GM, don't worry, it's not what you think (I think). It's not that most of us are "cup is half empty" types, but more saying that "Gee, sometimes an expensive speaker is just expensive". You can get *very* high end performance, IMO, equal or better than many expensive products for far less money if you're careful. Marketing has really taken over high-end over the past 10-15 years, primarily because of magazines like Stereophile which push the idea that you can't spend too much money and no product is overpriced. Horse hockey. Most of this stuff is overpriced, limited production stuff. Most $20K speakers have no more money in the drivers than a $5K speaker. Just because a speaker costs 2-4 times as much doesn't make it better, especially these days where the component parts are relatively affordable. There are prestige brands, value oriented brands, mass market brands and performance oriented brands. Prestige brands sell more than performance, kind of like Rolls Royce, but it will cost you. Value oriented brands often have many compromises, but are very affordable. Mass market brands are big box movers that sell their brand name to the public at large - Bose, Klipsch, Polk, etc. Performance oriented brands are generally more expensive than the value brands, less expensive than the prestige brands, but eschew glamour and style to pursue high-end sound at a reasonable price by avoiding compromise and engaging in sensible, pragmatic design. Unfortunately, performance oriented brands are few and far between. It's cool to own stuff like Krell and B&W, but you can do better sound for less, but maybe all your friends won't swoon when they see your system, only when they listen