CES 2015 • Hot Product

Venture's new Avantgarde Mk III speaker ($120,000/pair) is the revival of a model that debuted in the 1990s. Perhaps that's why it looks more conventionally rectangular than many of Venture's other models and uses first-order crossovers. Venture's conventional design features (including all custom drivers) and sound (highly resolving, delicate and seductive) remain intact. The Avantgarde Mk III also packs a surprising wallop down low, due to its dual side-mounted 10" woofers. Quoted sensitivity is 92dB, so lower-power tubes are an option, although Venture made very good sound at CES with its own MOSFET-based solid-state amps.