Speaker audition recommendations?

.....The references are quite large. Bigger than what I thought. I was not blown away by these speakers. The lacked the nice highs and midrange. It maybe the bass was overpowering. The definitely have a wide soundstage......

Did you happen to take note as to where the bass dial was set? Anything clockwise of 12 could very well cause overpowering of the bass with respect to the mid/tweeter. The bass can be adjusted +/- 7.5 db, and the reason for the control is precisely to tame the bass when/if needed. 

For that matter, when auditioning any speaker that has some kind of level control over one or more drivers it certainly makes sense to take note of where those controls are set, and adjust accordingly.

For that matter, when auditioning any speaker that has some kind of level control over one or more drivers it certainly makes sense to take note of where those controls are set, and adjust
accordingly.   


That may explain it then.

Hmmm, perhaps it will affect the subtleties(level controls) but not the overall sense of what a speaker does.
I, too, auditioned Golden Ear and have to say I found them lacking. Hey, everyone's ears are different, but your post reminded me of what I remembered...
I second Beetlemania's recommendation of the Vandersteen Treo's. I have the non CT version, but they are impressive-Especially so, against the Golden Ear.
Bob

OP, one other thing directly to the point of the thread... when it comes to auditioning speakers (at a dealer), you should only give so much credence to the audition. 

Here is a link to related thread on audiogon that may interest you:

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/not-enough-options-for-auditioning-speakers

Maybe Magico S3 mk1 used would sound great with the right components.Good luck on your search let us know what you get.