What’s a reasonable price for a really good set of stereo speakers? What’s absurdly excessive?
I don’t have answers, but found it interesting to peruse a recent issue of a stereo magazine that manages to provide the needed editorial pages to justify all that ads by running an illustrated spreadsheet, a directory of loudspeakers from brands the deities that run this magazine consider worthy.
I was struck by how many models there were costing more than $100,000. (If I did have a personal limit, and was in the market, it would probably be, oh, say, $7,990, but I would never suggest such a paltry limit for anyone else.)
I thought it might be amusing to note, for each brand where it’s appropriate, the most expensive model; how many others (if any) cost $100,000 or more; and the cheapest reasonably full-range speaker in the lineup (defined as claiming to go down to at least 35Hz). In alphabetic order. And, after that, the most expensive model of a fewrands I believe to be well-regarded/well-reviewed that don’t offer such a$spirational $y$tem$. Oh, and boldface for the truly a$pirational models costing at least half a million…
The Six- (or Seven-) Digit Wonders
- Acora Acoustics: $218,000; none; $28,000
- Alta Audio: $200,000; none; $5,000
- Audiovector: $249,700; none; $3,350
- Avantgarde Acoustic: $481,000; two; $35,850
- Burmester: $375,000; one; $23,000
- Clarisys: $146,000; none; $46,000
- Estelon: $269,000; one; $19,900
- Focal: $279,998; one; $10,998
- Gamut: $165,000; none; $5,900
- German Physiks: $185,000; two (and three”inquire”); $23.600
- Gershman Acoustics: $129,000; none; $5,500
- Göbel High End: $549,000; three; $89,000
- Goldmund: $249,950; one; $84,550
- The Gryphon: $343,000; one; $46,250
- Kharma: $940,000; eight; $25,000
- Lansche Audio: $290,000; one; $35,000
- Linn: $105,000; none; 44,490
- Magico: $750,000; one; $9,400
- MartinLogan: $100,000; none; $3,500
- MBL: $398,000; none; $39,900
- McIntosh: $140,000; none; $11,000
- Meridian: $125,000; none; $11,500
- Metaxas & Sins: $330,000; one; $82,000
- Nola: $500,000; two; $3,500
- Piega: $350,000; none; $1,995
- Raidho: $227,000; three; $45,000
- Rockport Technologies: $190,000; one; $38,000
- Rosso Fiorentino: $140,000; none; $40,000
- Siltech: $545,000; none; none
- Sonus faber: $140,000; none; $1,999
- Stein Music: $500,000; six; $65,000
- Stenheim: $740,000; two; $33,950
- TAD: $160,000; none; $29,900
- Tidal: $1,100,000; three; $64,000
- Von Schweikert Audio: $365,000; five; $9,000
- Wilson Audio: $875,000; two; $19,700
- Wilson Benesch: $255,000; one; $15,500
- YG Acoustics: $359,300; two; $14,200
- Zellaton: $595,000; one; $28;,950
A Few Less Aspirational Brands
- ATC: $36.999
- Bowers & Wilkins: $38,ooo
- Canton: $29,995
- Dali: $24,999
- DeVore Fidelity: $88,900
- Dynaudio: $50,000: $350
- Elac: $22,000
- GoldenEar Technology: $12,500
- Harbeth: $22,500
- JansZen Audio: $21,500
- JBL: $75,000
- KEF: $28,000
- Klipsch: $36,000
- Magnepan: $39,995
- Monitor Audio: $17.900
- Paradigm: $37,000
- PSB: $11,999
- Quad: $17,995
- Revel: $22,000
- Spendor: $33,700
- Tannoy: $54,990
- Wharfedale: $9.995
My apologies to the deserving companies I left out of the second list.
There’s one speaker there that’s about the price of a four-bedroom house. In the Bay Area. Maybe more than one.
