Audio companies with cult like followings

ill put my votes in for naim and linn (the flat earthers!), audionote and shindo.

the question of deserved or undeserved seems besides the point. the cultists are closed off to outside opinions.

a very annoying cult over at audiosciencereview or whatever that "we dont care about sound, only test results" site is called.
 
JBL (he said looking in the mirror)

:-)
Agreed, I still have my 4410’s and enjoyed collecting/listening to various 43 and 44 series speakers (including the 4350 and 4430). I’m still curious as to how their higher end offerings stack up (6700 Everest and M2, along with other similar horned models). And like Mcintosh, they’ve been around for ever!
 
There’s still a big following for the usual suspects of the receiver war era- Pioneer, Marantz and Sansui. JBL and Altec Lansing. Quad. Naim. Linn. Arcam. Stax. Grado. Bose. McIntosh. Krell. Pass Labs. Levinson.

Lots of brands who’ve made their mark- and for almost as many varying reasons why.
 
I always remember a small yet notable group of snobs that frequented my now extinct local dealer that were a Wilson cult. Apologies to any Wilson owners here at HFH, I don't point any of this at you, just my local experience in a suburb of NYC.

The price points occupied by the Wilson line ensured this cult would stay small, and not necessarily be looking to actively recruit new members. When other speaker lines were being demonstrated in-store, they would furrow their brows or look mildly interested at best.

I remember one time I commented to one of them on the superb sound of the Verity Audio Parsifal Ovation, which at $20k were apparently not quite expensive enough for that WATT/Puppy 8 adherent to take seriously. He more or less gave me a pat on the head and assured me I needed to hear the Wilsons.

Funny thing was I had heard the WATT/Puppy 8 and preferred the Parsifal, though I was too young and poor to afford either model, but that dealer was kind enough to let me listen to such things if they were already setup in one of their two main rooms. Truth was I preferred the less expensive stand mounted Wilson Duette at that time.

A few years later I gained a somewhat greater appreciation for Wilson with the Sasha W/P, which I thought was a tremendous improvement, though the already lofty price had also taken a leap upwards too. I doubt the local Wilson cult was ever that large, and certainly the extinction of the local dealer can only mean it's smaller than it used to be. I also imagine those guys probably still own and enjoy their Wilsons to this day, certainly there would have been a pride in ownership factor at play there.
 
This alone sums up the audio cult pretty well.

Then again, I still side with Nelson Pass (irony) in that this is an entertainment business. To each their own. We’re all right if we’re having fun.
I admire Nelson Pass from what I’ve read. I like that he’s smart and honest. Smart in knows the science and engineering, and honest in designs amps with “different sound signatures” because he knows it’s about how it sounds to you and me. most of us don’t necessarily want perfect measurements; it’s the sound we enjoy.
 
I admire Nelson Pass from what I’ve read. I like that he’s smart and honest. Smart in knows the science and engineering, and honest in designs amps with “different sound signatures” because he knows it’s about how it sounds to you and me. most of us don’t necessarily want perfect measurements; it’s the sound we enjoy.
@kray .....I met Nelson at one of the Burning Amp soiree's at Fort Mason in SF. Very low key. He stood out as normal in a sea of crazed cultists.
 
I thought about that one and also Harbeth, or even LS3/5a, but ended up deciding thats really a British 2-way monitor mob more than any one brand's cult-like following.

I'm a follower there, of the ProAc persuasion, though it could easily be Harbeth too.

Just as Linn was more of a cult thing in days of yore, so too was Bowers & Wilkins.
 
These answers are great!

I agree with almost everyone, and don't want to repeat, so I will add...

Lowther

Spectral

Magnepan

Schroeder

Grado
 
No way. Cults involve myth and dogma.

I'll have nothing to do with either.
Hmmm. Wasn’t thinking about myths or dogma but more the veneration, dedication and respect aspect.

Also, the large group following.

The only Meadowlark myth I know of is mhardy’s continual insistence that you actually give the speakers away for free.
 
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