The reason I was thinking of getting the power amp first is that to me it will be a factor in which speaker I get.
No. As others have said find the speakers that really “do it” for you first and then find an amp that synergizes sonically and can drive them properly. You should share what specific improvements you’re looking for and what sound characteristics are most important to you and you’ll get much better recommendations here. And are you looking for new or used? Do you want to keep your current preamp? Not enough to go on as it stands.