Why look so far? The Grandinote Mach 8 XL is itself one of those hidden gems even today.There are still plenty of hidden gems to be had, fortunately!
FYI If carbon fiber body speakers are desired, the Perlisten has just come with their own such model S7 & LE, at 29K, with street prices likely in low 20s. I'm not big fan of that brand for few other reasons, but looks very interesting from speaker aficionado's point of view, I must admit, as they seem to have copied rather well many design cues from European and American companies. Apologies for mentioning those in the Grandinote thread, just in case
Yes, its more compact cabinet may give up a bit of scale due to lower air pressure, but even so, compared with the newest 140k flagship on the most demanding material, it still performs far beyond its size in real-world musical engagement.
Match it with a pair of REL Carbon Special subs crossed over around 70 Hz and the Mach 8 XL becomes genuinely formidable. In that setup it can comfortably outperform many heavily marketed low-efficiency statement speakers, even on large-scale orchestral works, not in specs or hype but where it truly counts: musical involvement, coherence, and horn-like dynamics, all delivered with that effortless organic flow Grandinote is known for.
So while carbon-fiber cabinets are interesting, sometimes the real jewel is already right in front of us.
