Well that’s a nice and exciting trip, but I know it is also usually sprinkled with some anxiety about making the right choice. The best advice I can give is use your ears, your heart and your soul first...that’s what music is all about. Dont let marketing and salesmen choose for you. The speakers are the most important choice since it’s the only component that will emit sound and probably the one with which you have or will have the more intimate connection.
That said, I dont want to play the salesman and would say listen to as many as you can, and look also carefully at the implementation and the room to compare. So many good speakers can be so badly implemented...
The ones I would add here are Sonus Faber, Tannoy, Piega, Proac, deVore, Harbeth for a few. I own several speakers over 10K and also over 30K, and the best speakers below 10K which I have personally heard, compared and ultimately purchased are the XTZ Divine Alpha. I put them at least on par with the BW800D3. Plays well in small rooms as well, with tuning possibilities, but not sure if and where you can demo them in US though...
Remember, the best speaker doesn't have the best highs, or lows, or mids, or definition, it has the best compromise of everything that makes listening always a pleasure.
Finally, should you find the ones that speak to you but you're just not sure because bass is lacking, well subwoofers can be added later for your near total and perfect pleasure, and it's not against the religion.
All the best! Hit the road Jack
That said, I dont want to play the salesman and would say listen to as many as you can, and look also carefully at the implementation and the room to compare. So many good speakers can be so badly implemented...
The ones I would add here are Sonus Faber, Tannoy, Piega, Proac, deVore, Harbeth for a few. I own several speakers over 10K and also over 30K, and the best speakers below 10K which I have personally heard, compared and ultimately purchased are the XTZ Divine Alpha. I put them at least on par with the BW800D3. Plays well in small rooms as well, with tuning possibilities, but not sure if and where you can demo them in US though...
Remember, the best speaker doesn't have the best highs, or lows, or mids, or definition, it has the best compromise of everything that makes listening always a pleasure.
Finally, should you find the ones that speak to you but you're just not sure because bass is lacking, well subwoofers can be added later for your near total and perfect pleasure, and it's not against the religion.
All the best! Hit the road Jack