What are/were the best sounding cheap components you have ever had?

Story about ’CHEAP’.

I’m a retired Interior Designer, specialized in Corporate Offices, New Headquarters, Relocations, Renovations for 46 years.

I’m still in school, working part time, just allowed to meet clients alone.

I come back from a meeting, tell Betty, head of the Decoration Dept. (furniture and furnishings).

"The client wants cheaper furniture"

Betty leans back in horror, batts her eyelids at me and says "We don’t sell cheap furniture, tell the client I will find something "LESS COSTLY".

I didn’t say anything, but the word has been out of my vocabulary ever since then.

Cheap chinsy. Yes, it is out there. Price conscious, inexpensive, less costly. It is all out there, but to demean and then ask for recommendations is a left-handed compliment at best. "Where did you get that suit, JC Penny? You look great in it." That is how some people come across, maybe not even realizing it. Then there are the mean people. But mostly, as I notice grammar, spelling, intent, 'opportunity', etc. it reminds me just how poorly we may be expressing ourselves. 

 The intent in this thread is simple enough. What component comes to mind that didn't cost what you thought that it should, that also sounded beyond your expectations?

 You get what you pay for is true enough so much of the time, yet there have been notable exceptions.

Epi 100 loudspeakers. 

$140/pair on sale, in 1978 or 9. ("gold ring" tweeter iteration)

Although now updated with Human Speakers parts, even before the update for the past 40 years I have struggled to find speakers that I like better.

Back in the 70’s, I had some cheap car speakers mounted in cardboard boxes. They sounded like crap  But wait, after listening to nothing else for several weeks, they stared to sound pretty good. Was it the boxes? Was it all that weed? Hey, you asked for cheap right? 🤣

Once upon a long while ago, I bought a pair of Speaker Lab 2 way raw kits for my first 'outside the box' diy cabinets.

Based on a top half of the curved back of the capital R with same proportion face width of the box designed for those drivers, just taller to keep the cubic volume the same.   Out of oak strips for the curve....Clear oil finish...

Sounded better than they deserved to.

Have pics, but the speakers ended up with a my landlady when she bought an AR table at my suggestion and I bought the 901's....to her later dismay...

"Jerry....do you realize I can hear your stereo over mine....indoors...?"

oh.... *L*