Herb4, that is a bit of a loaded question, as a lot speaker questions can be. IMO speakers make the most dramatic difference in your system and we all have our personal tastes, EX. the thunder boomers driving down the road, they love it, others hate it.
If you prefered the JM Lab, by all means go that route, that may not mean it is "better" than the B&W's, just different.
I do believe that it can be a no brainer at times that one speaker is better than another. But as we move up the price chain, you start getting into personal preferences.
And don't let me forget synergy, it may be that one speaker works better with tubes than another...again, doesn't mean it is a better speaker per se.
On one of the Sterophile's test CD's, a guy reads the column by J. Gordon Holt, "Why Audiophiles Disagree", this sums it up much better than I am.
If you prefered the JM Lab, by all means go that route, that may not mean it is "better" than the B&W's, just different.
I do believe that it can be a no brainer at times that one speaker is better than another. But as we move up the price chain, you start getting into personal preferences.
And don't let me forget synergy, it may be that one speaker works better with tubes than another...again, doesn't mean it is a better speaker per se.
On one of the Sterophile's test CD's, a guy reads the column by J. Gordon Holt, "Why Audiophiles Disagree", this sums it up much better than I am.