I need to say to the people who wrote the first four reviews on the Legacy Focus, and also to many other people who have written reviews on many of the other products on this site, the following: "HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY EXPECT TO BE TAKEN SERIOUSLY WHEN YOU CONSTANTLY CONSTRUCT INCOMPLETE SENTENCES WITH MULTIPLE SPELLING ERRORS? THIS GIVES YOU ABSOLUTLEY ZERO CREDIBILITY. SMARTEN UP PEOPLE."

I have heard Legacy speakers and B and W speakers on a number of occasions in different settings. Many were quite good, from BOTH brands, with different sets of strong points in their favor. I chose to purchase my newest set of speakers from a different manufacturer, but that does NOT reduce the value of products from the aforementioned companies. Why should I put down products I chose not to buy, based on my single and personal decision...based on what sounded best to ME and best fit MY room constraints? Why should ANYONE believe that he or she is more suited than someone else to determine and decide what sounds better to the other person?!!
I would like to add my personal spin on comments made in this forum because I believe that some could be misleading to individuals who might accept them at face value or take them for granted. This website is potentially useful to individuals who want to get an idea of products to audition, etc. While printed opinions may help influence the direction an individual takes, that individual is still ultimately responsible for his or her own actions. Contributors CAN, however, cause confusion or spread misinformation by stating OPINIONS as if they were FACTS.

I don't think that there is anything inherently wrong in a person saying that he PERSONALLY thinks that product "A" sounds better than products "B," "C," and "D" for reasons "1," "2," and "3." But for someone to speak from a pulpit and denounce or denegrate a specific product (or persons making a specific decision; etc.) is nonsensical at best--it speaks more of arrogance, conceit, or insecurity. Or possibly a lack of original thought. Who are such individuals trying to serve?

And why should this forum be used to trash any specific publication, etc.? Should the value of a publication be torn asunder by one individual "in front of" so many other readers? Why is something like this done? And putting a different spin on things, does a person's agreement with a major publication automatically confer the mantle of expertise upon him???

While I will freely admit that I personally would prefer all responses to be grammatically correct, I don't see deficiencies in such detracting from a cogent argument. Does a good point spoken poorly hold more validity than a poor point spoken eloquently? I would hope that any given writer would refrain from proclaiming that other folks' opinions are not as worthwhile when they are not put forth in a fashion he deems suitable.

Another point that seems misleading to me has to do with question of whether or not a speaker is used by recording studios. If a speaker IS widely used, that may indeed be strong evidence of some fine and consistantly appreciated qualities. BUT, just because a speaker serves well as a recording monitor does not automatically mean that it will serve the needs of the majority in the home setting.

Also, does the size and notoriety of a company (including numbers and types of distributors) correlate with the quality of it's products? Many small and little known manufacturers produce products of tremendous ability and value. Because a bad review in a big publication can spell doom for a small company, some do not submit equipment to major magazines even when they have a product of the highest caliber. So absence of reviews in the more common and heralded publications does not imply a lack of worthiness. Also, the volume of product sold does NOT necessarily imply value, etc. Some small companies cannot afford big time advertising budgets. But, that may also be reflected in the relatively low cost of products from small manufacturers.

In closing,I would like to challenge the readership to try their best not to blur the line between personal opinion and fact. Positive AND negative opinions can be instructive; but, let's save the destructive activities for other sites. Please.

I just want to ad my 2 cents since Peter put another BS review on.First of all I want him to know that B&W 801s are very nice speakers(my next door buddy has a pair driven by krell gears)but that does not mean every other speakers are garbage(since he only give 1 star to Legacy).He did not mention anything about the finish and service of Legacy(these will worth more then two stars)and how are they sounds but just a lot of BS.Please remember this is the place that you should put down your review,not a battlefield.No speaker can please everybody,but Focus are truely worth the price both sonicly and cosmetically.And they are much easy to drive then B&W801s.(since Peter can drive them with Panasonic receivers,Try to drive B&W with Panasonic.)Second,Legacy willing to use high quality drivers,who care about if the drivers are the same with the Focus made 3 years ago,if the Co. can improve the sound,what is wrong to change drivers.(Legacy Focus Have not change any driver for at lease 3 years).I really don't want to hurt little Peter's felling but do you know B&W 801 are made in Taiwan Koushong,then send to France document the product and put on serier No.Just pull you crossover out and you will know what I am talking about.
Third,why little Peter will believe B&W's ad that 80% recording studios are using 801s but refuse to trust Lagacy,this will tel you what kind of person he is.
Fourth,will B&W let you to try their 801 for one month?Legacy will.Will B&W give you free replcement parts when your 4 year old cut the grill?Legacy will.Will B&W talk to you for an hour at their 800 No. when you have stupid questions?Legacy will.
Last,I want to say that I am not trying to say B&W 801s are bad speakers,if their sound can please you,just go for them.That is what you spend the money for,you want to be pleased.But just to put down lots of made-up garbage and keep on give 1 star to a good product is definitlly wrong.Maybe little Peter just don't want
to see any product get 5 stars all the way.My point is :If you don't own the speakers and had not listened to them for a period of time,just shut up,plaese do not misleading people.No review from Stereophile is done by just couple test listenings.To both Noel and Peter!

The B and W 801 argument derives, I think froma review in the Sensible Sound. The base on the Focus is deeper, richer, fuller than that on B and Ws. To answer another review posted here---the treble depends on your electronics, my treble is excellent and open, unfatiguing. The depth these speakers render is remarkable along with an open airy sound. Too much detail or imaging is not natural....maybe sitting on your couch you want that, but sitting in Carnegie Hall or Symphony Hall, Boston one hears music. That is what the Focus provides. I have owned some good stuff which the Focus beats. I have heard the Wilson, Dunleavy sound. Not $60,000 better than well set up Foci by about $59,000.

Really folks please don't get so emotional about these things. Secondly, lets clear the air on a few items. I have heard Focus at two dealers and at the manufacturing plant in Springfield. Legacy people seem to be nice and I bet that they are responsive to questions. But lets end this nonsense. Anyone can say anything in these emotionally ladden reviews. Lets address hard reproducible facts.
1.) Incredible numbers of Legacy dealers have fallen by the wayside. Lets see if next years dealers are around carrying Legacy in 5 years. One reason may be that they where offering the their speakers at incredible discounts. Don't like the price from one working in a stereo shop call another working out of his bedroom. This is reality. I have the old literature from non-existent companies that use to carry Legacy. Need confirmation of this? Call Legacy (ask how many dealers have come in and out of carrying their products over the last ten years). This in part created a backlog of demand for bargain basement speakers. This also help to create the well documented and incredibly low "Blue Book" price of used Focuses. If you want to get your Focus at a big discount just call up the folks in Springfield or the other places coming on line next year and do some horse trading.
2.) Messing around constantly with drivers like Legacy does from 3rd party suppliers does not help develop confidence in the market place that these speakers are anything but a moving target. It is hard to tell what is being done to their speakers since Bill Huddleston seems to just stumble on a new driver he would like to experiment with for a while. Have any of these other reviewers been to the Legacy plant at the north end of Springfield, Illinois? This is not a R&D facility of full of top notch engineers from good schools but rather it is an assembly line with lower end electronics to compare Legacy high efficiency (hence not even playing field) speakers to whatever used speakers happens to be in the store at the time.
3.) It seems like a minor point but my system consists of Audio Research gear. Legacy seems to me to be attractive to those that can not afford higher end equipment and like the big sound and size of the Legacy speakers. The truely emotional pleading that seems to be going on in these other commentaries is remarkable.
4.) The one review suggested that I got my viewpoints from Sensible Sound. Do you guys know that this publication is done by a guy who works out of his house with no real calibration equipment to back up his ideas? Ever see loads of charts of quantifiable information in Sensible Sound (maybe the title comes from the author's ability to sense the sound). Little wonder ratings of Legacy are so high here if the depth of experience of reviewers in this forum are limited to such "what-a-be" publications. For the record I started to develop my earlier opinions in the stereo stores that we later confirmed by Stereophile which has kept the 801s as recommended components for more than 10 years.
5.) Anyone can say that they see a lot 801s in the market place. Its another to prove it on a consistent basis. Why not try to use Quarterdeck's Web Compass that uses more than 20 search engines at once? Search for Legacy Used and see what you come up with?
6.) No one seems to address my fundamental points including why are B&W 801s used in more than 80% of classical recording studios?

PS: I probably made a few spelling and english errors in my above comments. But please, in responding to my comments others would probably come across as more convincing if they would try to use good english and spelling. Another not so minor point is that I prefer to deal with a company with a national, not just mail order, presence. I see that Legacy will have another handful (literally ) of dealers coming on line next year (check their BIG list of dealers on the Legacy web site). I think Legacy really tries to service their products but their is only so much you can do hundreds or thousands of miles away in a warehouse in Springfield (anyone had any problem with their Compaq computer lately and called up for service).

I really have become bored with the discussion going on here. Quit carrying on about the powerful this and that and putting down facts. Please just address them calmly in order and be done with it. No one really cares about your emotional vested interest in a product. Sorry if I depart permanently from this emotional roller coaster of smoke and mirrors. Good luck!

Let your ears be the judge. The Focus basher has a sorry secondary agenda for which we may never have the real facts. Reality for me is that I can afford most high end systems. I thus auditioned what I consider to be the best out there- Martin Logan reQuest, B and W 800 matrix line, Thiel, NHT 3.3, Dunleavy, etc. The Focus stands out among any of these for balance, mellow sound, accurate reproduction and strong bass reproduction. Perhaps only the Meridian speakers have impressed me as much and maybe a tad more...but a very different type of set up admittedly. Given my use of the system for mostly home theater for my family, I chose ultimately to match Classics with Silver Screen center ch. Even the $2600 Classics stand right up there with B and W 801 and NHT. The quality of the Legacy line is second to none, both in cabinetry, electronics and most importantly, customer service. The loyalty they have engendered is no accident- these people construct these speakers as a true labor of love and we can only hope with the Allen Organ Co. taking over the ownership that none of the old time service will diminish. For now, these speakers are a phenomenon, a force of nature, and owned by some of the most wonderful people I have had the pleasure of knowing.......you get a free trial anyway...how many other lines will put up that kind of assurance. Highest recommendation- they are quite literally hard to beat.

I'm relatively new to the audio industry. Just as with any other entertainment genre, there are good products, of course, and the opposite. Let me tell you a story about the governing force behind all this debate. Music. The bottom line in this situation. The Legacy Focus are the conduit for music to materialize before the listener. The Focus, among other fine instruments, are without a doubt superb speakers that bring listeners literally to their feet, and in most cases, to their knees in musical bliss. Why else listen to music and spend thousands to invest in it? Legacy offers, with a sort of cult following, reproduction of the passion, image, and memory of the true musical experience--one on many different levels. The Focus, Whisper, and Classics all conjure images of the finger of Beethoven, the rasp of Bob Dillon, the power of Tu Pac, and the like. Music is composed--not just reproduced with the Focus' exquisite lines, its upper echelon drivers, its sturdy cult following, and its supportive staff. Legacy deserves the attention it receives. In response to earlier reviews (Peter), I accept other opinions, except when there is a hidden agenda. Some might argue that those who rave incessantly about a product have these agendas as well. Legacy brings about these agendas in the right way. When you hear a product that actually transcends perception and can bring an audiophile to his or her knees, then a certain fan-based agenda forms. These groups of Legacy soldiers aren't simply spouting the lore of Bill Dudleston as braindead stumps. They are recalling, yet, experiencing the the magic that is music--the driving force for the industry.
There are great speakers out there. B&W's would definetly get my attention, as well as Thiel, Dunlavy, Paradigm, Wilson... All of which, in my opinion, are lacking that certain aura that Legacy emitts.
Those who are new to the Legacy legacy, I urge you to experience the power of a speaker line that can transform the listener into contributor, the audience into the composer, and the consumer into the reviewer. Allow yourself the opportunity, before ruling out a speaker line, and let that opportunity present itself in the form of Legacy--the epitome of the musical experience.

Each individuals ears and brain will translate differently.I've listened on Theil, Snell, Martin Logan, B&W, Hales, and (God help me) Bose. The Bose AM5 cubes make great wheel blocks when your in the garage and can't find a 2 by 4.

This is why the Legacy Focus are my favorite...

Warm, full, tight, fast, transparent, non-pretentions, flexable, and attractive.
Don't try to impresses the Joness' down the street with these. They paid much more for their speakers, and their lawyer has the same model, so obviously their's are superior.

There is no one speaker to suite all listeners. That's why there are so many successful speaker manufacturers, each with their own sound. If any of the descriptions above interest you as a listener, then I encourage you to audition these speakers. If you don't like what you hear, then keep looking, because someone makes a speaker for you. Legacy happens to make mine.

After reading "Peter from Illinois" review of Legacy products, I am am motivated to respond to his plethora of "misinformation" about Legacy in general. Number one, Legacy has been a "factory direct" dealership since their inception over 15 years ago and they don't sell their products through dealers.
I have no idea of where Peter is coming up with this ridiculous information about dealers dropping Legacy products. There are no dealers that carry Legacy speakers, period. Never have been. Read my lips, FACTORY DIRECT.
Regarding their product line, personnel, etc. Bill Dudleston, their chief engineer and part owner, is a degreed engineer from the University of Illinois and he has two other design engineers on his staff. They are recognized by many of the top people in audio engineering circles as being on the leading edge of speaker technology.
Regarding the use of drivers. I have owned several lines of Legacy speakers(including the Focus and now the Whispers) over the last 10 years and they have been very consistent with their quality and they do use very high end drivers (Eton kevlar drivers from Germany--some of the best made, not to mention most expensive--they have used them in all of their speakers for the past 6 years). Recently they switched to the excellent "Focal" kevlar drivers in the Studio's.
Peter, I don't know what your problem is, but getting the facts correct is apparently not a priority with you. I don't mind anyone not liking the sound of any particular speaker, but please, before you degrade a company or it's products, please get some facts, not just biased BS.

Noel from Wisconsin writes in his Dec 17 review, that every salesman who he has heard play the Focus, insists on "blowing your head off". Just where did Mr. Noel hear these speakers. They don't sell them through retail outlets, they are only sold factory direct. I think Mr. Noel, is making this up for effect.
As far as Legacy switching drivers from speaker to speaker, I know for a fact that this is not true. Another story made up for effect, right?

And as far as the Focus being available "used" on a widespread basis,this is also not true. I am constantly reviewing adds in all of the major audio magazines and on the web sites and very rarely do I see a Focus for sale (I've seen two in the last year). MR. Noel and Mr. Peter (another sour grapes reviewer)apparently have some hidden agenda. Why else would they be spreading all of this unsubstantiated BS about Legacy.