Anything by MacIntosh. Don't get me wrong, good sound, but at this price? All name, no game! They are built like tanks though.
B & W speakers. Again, good but not great. At all their price points there are numerous speakers that sound much better. For me these speakers are always the bridesmaid, never the bride.
Yamaha electronics. Once upon a time these were the best midrange priced equipment you could buy. Bought my cd player 5 years ago, still good but slipping. Now? I run away whenever I hear them!!
Banf & Olufson. Best looking equipment equipment you can buy, but they sound like they came from a K-Mart blue light special!

How about the most pleasant surprises?
These would be mine.
Technics turntables - Mass market that sounds this good? Built like tanks (older ones anyway). The wife doesn't scream about the price? How can you go wrong?
Older JBL speakers - I'm talking 20 - 30 years ago. Tight bass. Surprising'll good at all types of music despite their reputation for the California sound (they defined it).
B.I.C. - What's the big deal about automatic equalization from Yamaha, et al? BIC had this 25 years ago, albiet with a wire instead of wireless. A friend of mine had a true high end system: Rega turntable (top of the line), AdCom preamp, Audionics power amp, Vandersteen 2(x), ADS 1230 Monitors (for rock and roll). We're talking 5 G in 1980 dollars and the BIC equalizer made it sound like a 10 G systtem for a little over $150! Does anyone know where I can buy one?