Floor standing speaker recommendations new or used, $10,000 and under


Hello I'm looking to some new speakers and I need some recommendations to audition.  I currently have the Nola Viper IIa, but I'm looking for improved bass and just an improvement in sound overall.

I have a Mcintosh mc7150 power amp and a De havilland Ultra verve 3 preamp.  My source is a musical fidelity cd player.

I have a medium sized room, approximately 20' by 16'. Ceiling is about 9ft high.

I've listened to the Focal Sopra 2. and the Totem Acoustic Hawk, but I'd like to expand my options.
hawk28
Yep, Mike used a variety of amps and a sampling of all types of music to demonstrate that they can handle almost anything and not a speaker for certain types of music.

He also showed how loud and clean they can play without distorting. These speakers are the best I have heard and I have had a lot of them; they sound better than the $16K speakers I had.

Wig
wig,
The finish on that pair was really beautiful. The test was kind of silly though. He spoke about how they were better speakers than the Klipsch Forte, which I'm sure they are, but when he set up the Liberty speakers, it was with a different amplifier!
Besides that, he used different music, and it wasn't very good at that, but in any case, any hope of comparison was lost. I do believe that they are probably an excellent value for that money though. I'd love to try them.
You can follow the progression as they break-in, it took mines almost 300 hours before they hit their sweet-spot but the speaker is seamless top to bottom and the bass is amazing...

The sound is rich, resolving, 3D, wide and deep sound stage with unbelievable pin-point imaging; they really disappear!

Wig
They sound a little harsh in the video.  He just took them out of the crate so maybe they need a little break in?
Here’s a link to get you started and you can hear many of them with all types of equipment but the finish of these are beautiful...:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKvAjDnONC4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuEpcFYcPKo

Wig
I believe that they're good, the PBN horn speaker looks unbelievable, but the veneer and color of the XVOX is really unattractive. He should offer some other choices; even if there's an upcharge.
@ hawk28

I have sleeper speaker that's under the radar and very few are in the know but coming from Thiel, Vandersteen, Avalon and AZ Crescendos' just to name a few and these Liberty's XVOX is in a class of their own and at 1/4 of the price of those mentioned. These are an entry level if you want to call them that but are made by PBN Audio which says a lot...

Reach out to the distributor, Mike at 11steroe.com and see the many videos on youtube under ocd hi-fi guy. These Liberty speakers are superb!

Wig
I'd like to hear more about the JansZen hybrid electrostatic speakers especially the P8 or A8 models.  Some of the others mentioned above would be a little easier to audition. The JansZens are only sold directly from the company and the design is nearly unique. 
Aequo Audio Stilla, Gauder DARC 40,  Piega coax 511, Manger P2. Avantgarde Zero, Naim Ovator S600. All have a very different sound signature.
I just went through the same journey as you are in. I auditioned Focal Sopra N2, Kanta, Magico A3, KEF ref 3, Audiosolutions Figaro L, Revel Studio2, F228be, BW 803D3, MA Pl300 II.
I had short listed it to Magico A3, Audiosolutions Figaro L and MA Pl300 II 
It was very hard to decide between Figaro L and Magico A3. Finally I decided for Magico A3. They simply the best. 
Figaro L are also impeccable. You can close your eyes and pick either of those and you will not be disappointed. 
By the way, my search went on for > 4 months. So you can understand the pain I went through.
@soma70 - The Revel Ultima Salon2 speakers retail new at $22K per pair. You might be thinking of their smaller Studio2 which retail for $16K per pair.
I'm certainly glad I sought your opinions on speaker options, as you all have given me many options.  I think i'm going to limit the auditioning process to maybe 5 or 6 different candidates, for my own sanity.  Right now, anything I audition will be compared to the Sopra 2, which I'm favoring right now.  The Magico A3, the Joseph Audio Perspective, and the offerings from Emerald Physics and Goldenear will be put on my audition list.  I'll do more research on some of the others to round out the audition list.  Note;  Some of the recommendations that you all made are too tall for my room.  And while I'm sure they're fine loudspeakers in their own right, they would overwhelm my medium-sized room.  But thanks for the suggestions just the same. 
i have never heard these but I would want to check out revel ultima salon 2’s. 15k  new but they come up occasionally under 10k
After posting on every forum I could find and reading recommendations for every speaker under the sun I just started buying and selling anything I could afford locally. I got to own several speakers that list over $20k and really learned about my listening room and my personal preferences, that every speaker is a compromise. The ability to own a speaker for 8 months which for me was how long it took for the infatuation to pass and start hearing the flaws, and because of my room bass was predictable with no port support only rear ported or sealed box would reach 50 hz. 
My favorite $10k or less was the Usher Be-20dmd with my only nit being a flat soundstage, wide and deep as you can imagine but not much height to it. Ultimately I combined my speaker and component budget and bought a clean pair of dsp 8000.2's, cured my bass problems and everything else. Happy hunting
I just went through this same mission: hunting down floor standers for around $10K. Did a lot of reading and listening to everything I could find. In the end I got a pair of demo Spendor D9s and am very happy...
10K....??.... you have quite a huge catalogue to look through.

 Happy hunting and have fun.

 I loved the hunt and demoing many speakers.

enjoy !
Golden Ear Triton Reference or Golden Ear Triton One.R s  ... Amazing bang for the buck ! 
I know it's a little above your budget but Magico A3 is a must listen before you make a purchase, incredibly musical and it boogies. Drivers are seamlessly integrated like point-source. Build quality is world class, all aircraft-grade aluminum cabinet, beryllium tweeter, and graphene mids and woofers. Good luck.
Steve59 - i have the predecessor to The Music - the Mahlers.  Pretty amazing.  Extraordinarily transparent.  Pretty darn full range, and effortless. Most speakers strain in dynamics land. These things (like the IRS or RS-1B noted above) just get loud.  In a very good way.
BTW i meant RS-1B, not Beta
Egglestonworks Andra MK-I or MK-II 

15K new / 5-7K used

I'm looking at getting the pair in NJ....Full range for sure!
for something completely different, Infinity RS-beta.  Stunning dynamics, bass, large image.  flawed? Isn't everything?
Definitely the Legacy Focus SE's, or the Spatial Audio's, or Emerald Physics options in that price range, before a lot of the others noted.
In that range I’d be looking at Goldenear Triton Reference, or Tekton Ulferberhts. Vandys speakers are great, though I prefer the 3As over their more expensive models. 
Ten grand is enough to get you there if the components are up to the task. I had a chance to own a pair of Vienna Acoustics ‘Die Musik’ for $10k and when I pm’d owners and asked if they thought my components would be a good match I was told no, even the seller risked losing the sale to tell me I would need to upgrade my system for those power/current hungry speakers if I wanted to hear what they were capable of. 
I have had PMC twenty/24 went to twenty5/26 then to fact 8s which I still have I think they are superb. Also have on order Joseph Audio Perspective 2s two great speaker companies 
Jeepers, nobody brings up PMCs around here. Never figure that out. Superb build quality, Low distortion bass (tight, deep too). They're spendy new but not when used. 
Tweak1, I’ve seen Emerald Physics around but I never had the opportunity to audition them. I’m not in Florida, but I’ll see if I can find a local dealer for a listen. Thanks.
What do you think about the Sopra 2? Maybe consider adding subwoofers?


I actually liked the Sopra 2’s very much. I’m just looking for alternatives to audition for comparison.


If you live near to Ft Lauderdale, you can come and hear one of the very best bargains that play waaaaay above their price

Emerald Physics KCIIs with factory mods

Search YT for videos, also Absolute Sound has given several of their speakers top awards
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Bache Audio Tribeca 002 with the Eton Hexacone Symphony II woofers. Very coherent and holographic sound that’s balanced from top to bottom. The Eton woofers produce a tight bass that combines speed and warmth.
Vandersteen and Joseph Audio Perspective sound appealing. I'll have to add them to the audition list.  I'm not familiar with Janzens, I'll have to do some research on those. Thanks for the suggestions, all.

I was gonna recommend the Quatro CT as well, along with Joseph Audio Perspective and Acoustic Zen Crescendo — all used of course.  Best of luck. 
Under $10K,
Why not the new Vandy Kento's?
Heck, used you can score a pair of Quatro CT's.
Vandersteen- the best bang for the money-Actually, the best bang, period.😄
Bob
If you don't mind a rather narrow sweet spot (as with most electrostatics), the Janszen Valentina is a really great speaker. You can search for reviews under that name and also Janszen zA2.1. The model recently was upgraded to larger woofers and better crossover, and it was an improvement, especially in the bass.


I did the same thing, tried the salon 1, salon 2, Usher be20dmd, kanta 3, all good all different.  My rooms difficult in the bass so what I ended up with won't apply to many. good luck, they're all good at that level used just different.