Listen to @ghdprentice. The man knows his Audio Research.
You're getting a lot of B&W hate in the replies. They aren't the speakers I would buy, but they aren't crap and they are perfectly capable of being engaging and musical.
I can't imagine upgrading beyond the 800 series B&W speakers and expecting to get high-end performance from your Rotel amp. With the VT130, you will find that the 6550s, if sources from ARC, last a long time. I drove the crap out of my Classic 60 for three years (also 8 output tubes), and when I tested the tubes, the drivers needed to be replaced but the output tubes still measured at or above 100% of new specs. All 8 of them
The VT130 uses 6922s for input tubes, which is not a great tube design and they do not last long, but they are small, inexpensive, and readily available. Keep extras on hand, and when your amp starts sounding more like the Rotel, put new 6922s in there, and you will be happy. Send the 6550s and driver tubes to Western Glow every two years for testing. You'll never look back.