Yeah they're really great. sorry to side-track but I too am a recovering audiophile as you say. The sound is clear yet powerful, with no hint of distortion even at stun level, all across the frequency spectrum. And they still work, unlike other brands I've owned that are long ago recycled. I have old Speakerlab 7's that still sound drastically better than even today's marketed as high end stuff. They don't add any foreign sound to the music, they just delivery the notes with still surprising reality. They were true aficionados who built these things, instead of being only concerned with $.You got the good stuff then!! Bob Carver had differing lines and differing manufacturing points. His Japanese stuff was pretty good but IMHO lacked the warmth of his US made product especially in the preamps..
This was true with many marine systems of the past, including the boats, sails (still are), instruments and electronics. Raytheon was a military supplier, hence the robust and serious nature of their marine gear I believe. Someone else mentioned military spec, and this is a valuable aspect of consumer gear if you can find it. I know this through many years buying and selling outdoorsman goods.