Music Culture Elegance MC 501Price: $4490

Website: www.music-culture.com

S. Andrea said: The Music Culture Elegance MC 501A delivers full, rich bass; a vivid, present midrange; and sweet highs. Its sound is more about tone and fluidity than slam and sparkle. The MC 501A won’t bowl you over with detail, but if you sit down and listen to it, you’ll find that most of those details are still there, playing a subservient role to the music -- as they do in real life.

Read the Ultra Audio review.

The gist: MBL-type gear at a real-world price.