Suggestions for bookshelf speakers that have great dynamics, budget of $500 used.

Paradigm Studio 20 were excellent, I had Version 1s.

One thing that really helps is the fact they are being driven by a brute of a vintage receiver that has been recapped.
And it has those items that had Audiophools running in horror but are darn useful IMHO.
Yes tone controls( bass and treble), a loudness button and low and high filters.

😲😲😲😲😲

😂😂😂😂😂

Even less so with a woman. 

Refined, pleasant to look at, and easy to live with, doesn't happen often.

Refined is a good description indeed.
Smooth but powerful and not rolled off but not harsh.
Yes refined.
And yes it does not hurt any that they look good to boot.
For the application of second system I can see them staying for quite some time.

Good to hear the Haydns worked out for you :)  They're beautiful speakers and easy to listen to.

Yes , the Haydns are a very refined speaker. I am sure they can be listened to all day without fatigue. Exceptional with acoustic music.

This said from having listened to them in a showroom a few years back.

Congrats on your find.

You just missed out on a pair of Klipsch Heresy IIs advertised on CL, not far from you, at an asking price of $300. If I did not have so many speakers around, I would have picked them up. They were in very nice shape. I feel I am at a loss, at that price, as I am regretting not getting them. Happy Holidays, to all, and, Enjoy ! MrD.

Well after living with the Haydn's for a few weeks I am happy in my choice.

The bass and mids have a lot more texture, timbre and solidity compared to the old MA speakers.

The treble is a little softer in delivery, not rolled off but just not as harsh or brittle as the MA were.

Now I am sure there were plenty of other competent speakers amongst the suggestion list and not saying these are the best but.....

As I was able to view and pick up local and pay cash it worked out very well for me.

They are normally (Paradigms) on eBay for a descnt price. I ahd a pair of series 1s for years.

Any PARADIGM STUDIO 20 pair in good shape would be awesome. I have a pair of Klipsch RP-160M speakers ans do not find them too bright for my Classical listening. The Paradigms are a step up.

I have a good friend who owns a pair of  Roger's Studio 1a that are in immaculate condition placed on 14" stands I believe, not positive on that but they  sound pretty fantastic in his room. Still impressive after all these years. A larger bookshelf than may be desired though. Finding a pair of them in that condition would be challenging. Another classic sounding bookshelf would be a pair of Snell type Jll's.   It will come down I think on the type of Music you fancy most. 

Wharfedale 10.1 or 225 models are pretty decent and much better than their price might suggest.

I had the Diamond 225 in use for the past 3+ weeks. The sound was quite good and I could listen for hours to their comfortable sound. However, I wanted something a little more when it came to the top end detail and opted for the Elac B6.2 speakers instead for $170 - locally, and still in the box.  I've read about some crossover upgrades and would gladly spend $100 in components to slightly enhance the sound.

What are ultimate goals for this speaker purchase ?   Will this be a garage-man cave rock n roll system ?   Do you expect to play challenging, detailed, well recorded music ?     What are your musical tastes ?

Various Klipsch models are probably a default choice.  Hersey would probably be the sweet spot, as a used pair can be found for less than $500 and are easily modified to sound better (if desired).  They are efficient, play to loud db levels, and are very good rock speakers....but not so good with other kinds of music.

If you want a plain head banger pair of speaker, look at Cerwin Vega.  Raw, uncouth, unrefined, but excellent for loud raucous music.

MoR option would be a pair of JBL.  Many choices for less than $500.

Polk can be hit or miss.

If your tastes are more demanding and you listen to acoustic jazz, classical, etc in addition to Rock, then look for a pair of Triangle Titus 202.

Moderate sized boxes, 91db efficient, benign crossover load, and can play loud when connected to low power tubes (in fact they are an EXCELLENT match with tubes).  Outstanding transient response, and reproduction of instruments.  Soundstage space in spades.   Can sound bright, and no bass below about 75 hz (but will couple well to a sub).  

You have a lot of choices.

   I listen to both Monitor Audio bronze and silver floor standers, and I don't find them to be too bright to interfere with enjoying music - perhaps it's system matching but I enjoy MA speakers - granted they are only mid-fi...I bought them not auditioning them before hand because of favorable reviews on an European audio magazine - they gave 5 out of 5 stars at the price point. I admit the silver line tweeter is a bit bright, but I love it for their piercing sound of soprano that goes to my heart...

Used Spendor SP3/1 on ebay for $895.

I second that on the Polks.
I so very nearly pulled the trigger on a pair on ebay at $534
So $449 shipped is a true killer deal indeed!
Please do report back upon listening although as new you will need break them in but would still love to hear first impressions.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

Edwinf, please get back to us once you have listened to the Polk's for a while.

Injust bought a pair of Polk Audio Lsim 703 for 449$ shipped from Audorama. I know most audiophiles do not include them on their list but I personally think the Lsim series is underrated. Retail price on these bad boys is $1,500 so this is a killer deal. Heard great things about them and cant wait to listen to them. Will be using Arcam SA20 and Rega Planar 2 TT. God bless

Vintage:  KEF Q1 (AMAZING SPEAKERS: plenty of detail with amazing midrange and sufficient bass for me); doesn't do well with music like the "AMERICAN IDIOT " CD or Big Orchestral pieces, but Opera, solo voices and Eagles-Kansas-RHCP surprising enjoyable...

Vintage Big Boxes: JBL L25 PRIMA ( funky looking boxes with plenty of jump and presence)

And if I was looking at new: I'd investigate specials from KEF (who sells direct)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING TO ALL!!!

TBH forgiving and neutral is probably for the good.
For sure they don't have that blam in your face presentation but that can get old very quickly.
I had a Lyra Dorian cart which was very direct and in your face and at first I was thrilled with it.
But that presentation ALL THE TIME soon wore me down and it became very fatiguing.

I certainly don't want that in my speakers

VA speakers tend to be very natural/a little forgiving (choose your epithet).  My favs are the Beethoven Baby Grand and the Liszt; I imagine these characteristics extend to most if not all models (not quite so keen on the Beethoven Concert Grands).

Haydn are great looking speakers - since you say they are in good condition, you can resell them at the cost - good thing about getting used gears, as new ones depreciate...enjoy the hunt!

uber, I found them easy to listen to and if you decide you'd like to try something else, they're easy to move.  I've tried a couple of different Monitor Audio speakers and they were too bright for me also.  Let us know how they work out over time.

Greg
Obviously we will see as time goes one.
At this sort of price points it is no big deal if I end up not liking and want to try something else from the excellent suggestions here.
Tbh with my Sanyo receiver with tone controls I can boost the treble a little if needed, I could not really fix the perceived harshness of the Silver’s though when pushed.
I have already found out the Haydn are more critical of placement. I had a little too much bass boom and just moving the LH speaker 3 inch forward and 4 inch further apart and narrowing the toe in cured that entirely.
Oh and they absolutely need the port bungs in place in my application and location.
I certainly am a lot more aware of top shelf monitors around this price now so that is a very good thing indeed!

I had some Haydn Grands and liked them at first, but they were lacking treble (too warm) and kind of boring (not very dynamic) after listening to them for a while.  They are pretty.  I had them in my bedroom, and maybe that was too large of a space for them.  They might be good for a desktop system.  They're the polar opposite of the Monitor Audio sound, so I can see how they might be a good fit if you didn't like that sound.

ELAC?

Mesch
I cannot say as I would describe them as lush or warm but obviously a lot of that is system dependant.
I would say they are warmer on the very top end than the Silver 3i which is not a bad thing.
Mids sound about the same with vocals and acoustics being well detailed.
The bass might be a tad deeper but does appear to be more defined, especially as the volume is pushed where the Silver 3i could start sounding a little harsh and more "boomy"
Do not get me wrong the Silvers are mighty fine speakers for the money and I am talking louder than really comfortable levels and they are in a fairly large room.
Overall I am pretty happy with the Haydn,s.

I heard the Haydns at a dealer quite some time ago. I thought they sounded very lush, somewhat warm, refined. Good looking speaker. Let us know what you think of them. 

Nice suggestions all for sure.

I did buy the Vienna Acoustics Haydn as they were immaculate and even set up in very poor location at his house they really sounded good.

Will be giving them a long road test tomorrow.

i like the b&w 686,you can get them used for less than 250$. 
i auditioned them next to the 685 who got much better reviews at the time but i prefered the 686 because they sound sweeter and less forward. i used an old arcam delta  integrated with them and it was a great match ,they were ok with rotel and nad amps  but nowhere near the arcam.  they need at least 75wpc though they are quite small.
there are refurbished ohm walsh e2 for 400 now on their website (outlet)they have a 120 day trial! and 3 years limited warranty.you can probably get some great used  kef,infinity or dynaudio bookshelves for that price as well. what amp?

Another one to consider is this PSB!
https://www.stereophile.com/content/psb-alpha-p5-loudspeaker

At that price the Polks seem interesting. As I have previously stated I already have too many speakers or I might try a pair. 

The Polks are now available at a real steal

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Polk-Audio-LSiM703-Bookshelf-Loudspeaker-PAIR-Midnight-Mahogany-Sealed-NEW/...

Revel M20's

Polk Audio is discontinuing their flagship LSiM line, and as a result they are unloading existing inventory at greatly reduced prices. You can get a pair of the LSiM703s for $600 new on Amazon (originally listed for $1499). They are unusual for a bookshelf in that they are a true 3-way speaker.

Stereophile reviewed them positively several years ago and confirmed that their -3 db point was 55 Hz. It is a 4 ohm speaker with 86db sensitivity.
https://www.stereophile.com/content/polk-lsiiim703-loudspeaker

I deeply appreciate all the great suggestion that folks have come up with and I am now a lot wiser on monitor speakers!
I am going to look at a local pair of Vienna Haydn tomorrow morning, price is very fair.
Anybody any experience of these?
It’s one brand always been on my radar but never tried out.

I like my Heresy IIs a lot and would recommend them. I tweaked them a little with some Crites crossovers and tweeters. I think they may surprise you.

Some great recommendations on this page. My 2 cents is to check out Accessories4Less that has several new bookshelf speakers in your budget including shipping: KEF, Canton, and Focal speakers. You can check them out at the below link. 

https://www.accessories4less.com/

Here is a review!
http://www.hi-fiworld.co.uk/index.php/loudspeakers/65-reviews/519--wharfedale-denton-80th-anniversay...

Yogi
Now those have my attention for sure.
Thank you

Give this Wharfedale a try. You can return it if you don’t like it!
https://www.musicdirect.com/speakers/wharfedale-denton-80th-anniversary-bookshelf-speakers-pr

Unfortunately no sub out from my vintage Sanyo receiver so if went the sub route would have to be on the speaker high levels, which could work of course....

Mesch.
Now we are on the same wavelength here, and a sideways move could end up being a backwards move, been there and done that many times!
But a change is also always fun and always educational!

Uberwaltz, yes, I was thinking that $500 would be more likely to purchase a speaker sounding different as apposed to better. I guess it comes down to how much you enjoy the Monitors.  I have 3 sets of speakers for use in my secondary system, change can be fun. Also serves as an educational experience.

No brainer.  You talk about plenty of horses to drive.  Does this include a sub out on a preamp?  Just add a sub for more throw and keep the Monitor Audio speakers.  More dynamics and bigger sound overall.

Really, FM, cassette, how audiophile do you need to get?

I have looked at the Heresy, it had been previously suggested.
Just a little on the large side for my liking.

If you're willing to go bigger than bookshelf, consider used Klipsch Heresy I. You can put them on stands, but they're designed to be on the floor. Very dynamic, don't need more than a few watts.