The four greatest stereo systems I've heard in my life are
• Magico M6 speakers powered by Luxman electronics. That was about a $270,000 setup.
• Avantgarde Acoustics G3 horns, can't remember the amps or anything else, probably around $300,000 total.
• Focal Grande Utopia Evos with a front end by Naim. Over $400,000.
• YG Acoustics XV speakers driven by Boulder monoblocks and a Boulder preamp. Including the sources and cables, this setup retails for just over a million.
I'd say that although these four systems didn't sound the same, they were roughly equal in quality. End-level, tip-of-the-top hifi.
What would it take to get to 90 percent of that quality? The first candidates that cane to mind were the Alta Audio Aphrodite speakers, $50,000, with Infigo electronics that were at least another 50 grand.
But in my book, the value champs are the Grimm LS1c active speakers, which start around $24,000. To get super clean bass down to 20Hz, I'd add the integrated Grimm SB1 motion feedback subs, about $13,00/pr.
I've listened to multiple dozens of fantastic systems that cost a lot less and that very much impressed me, but if the goal is to get to 90% of the best performance possible, for me the Grimms are the ticket, and so the answer to OP's question is "around $37,000," not counting a digital or analog source.
