossover in the can to accommodate them. You keep your additional controls and the associated crossover in the base. It is "plug and play", sounds terrific, and costs around $1000 (half of the 4-3000 upgrade) You miss out on higher power handling, the lighter weight motor, the deeper bass, and I assume the surrounds are foam? and not rubber (like the 2s?) so they eventually will have to be redone like most speakers.

As you would expect, John, Evan and staff are expert, caring, and know how to listen to speakers (and you). I am thrilled that years ago I found a speaker that to me, sounds right.

BTW, OHM has just announced that prices are going up....now.

@cdrat...  I don't know what the woofer surround material is.  However, the current line of Ohm Walsh speakers are expected to have about a 50 year lifespan, according to John at Ohm.  John is all too aware of the wear and tear issues with earlier Ohm speakers.  I think he set his very capable mind to designing in better longevity when he designed the current models, including the woofer surrounds.  I would expect your upgrade to use whatever material is being used for the new production speakers.