Which is better, a fussy speaker or a versatile one?

If you have ever looked at Japanese audio magazines, you will see a lot of crazy looking setups in that large horns are crammed into very small apartments.  But, it makes sense in some respects--horns are very lively and engaging at quite low volume levels and the directivity of horns means that sound is concentrated in the listening area.  That actually minimizes the amount of sound bleeding into other apartments; the Japanese being very polite people try not to annoy their neighbors.

A true audiophile would insist on high price and impracticality.  Actually, many of the custom horn systems I really like are sort of practical speakers.  They all sound great in small rooms and are extremely efficient (100+ db/w, typically 8-16 ohm nominal impedance).  The downside is mainly a large size and somewhat high cost (the best drivers are vintage and not cheap).

The systems I like are not fussy in that they sound good with a wide range of music and with all sorts of upstream electronics.  However, that is not to say that one cannot hear the difference when components are swapped out.  I have sat through tuning sessions where small changes are made such as changes between internal wiring choices, and with great systems, such changes can be heard.  But, they are not fussy in that changes and improvements can be heard, but nothing sounds bad--just different.

What I like about custom systems is that the sound of the speaker can be changed to suit the customer's preference.  I have observed changes--to internal wiring, choice of drivers, choice of capacitors, amount and type of sound absorbing filler--being employed to get to the sound that the prospective buyer wants.