Recommend speakers

You may want to give the Axiom speakers a try(www.axiomaudio.com I think). Said to have very good midrange and detailed but not overly bright highs, and something like their M60? floorstanders should yield decent dynamics while still meeting your price target. See reviews on Soundstage, etc.

If you're open to monitors the Soliloquy 5.0 yields respectable dynamics for a stand mounted speaker, has a very smooth and full midrange, detailed and airy yet refined highs, and will throw off a huge 3D soundstage while completely disappearing in the room. If you've got a dealer nearby they're worth a listen and they look fantastic too. Should work great with the Stratos too. See www.solspeak.com. Best of luck.

Tim

While I agree with those above who recommend Vandy and I also happen to think they are fantastic speakers, the reason I did not mention them is that one of the attributes Trip was looking for was a "crisp" sound. Crisp is definitely not a word I would use to describe Vandersteens. While I think everyone should hear Vandys before they buy speakers because they do so many things so well and represent such an incredible value, I tend to doubt in this case that Trip will find them to his liking given his tastes. Just a thought...

Tim