Reading through lots of threads on various forums, the one thing that seems common is that when it comes to the smaller companies, those primarily selling through the internet....there is a pretty good chance that if you call the company, you will get to speak of the founder.
Call Zu...you will likely have a shot at Sean Casey. Call Chane...Jon Lane may pick up. Call Tekton...talk to Eric....Call Salk...talk to Jim Salk. I don't think this is all that strange as the owners want to talk to customers...and usually, their enthusiasm rubs off.
No doubt, each of the above guys has his own take on what speakers should sound like...and each guy has a different take. So, as an example, if you are a Salk fan, you will probably be pretty enthusiastic about Salk...as you should be. In fact, I spoke on the phone today to a guy who is on this 4th pair of Salks....keeps trading up. He has no real desire to move out of the Salk family because he loves the sound.
As for shills, it might be that there are a few people that aren't who they appear to be....personally...I like to look at whether people are showing their own system and where they might be from....but in the end....if a bunch of forum people say they like Tekton...and a bunch of reviewers say they like Tekton...we all KNOW this is not a guarantee that we will like Tekton.....but it may be a nudge that it is worth the price of return freight to give them a try.
And, on the subject of "trying something"....Teajay said the Perfect Set had a "sitting up front" type of presentation....and you hear that frequently from reviewers and posters regarding the "Tekton sound" (if there is such a thing)....so, if a person knows that they don't like an up front presentation, then its possible that the Tekton's may not be for them....but they will never know until they hear it...and if it isn't for them, it shouldn't be a surprise.
