New Speakers for $2000

Thanks for all the suggestion. My current list of choices are:

Magnepan 1.7s - Concerned it might lack in bass since it is planar and lacks a woofer

Vandersteel Model 2s - They sound very nice but the Stereophile review seem to jump straight through the fact that their sound stage isn't top-notch. On top of that my amp doesn't have fully-balanced inputs (which was heavily stressed in the suggestion). I'm using a pair of Cardas XLR to RCA converters right now on my Benchmark DAC1 USB to take advantage of the XLR (notorious for sounding better than the RCA out). So that may disquality the Vandersteel as well. Also they apparently put in you a music hall like sound stage, sometimes a good thing, sometimes not. I like a bit of a forward presentation but I'd have to listen to the Vandersteels to really find out.

Nola Boxers - Definitely heavily considering this one but I really like the tower look but that's not really an issue.

Goldenears Triton 2s - Out of price range.

-Ohm Walsh 1000s, my room is fairly large (really high concrete ceilings) and the suggestion said that was a factor.

My listening environment is not optional since my apartment is kind shaped like an L and my stereo area is kind of small width-wise.

Vaporaudio - Haven't read reviews yet but again prefer the tower look. Otherwise will follow up on the suggestion.

With all due respect to Rlg_audio and Stereophile, IMHO, while balanced gear certainly has it's advantages, it's not a prerequisite for successful integration of an enjoyable system utilizing the extraordinary value leader Vandersteen 2's. Furthermore, despite what you might have read in Stereophile, I firmly believe that one of the strong suits of the Vandersteen's is their soundstage. I will say that an appropriate room and proper placement and listening position needs more than typical care. I've heard these speakers many times over a long time, in many different rooms with lots of different gear. Improperly set up, or placed in an inappropriate room they will disappoint. In a proper room, appropriately placed they are capable of proving themselves to be perhaps the best value in all of high end audio.

Unsound. Just to clarify, I didn't mean that you will not get good results if you don't use equipment that is balanced or any of the other characteristics that I mentioned. With Vandersteen it's not hard to get good results. I do recommend them if you want the best possible results. I am not talking about tweaks; the differences are large and easy to hear.

OP. I understand that you don't have all of the best equipment now. You can start with what you have now and get good results and as you upgrade over time, you have a speaker that will be worth the investment. As for the 1.7, you state:

My wants in order of preference are:
-Resolution
-Neurality
-Imaging
-Sound stage width
-Good highs
-Not so slow mids that it'd make listening to heavier music unenjoyable
-A decent amount of bass or even slightly weak on punch is fine

Most of what you are asking for on that list is the exact opposite of the Mag., with the exception of the bass. The bass is excellent, its the mediocre mids and the bright, metallic highs that are not good. Magnepan knows the highs are a problem for most people so they even include raw resistors that you are supposed to attach to the binding post to roll the HF off. More importantly, though, and I hate to sound harsh, is that you have already failed. At this point it doesn't matter what you buy, Vandersteen or something else, putting your faith in equipment reviews is the single biggest mistake you can make. The worst part is that you probably won't realize this until after you have made some very poor choices. Along with this, though most people will deny it, is that most audiophiles I come into contact with get their listening experience by reading equipment reviews, as well. Again, I hate to be so negative, but I just don't see any kind of success going down your current path. Better to just save your money or go to a casino. Good Luck.

Rlg_audio, Gee, I really don't want to pick a fight with you :-), but again I feel the need to comment on your last post. I basically share your preference, I don't think the Maggies are nearly that bad, in fact I think though quite different, they're quite good, though I think you really have to move up the line to something like the 3 series to really compete with the Vandy 2's, albeit for more money. IMHO, the highs of the Vandy's and the Maggies both veer from neutrality, but in different directions. I'm not at all surprised that a Vandy enthusiast might find the Maggies bright, but a Maggie fan might find the Vandy's dull. IME, the Maggies can offer a different, and perhaps better soundstage than the Vandy's, but the imaging might be better with the Vandy's. The Maggies might be quicker in mids. The Vandy's can offer better if somewhat ripe bass. The Maggies are probably even more room/placement sensitive. It's really a matter of taste.

My wants in order of preference are:
-Resolution
-Neurality
-Imaging
-Sound stage width
-Good highs
-Not so slow mids that it'd make listening to heavier music unenjoyable
-A decent amount of bass or even slightly weak on punch is fine

I should have paid more attention to this set of requirements. Given these plus your narrow listening area, I think Nola Boxers would be the way to go. A mini is going to be easier to place given the narrow room boundaries than a tower. You can use the $500 saved for stands and cables, or toward a powered sub if desired.

I did, however, remember one more $2K speaker worth checking out, the Atlantic Technology AT-1. Available at $2K/pair, it's a tower with an MTM (D'Appolito) array backed by Atlantic's own H-PAS bass loading system that produces meaningful bass down into the 20s. Stereophile's review and measurements indicated an unusually flat response overall. The MTM array helps keep ceiling and floor reflections out of the image that reaches your ears. Review excerpts here, third-party measured response curves here.