Best bookshelf speakers


I’m building my first high fi system after being more of a portable audio person. I want to start with the speakers. Space is limited so bookshelf speakers are a must.

Preferences:
Balanced and revealing with a hint of warmth.
Midrange most important to get right over highs and lows
Timbre is super important - I listen mostly to acoustic music especially jazz
But I do need some bass as I also listen to some electronic music
Smaller is better but SQ is most important
A speaker that sounds good with different amps but also scalable with high quality sources
Wide sweet spot - I wont have money for a great amp at first but want them to be scalable for later

These speakers have caught my eyes - any thoughts on them?

Ascend Sierra 2s - Ribbon = dispersion limitations?
BMR Philharmonitor - See above. Also massive.
Buchardt S400/S300 - Wary of the sudden hype train and limited info
Silverline Minuet Grande - Limited info
Reference 3A De Capo - This caught my eye as a potential endgame speaker if I could blow up my budget a little. But concerns about BE tweeter as well as some potential snake oil stuff (cryogenic treatment (!?)), exaggerated sensitivity claims and wonky measurements put me off.

What else should I be looking at?

Edit: I could have sworn I had <$2,000 in the title... Anyway, my budget is 2k.

stuff_jones
How many votes for the Kef ls-50? I think the r300 is a bookshelf with an additional woofer. resale is going to bit regardless what you buy IF you buy new, under $500 I would buy something from Elac, The kef is probably still best in class but I think many actually expect it to be more than what it is because of all the hype. The market is pretty bad and dealers are dealing so make a friend and start bringing stuff home.
I have ls50s among others.  They are top notch as advertised within their limits .   Hard to beat with a sub or two and a capable setup to drive them.  Size and bass extension is where they are limited.
I ended up getting the Vanatoo One Encores at the presale price. They are outstanding, and not just for the money. You can find impressions of them on @taww's blog. I'm relieved to not have to agonize about a trillion different possible upgrade paths and just enjoy the music.

I've had the Encore Zeros on my desk and they are also excellent, but these are a different level.