"We need another speaker like Alaskans need freezers." I thought as Israel Blume waxed on about how wonderful his Troubadors were. Since I knew Israel to be a sincere and talented man, with impeccable taste in music and many years of audio under his belt, I reluctantly decided to listen. We hooked up the speakers to the fantastic Golden Tube Audio SE-40 amp, and he proceeded to BLOW ME AWAY WITH SOME OF THE FINEST MUSIC AND SOUND I HAVE EVER HEARD! I must say that having witnessed a lot of very mediocre and expensive products, it takes a lot to impress and excite me. These do. How do describe speaker that is able to strip away the walls in your room and transport you to another place and time, where Jascha Heifetz does a command performance just for you? Or how about listening to the ubiquitous Jennifer Warnes' Famous Blue Raincoat and discovering stuff you've never heard a hint of before from any other system? Should this be such a surprise? After all, Israel is very intimately familiar with some of the best systems available, as he used to distribute for them. Among other reference equipment used in the design of the speakers are Jadis JA-200 class A tube amps, Forsell turntable and arm, with the Forsell digital system. All I can say is that if you are in the market for a no compromise monitor, you must audition these. Are they perfect? Of course not, but in areas they excel in, I have yet to hear another speaker even come close. Black version starts at $2000. One more thing, if you've been wondering (as I have) what speaker to use with the Single Ended amps that have recently become popular, guess what? The Troubador is ideal!