help narrowing down my list of speakers, $2500


Hi, I will be buying some speakers shortly. I will have them paired with an Odyssey dual mono amp (plenty of power), Tempest (Odyssey) preamp, Ridge Street Audio interconnects and speaker cable, and an Audio Aero Prima cd player. Also I will be adding a sub soon, so bass shouldent be the deciding factor here. I have a small room (12' x 12') and my budget is $2500. I went to listen to some B&W's at the dealer and like what I heard from the Naut. 804's. Wide soundstage, clear, detailed, musical. Im looking for speakers like that. I usually listen to rock (old and new) so I want speakers that can handel that. My choices so far are:
-Dynaudio
-Vandersteen
-Avalon
-Totem
-Sonus Faber
-Aerial Acoustics
-Dali
-Merlin
-Silverline
-Vienna
-Spendor
-Tyler Acoustics
-B&W
-PMC OB-1

Any you think I should add to that list? Suggestions on what to take off? Thanks

-Jamie
jamiec001
Totally agree, Maxx, about the sub. I had a pretty nice one, but in a small room it never seemed to sound as blended as when the speaker itself had all of the bass duties. And the Sonata II's are astounding in that regard--from Bach to Rock, as you say. I've never heard drums sound so airy, and the tuning signatures of the drum heads is unmistakable.

Jamie c001, For around $1300, you can get a pair of Soliloquy 6.3 speakers.
You'll shake your head and wonder how they can sound so good at that price. And again, you won't need a sub. Go out and listen to as much as you can, or buy something, or you could (as Audiomax suggested) spend the next 5 years narrowing your long list.
All the best,
Howard
Hurry up, somebody just posted today a pair of Dynaudio Contours 3.4 for $2595.
Gershman Acoustic Avant Garde RX 20's. No sub needed - great sound - great looks. Retail for 4300 or so and can be gotten used for your budget. You will not be sorry.
I'll suggest Von Schweikert VR2's....I am trying a pair in my room at present, also small and square at 14 x 14.

I'm enjoying my rock again thru the VR2's, and they are very capable for jazz and classical, if those are your bag at all. They have a BIG soundstage, and are very transparent, detailed and on the warm side of neutral.

My wife really likes them too....(:

Good luck,
Mike
You need to spend less time on Audiogon and more time listening to speakers. Do you have any idea how differently each of the manufacturers approach speaker design? Until you narrow your scope down to 2 or 3 specific speakers (not manufacturers), there will be more noise than signal in this thread.