best monitor speaker under $2000

North Creek Kitty Kats if you really need them close to the wall. Tiny speakers with huge sound--however they are only just under your $2K limit and that in kit form--cabinets would cost a few hundred more. But if you need small and close to the wall, check out North Creek. Design and materials second to none.

http://www.northcreekmusic.com/

Just recently they seem to have brought back their free-field designs too.

Now about that amp... I humbly agree with what Ejlif says, above. My small experience says that you will probably enjoy your system more if you invest more in amplification at this stage. If you do go that route, I suggest you check out the North Creek site anyway. There's a lot to learn there.

Amps for speakers instead of the other way around because the differences between the sounds of different speakers are less subtle than the sonic differences between amps.

That doesn't mean you can't fall in love with an amp and then start looking for speakers for it, if that's how it happens. It's just that finding a good match may be easier if you have the speaker you love first.