Which speakers did you find bright, fatiguing or just disappointing in some way?


OK, controversial subject but it needs asked. I'm curious for your experiences, mainly in your home, not a dealer and esp. not a show demo
greg7
In my home? Well the worst by far was JBL L7. This was back around '90 or '91. They didn't last long. Very hard on the ears. The day I sold them, after getting used to their replacement, the JBL were like an ice pick in my ears. Can't believe I ever liked that JBL sound.

Next worst one in my home were Von Schweikerts. Forget the model, but they were highly hyped at the time. By hype I mean reputation far exceeds performance. They were okay, but rather drab, like everything was there, except life and vitality. Not the best detail either. Not fatiguing though, not that I recall. Just disappointing. Heck even the cabinet construction was disappointing. Oh well.

Never heard Wilson in my home. But you hear them so many other places, hooked up to so much other stuff, after a couple decades I just don't need to get them in my room to know they will be a disappointment. Any of them. All of them. 

@millercarbon 

Wilson use some of the best drivers on the planet and use thick rigid cabinets. There's nothing to criticize there. The only possible explanation is that the crossover may not be tuned to your preference. But that doesn't give you a reason to write them off. Perhaps fix your room? That's probably the other reason. 
The Cabasse Farella 401 speakers hit on all cylinders when paired with a quality SE or PP tube amp but hook a SS amp up to them and they would drive you from the room. Bright, fatiguing and light in the bass although the bass was always tuneful. Even pairing them with the class A SE SS Pass Labs Aleph 3 was a huge step in mitigating their bright signature but they are a real Jekyll and Hyde speaker if there ever was one.