They have measurements on all speakers and room measurement equipment for "cheap" - the room really makes a huge impact on the sound.
I have the S-800 Speakers and the new Cinema Package
You see this stuff in professional anechoic chambers and mixing studios. I have friend who has PhD in audio signal processing and he doesn't see much point going beyond genelecs. The only downside is that you might get "too accurate" playback for hobbyist taste.
EDIT: Actually the price point is quite similar. Sorry.
Many people refuse to acknowledge that you can work professionally with their products. However, I've seen those speakers in many studios where professional work gets done.
These aren't simply "high quality speakers", it's really a separate product category from the kind of audiophile-focused hifi speakers the article is talking about.
> There’s a reason why experts advise against using “ordinary” Hi-Fi loudspeakers for monitoring your audio. These speakers are built to fill a living room and should be listened to at a distance. They come in fancy shapes and exotic wood finishes and are hyped for that full and rich musical sound. Hi-Fi speakers are meant to look and sound pretty.
In contrast, nearfield studio monitors are designed to be placed within a few feet of you in a small room that is close to dead, acoustically speaking. Instead of complementing the source, studio monitors need to be detailed, neutral and reveal problems to the critical listener. If something sounds off, they should let you know.
The difference between a Hi-Fi speaker and a studio monitor is like the difference between a fan and a friend. A fan will flatter you. A friend will tell you the unvarnished truth. That’s probably why most monitors look as sexy as a black brick.
http://www.nethervoice.com/2013/12/04/the-truth-about-studio...
So they all recommended I look at Amphion instead: http://www.amphion.fi/ (Another reasonably high-endish Finnish loudspeaker manufacturer.) A pair of their monitors was more than enough for a straightforward home sound system, and it took my wife's complaints to eventually add a subwoofer to the mix.
Even this pair is accurate enough. We can hear a botched mixing, which arguably may not be beneficial when the audio track is from a classic 80's or 90's TV show...
And the price at the time? €300 per monitor. Genelecs would have started at ~50% more.
Speakers are the no. 1 source of distortion in sound reproduction, and so we haven't exhausted the technological solution space. However, at close range and (relatively) low volumes, you can do a pretty damn good speaker with just good construction techniques, proven designs, high quality components and some R&D. That's why you see a lot of companies concentrating on 2-3 way bookshelves and floorstanders with simple bass reflex subs.
Things get more interesting when you're trying to go really loud and cover a wide audience, or when you go all out.
Interesting speakers:
Danley Sound Labs [1] with their tapped horn subwoofer and their "synergy" horn speakers that have slot-loaded mid- and low- range speakers. They do insane stuff like the TH812, with 8 12-inch speakers, that weighs 584 lbs.
JTR speakers are best known for their "growler" [2], an 88-pound sub with huge output for its size.
Meyer Sound [3] speakers are very expensive, but they do some mad stuff like the X-10 with a servo-controller woofer.
Fulcrum Acoustic [4] uses DSP to correct problems with horn-loaded speakers.
[1]: http://www.danleysoundlabs.com/
[2]: http://jtrspeakers.com/portable/growler/
[3]: http://www.meyersound.com/product/x-10/
[4]: http://www.fulcrum-acoustic.com/technologies/whitepapers.htm...
On the speaker-technology side, Funktion One systems are easily recognised by their polygonal tweeter horns[2], meant to disperse high frequencies in a very specific cone, which makes it easier to avoid dead-spots and phase-interference in complicated environments while directing the sound.
[1]: https://boilerroom.tv/systems-of-sound/ [2]: http://www.residentadvisor.net/feature.aspx?1836
The whole 'audiophiles use music to listen to their equipment instead of using their equipment to listen to their music' springs to mind.
edit: also, in my experience, expensiver speakers handle abuse like clipping or otherwise "bad" input far better than cheap ones. Most likely because cheap speakers operate on the upper end of their abilities and don't have much reserve margin, while a more expensive one is spec'd below what it can actually handle.
http://stonessoundstudio.com.au/stone/Bybee/Bybee_Slipstream...
http://marigoaudio.com/titanium-power-cable/cd-mats/3-d-sign...
/ R & D has a lot of time associated with it. Specifically, time not spent making finished products for sale. People working on the product still need to eat.
/ Anechoic chambers and other specialized equipment are expensive.
/ As the article details, solving for novel/unique problems can involve unique solutions. That will translate to new/ non-standard manufacturing techniques. And that means more costs.
/ The Wife Acceptance Factor. As pointed out in the article, getting small speaker systems to sound as big as the orchestra recorded for playback is a challenge. One approach is to use bigger drivers. Another approach is to use large arrays of drivers. Either way, you get cabinets that have the volume (size, not sound) of refrigerators. Anything that big has a noticeable visual presence. Looking good adds more to the price [If there is a question as to sources on this point, I refer to my ongoing experience as a Klipsch Cornwall owner].
Sidebar: As a BBC article, kinda surprised they didn't profile Tannoy for contrast.
Also, it's too bad they chose to display stock photography instead of, you know, pictures of actual damn speakers.
How good are the world's most expensive loudspeakers?
(To which the answer is: it varies, from very good to horrendously bad. You're paying for status, not performance.)
I'm not sure about your answer, though. I doubt any 20k USD speaker sounds "bad". It's more like: most are not measurably better than speakers that cost only 1/10 as much.
They are famous for their 2's and 2C's which did away with a box for the speaker altogether. The money went to circuitry and drivers which are enclosed in cloth on all 4 sides. The 1, 1C, 2, 2C and 3 are fantastic and amazing value for the money, probably better than competitors costing 5x as much.
Their newer speakers and some higher end speakers do have boxes and in my opinion don't deliver anywhere near as much bang for the buck.
I use an old pair of Wharfedales I was given along with an old yamaha amp as my primary PC speakers and they are truly excellent compared to any dedicated computer set I've ever used, so much so when they eventually break I'll probably hunt down a second hand set to replace them rather than computer speakers.
thewirecutter.com/reviews/best-bookshelf-speakers/
