This is my personal unbiased view/opinion after spending just a quick few minutes out of my rather busy schedule to visit other rooms.
I am not sure I had visited every single rooms during TAVES but I did try to at least poke my head to see if anything sounded interesting to me.
Good Surprise:
Totem Sky loudspeaker at $CAD1850/pair is a tremendous value.
Great sound at a small price.
As Expected:
Magico S5MKII, US$42,750.
They are clean, detailed, & natural sounding.
It was somewhat a surprise to me since the only other offer from Magico that I like was/is their Q7.
Not Impressed:
I accidentally stumbled onto Kef/VPI room where they had their big Muon MKII speakers, $US225,000/pair.
I was not sure if it's the room or something else but the sound was abysmal, to say the least.
It might also due to the song they played when I was in the room.
Bottom line is a lot of money for not so good sound.
Good Surprise at a Hefty Price:
I walked into the Wynn Audio room without any expectations and was rather pulled into the music with their Tidal Sunrays, $CAD180,000/pair.
Good Surprise at a less than hefty price:
Muraudio was showing their Domain Omni PX2, $US79,500/pair.
Excellent soundstage.
After my visit to those and the other rooms, I came back to our own ACA room and I just can't stop smiling while listening to our Seraphim Prime at US$22,000.
I can state without any uncertainty the only competitor that might come close to our Seraphim Prime is indeed the S5MKII from Magico.
Having said that, at almost half the price of the S5, our Prime is a much better valued choice.