Powered speakers show audiophiles are confused


17 of 23 speakers in my studio and home theater systems are internally powered. My studio system is all Genelec and sounds very accurate. I know the best new concert and studio speakers are internally powered there are great technical reasons to design a speaker and an amp synergistically, this concept is much more important to sound quality than the vibration systems we often buy. How can an audiophile justify a vibration system of any sort with this in mind.

128x128donavabdear

At around $20K all in the JBL M2 is less money than the Steinways, the Meridian, and even the Bryston, but are those other speakers better (especially $80K+ better)? Diminishing returns are a real thing to consider. Once I got the JBL 230's that use trickle down tech from the M2's hooked up to the right electronics I lost all desire to change. Are their better speakers? Of course, but I just didn't feel the need to change anything as I love what they do. The M2's have influenced every speaker coming out of Harman (all brands) since they became available:

 

PS- You could also pair the M2 with Mark Levinson amps instead of the crowns to take them up a notch:

The pro version of the M2 is packaged with Crown amps rated at 600 watts per channel plus a separate crossover. The whole package for two speakers costs $20,000.

The $46,000 consumer package shown at the CEDIA Expo combines a pair of M2s with four Mark Levinson No 531H 300-watt monoblock amps and an SDEC 3000 digital EQ/crossover. The SDEC 3000 also allows an installer to do room correction on the speakers.

FWIW, even the JBL 230’s are like a mirror, what you put in is what they reflect. The slightest change upstream is reflected downstream, probably worth the amp upgrade' See if you can audition the M2’s with the ML amps. If not you will still be pleased with the crowns.

@kota1 
This video seems like the way I want to go except better speakers, he spoke interestingly about law of diminishing returns near the beginning. I definitely agree with using synergy in equipment but then again I got the Naim / Focal headphones. I'm going to listen before I go with my big system. Last night the system I have now was completely quiet even the subs, infuriating just when I was going to throw $15k of subs in the street they get quiet, oh well. The 9hs with the JL Audio subs are pretty good I was listening to some Magico M3 speakers in Las Vegas and my 9hs with the subs were much better except that the Magico's had no subs and it's lower end had a better transition but not even close to as much punchy and effortless low end, the Magico M3s are just under $100k my speakers I have now are definitely better than those.

@thespeakerdude The dealer Im going through has been doing high end for 30+ years he can get just about anything he would have no problem with Macintosh and Sonus Faber, not sure he could get JBL, long ago JBL did have some very good high end speakers, I've always liked them.  I have a good room and it doesn't need much at all that's why all the DSPs I've used do practically nothing. I'm going to make my own absorption panels simply for a little less reflection in the corner and then put up some curbs on the ceiling for both systems then some damping in the book shelves behind my speakers might just put books in them they work perfectly. I'm also going to get a remote with a timer for my Sub Zero refrigerator in the kitchen in my listening room it's really noisy, I can turn off my air conditioning but it's really hard to get it quiet while it's running I just turn off the whole thing when I want to really listen. As far a money I don't care I want to have a listening system that is an event every time I listen to it. My wife wants me to buy the system I want (crazy I know) she says at least I'll have something the money won't just go up in smoke in the stock market.