They are both good speakers. (I own the Studios by the way). I really think you need to audition both and decide for yourself. (Unless you can get a good deal on both by buying them used or demos, and then you can compare for yourself, in your room and with your equipment, and then afterwards, you can sell one pair and not be out much. (Except shipping maybe, which can be expensive.)
There are a couple of points I would like to make.
One, the B&Ws will be easier to drive. They will need half the power, (maybe less even) of the Studios. The Studio are power hungrey. They really like to have at least 100 wpc, (which will make them sound good, but not great), but having 200 wpc (especially via monoblocks) will really give them the juice they need.
(FYI - I use Lamm M2.1s, as do a few others I know, and they work fantastic. Any yeah, they are spendy, but worth it, IMHO!)
The Studios will get a little deeper in the bass response. The Studios are very nearly full-range speakers.
They are only missing the very bottom portion of the last octave of sound, and unless you have a pretty large room, getting that last octave can sound boomy. (My room is 16' x 24' and they really do a good job of filling it with deep, tight bass.)
The Studios are set up for Bi-wiring, as are the B&W speakers. I know most owners prefer to bi-wire the Studios, so your speaker cables may need to be upgraded. (FYI - I use the Audience Au24's, but I know some owners are using the Nordost line, especially the Valhallas. They are a bit too pricey, for my blood, and for not a whole lot of improvement over my Au24's, IMHO.)
The Studios have a very modern appearence, and it takes a certain decor to make them look good. The B&Ws are a classic look, and will probably fit more decors. (You might want to have your significant other, if any, have a look and give you some input if you are putting these in the living room, as I did. My wife liked the Studios, as it allowed her to redecorate, and we now have said modern decor. It turned out to be a win-win situation, as I got spend money on new speakers, (and modern looking equipment racks), and she got to spend money on new couchs, and chairs, and end tables, and coffee tables, and lamps, etc.)
One more thing, I would also like to dispute Putty's blanket statement that the B&W's are better with acoustic instruments. I think given the right equipment that the Studios are at least as good as the B&Ws.
My friend has the Avalon Eidolons, and I have compared them, (The Eidolons are as good a speaker as I have heard, IMHO), and my Studios are almost as good. (The Studios come up just slightly short, and for half the price, I consider them a good bang for the buck speaker.) The Studios have slightly better bass than the Eidolons, but not quite as good in the treble region. (Although the diamond tweeter on the B&W might be as good as the Eidolons too). And at soundstaging, the Eidolons are better as well, but then I have not heard any speaker soundstage like the Eidolons. As you can tell, I LOVE the Eidolons. If you can stretch your budget, those are the speakers I would recommend actually. Warning though, the Eidolons REQUIRE only the best in equipment, or they will not sound their best.)
Anyway, my two cents worth.
(Again, auditioning is really the key.
