Best speaker under $500

If you have the room, amp power, and a sub, maggie mmgs for $550 are tough to beat.

I put a second in for the B&W 302sII. Great, accurate sounding speaker, easy to drive. Can find them for at least as low as $510.

Epos Es 11's, or ES 12's if your room is fairly small. Several steps up the ladder from the B&W's, IMO, but more expensive too. 400-500 used, plus stands. Superb midrange.

The B&W 302 list for $250 a pair brand new; not sure what speakers Puresound is talking about. For the CDM-1 used, get the original ones. They are the ones that won all the awards. The CDM-1SE is not as good. The new CDM-1NT are OK, but will cost closer to $1K used.

If you do not mind used the 302 go for $175+ on places like eBay and here. A steal at $250 leaving more money to spend on the rest of the system. Great re-sell value if you upgrade later.