Best speaker brands for transient response

@james633 thank you for your response. The first target speaker I had in mind was the 4349 (I LOVE my 4035Ps). The 4367 is not in my budget.

The target effects I use to test transiency are the crash-to-ring transient of a cymbal, fingers going across guitar strings, snare drum tightness, the added nasal ring of an out-of-phase Fender strat, the breaths a singer takes, etc. I have a few songs that I use for test purposes.

I've AB tested the KLH 3s and the 590s at my old house in a well-treated room and for my ears the 3s bested the 590s in transiency. The 3s are in a equally good room in my new house and I'm going to AB test them with the 4305s. I've been reluctant to do it because of the size difference and active vs passive, and I've only used the 4305s in near field, but it's worth seeing what I learn.

And thank you for your offer to AB your 590s and your 4367s but I'll save you from back strain ;) I know my 590s very well and my listening experience with my 4305s have already made clear to me that those best the 590s in a lot of ways.

The ASR review of the 4349 identified the crossover on the compression driver as a potential concern (the commentors, not Amir). But I have no doubt based on the price points of my current gear that I will be blown away by them. 

Thanks to all the ESL recommendations -- I clearly need to take a close look at them and they were not on my radar at all.

@jkf011 thanks I will be buying Parasound (either the Hint 6 or separates) so I should be able to handle maggies. I need to see where their Chicago dealers are. I've never heard them.

@mitchagain thank you, those speakers are stunning. Need to find pricing info on them.

@jasonbourne71 thank you the Revelas look great and are in budget.

+1 to @james633 ’s post.

I have JBL 4349’s and enjoy them. Most audiophiles will dismiss these cabinets, but I have found they are very smooth, able to play at very low volume with accuracy and detail, but still able to play at full tilt and fill a room with that same accuracy and detail; a very enjoyable experience. The compression driver and waveguide are (only in my opinion) a home run by JBL for this price point in their lineup.

To your question about if a more expensive ported cabinet will sound better than a lesser sealed cabinet, many times the rule "you get what you pay for" will apply (not always, but typically it does). From my experience, an inexpensively designed sealed cabinet with cheaper components will be outperformed by a ported cabinet with great components (drivers, crossover design/components, cabinet material, etc.).

I would not dismiss a speaker just because it’s ported. If the designer has done the work, porting will not ruin the experience even if one favors sealed designs.

Feel free to see my 4349's on my system page.