Monitors that compete with quality floorstanders??

Thank to all who have responded so far.. All are interesting suggestions, especially the Sjorn speakers called "The Clue" The press and show reports rave about the performance of this smallish monitor. In particular, the bass is supposed to be amazing. At $999 a pair, it is steal, if they really sound as claimed. However, they are placement dependent, and set-up has to be by the book and accurate to bring the speaker to its full sound potential

The Reference 3A De Capo speakers have been around for at least 12 years have been upgraded several times, but they are somewhat overpriced whether new or used

To Simao, In the noble hobby of hi-end audio, there must be some standard of performance/satisfaction versus price. The YG "Sonja" which retail for a cool $109,000 are probably great sounding speakers, but where in this calculation of retail price, does the standard of "good value" emerge??? Sure, if you have the money to buy them, and also can afford to use the absolute best electronics, there is no issue about price vs performance\satisfaction ratio.

I have heard the latest version of Reference 3A De Capo on two different occasions in different show room systems, and I just don't hear $3000 worth of speaker. They do sound very good, and the bass is as described by others: punchy and clean, but so are a lot of other monitor speakers that are $500-1000 less, like the Nola, PSB Imagine B and even Monitor Audio's PL-100, and a few in the ProAC monitor line-up. ( I wish someone could get a pair of the Sjorn's "The Clue" speakers recommended by AG member Soix, and provide an in depth evaluation as to whether they are the real deal or just another episodic phase of audio hype that pops up in the market several times a year.)

I think it is a bit nuts to just accept what many manufacturers's claim, and then try to justify as their "suggested retail price"

To Grinell, If you come across a clean pair of DECapos at $1200.00, please let me know. I have never seen them sell that low on AG

I have to agree with Soix about Totem. I have been enamoured with the brand for more years than I should have. My target speaker was Totem's "Hawk" speaker a short floorstander with outstanding soundstaging and to a like degree imagining. The next model up, "The Forrest" was never in my price range used or new. As far as their monitors, like the Mani-2 Signatures are excellent speakers, but grossly overpriced, and therefore overpriced used. I have e-mailed Vince Bruzzi several times over the years asking why his speaker were expensive and got the same rap every time about mil. spec driver components, and especially crossovers network OK, touché but..... I had a similar argument with Alan Perkins when he was the Audio Physic rep, as to why the original Virgo speaker, and other models cost almost 30% percent more than other similar designed speakers of notable brands. His argument was excellent sound quality can not be measured in dollars. He claimed the same theory guided him to buy, a Volvo, not a Honda Accord.

That is horseshit, and designers, reps, and manufacturers who take this position know it. Is it the same attitude as the grocery shopper who chooses a generic brand over a name brand to save money??. Obviously, buying a high end speaker system, is not like buying a box of cereal or clothes detergent But as I argued before, where does product 'VALUE" cross WITH PRODUCT PRICING. Yes, plenty of expensive R&D go into creating a great audio product, but when a manufacturer tries to recoup his development and manufacturing costs by literally gouging the customer, that is unfair, and just stupid ass business practice on the part of the manufacturer.

We may have younger members on AG who dismiss ( or ignore) the fact that 40 years ago, manufacturers, like Dynaco and Advent could not turn out their speakers fast enough. Millions of A-25's and Large Advents were sold, as well as Infinity's model 2000. Price always seemed to legitimately match the value of the speaker, that is, the sound it produced. Can we say that is the case with some speakers today???

When YG introduced the model: The "Carmel" about 4 years ago. it retailed for $18,000. The reviews were spectacular, especially the one in TAS which concluded that this design was doing something special and great to produce the level of sound quality. I heard the speaker at a local dealer in Honolulu, and it was excellent, bringing CD and vinyl to a new level of musicality. I happened to jokingly say to the owner of the shop,..."where does $5000 of musical satisfaction begin and end, and when does $10,000 of musical satisfaction kick in, and the REMAINING $8000 of its retail value, what will that add to the customer's enjoyment. Even the dealer had to laugh, as I was "benchmarking" performance levels based on price increments.

I am sure there are memebers foaming at the mouth at what I jokingly commented to the owner of the shop; however, I have to reaffirm that price should reflect the value of the sound provided by a speaker system. Using the barometer of long term musical satisfaction, or product development costs does seem to me a viable way to determine MSRP. Thank you to all who have responded!!!

To NoNoise, I checked out the Atomhn website. Nice speakers. The Sirocco is reasonably priced at $1495.00 but the other monitor called the "Grinell"(?) is $3995.00. If you heard both on the same day, tell me where and how you thought value, (that is, musical satisfaction) legitimately reflected price.

I am sure we both, and other members could clearly discern the differences between this speaker, the Reference 3A DeCapo, and the much scorned and lowly Sjorn's "The Clue"

Thanks for your recommendation