Help with bi-wirable efficient floorstanding 2.5K

You might look at Audio Physic.

Don't fool around, just get used pair of ProAc 140's. Should cost less the 2.5K. I drive mine with tubes and they sound just great, never stressed out.

Many thanks for all the inspiring ideas. I appreciate the discussion by Almarg. I may have to rethink room size and power issues.

The Triangles are very attractively priced indeed, especially now. Silverline is perfect for me, but I will have to wait for a used sonata III. I agree that those Canadian speakers are a fantastic value...Mirage is really a good deal for what it offers. Is mirage better for home theatre? I am more into the 2-channel stereo, even though I do use a subwoofer with my current ERA D10s.

...and finally, the Proac Studio 140! I knew that it will not be easy to disregard the Proacs. If I can find a good used pair of 140s, I will go for it. There is a local Proac dealer in Portland, OR, Stereotypes Audio. They are great people. I will certainly take a look. I was mesmerized when I first heard a higher end Proac there.

BTW, anybody have any experience with BC Acoustique ACT line, like A2.5 or A3? They apparently have an interesting adjustable Fostex horn tweeter.

Take a look at the Proac Studio 140 impedance specs: 8 ohms nominal, 4 ohms minimum. Not an ideal impedance curve for SET (or many tube amps).

For tubes, you want a speaker with high sensitivity and a flat impedance curve (with a minimum impedance no lower than 6 ohms).

That's right. With SET amps, frequency extension drops like a stone when the impedance gets much below 6-8 ohms.

What you REALLY need if you keep your current amplification is a speaker made to work well with SETs such as the Zu Druid. They claim 101dB sensitivity (and even if they exaggerate, it's still at least 96 dB which is what you need) and a 12 ohm nominal impedance. The review linked below shows the impedance never dips below 8 ohms.

The list price is beyond your stated budget but you may be able to pick up some used ones. Be on the lookout for something like this. Here's a fairly recent review.