it also does play a part in how you power the speakers... high end speakers which are underpowered can still sound pretty average, compared to a mid range speaker which is matched with a amp that powers it to it's full potential... for top end stuff, look at brands such as: Focal, Mb Quart, Alipne, Rockford Fosgate, JL Audio, Pioneer, BOSE etc etc but dont worry so much about brands etc, worry about powering the speakers you have to their full potential, and maybe look at some dynamat to help enhance the speakers output?