just thinking out loud here.... I guess its true about speakers ... that among all the audio gear they have the most impact and attraction in that relationship something unique happens.
my EXP says anything I deem as 'destination' level gear, is not really the end of the road. I just think it is.
I do hear the note for living outside the mainstream confines with audio gear.
there are points to consider with speakers in general.
speaker design and technology is not standing still. new materials and new ways of introducing these materials spring up readily.
generally speaking does anyone feel speakers from a dozen years ago are as good or better than the newer versions of the same model today?
how about five years? three?
another concern IMO is support. plain and simnple.
whenever I pitch money at something I need the assurance if something bad occurs, there will be someone around to repair it.
some very gifted designers make some very good to outstanding over achieving gear. sometimes these makers simply walk away and or die. thereafter owners are left high and dry.
don't tell me this is not a consideration when buying high end audio kit. when the price tag goes up so does anxiety... well, that is of course for many people it does. perhaps if the funds dwell in the unlimited area it might be different, but at point of sale and certainly thereafter, people are either emmotionally or mentally unsettled to one degree or another.
I've mentioned more than one speaker brand that is not 'mainstream' here based ONLY on performance.
perhaps its merely about the confidence level one has in the design and build, though the thought of support simply can not be set aside lightly.
personally I tend to think bad things won't ahppen to me if the kit is built really well and is brand new to boot. I've also been around long enough to know differently too.
as Bob Carver once said, "the lifetime warranty we offer is based on my life, not your's or the gear's".
warrnties are based on the makers health when eyeing a bit of this 'cottage industries finest' it do come to mind.
not trying to shoot down one man, or small business makers products what so ever, just pointing out facts associated with the human condition, on both sides of the coin.
I've bought things from exactly these kinds of makers and will again I'm sure.
add in one last bit... the bigger and heavier the things are, and with speakers there are always two of them, and most pricey speakers are pretty large and quite heavy, well.... then there's shipping worries.
being mostly optomistic I'd probably be willing to drop a large bit on what ever I felt was well built as said, but that's just me. it would not keep me from worrying .