I have used a variety here from Hobbywing, Viper, Castle, Speed Passion, and Tekin.
My opinion, look for features that fit your needs and go from there. My last 1/8 ESCs were the latest Castle Creations MM-X ESCs using sensored motors with the sensored harnesses. They did what I expected. The one that did have an issue was replaced quickly by castle. I was glad to have the 1 year warranty they came with as it gave some piece of mind as if you feel your stuff is the best, I never understood why you couldn't be an industry leading warranty on the ESC.
That said, all the esc's I have tried I would try again. Some have benefits on fitment others don't like the Tekin ones.
As it sits, the current ESC I use at least for 1/10 4wd SCT that I will try on 1/8 e buggy will be the XR8 SCT edition. Has some really nice features and a hand held programmer is a plus.