which would you buy?

I can comment on the Golden Ear Aeon 3s that were addressed earlier (tho not par of original ?) since I have a pair at home.

Due to the engineering of the passive low end radiators, I think they would "fill the room" nicely with sound from high to low frequencies without a struggle. Tho the bass is tuneful and not sloppy at all, itis not tight bass, and for a budget of $1500, it would be near impossible to buy new speaks with tight base for that money, even if buying used speakers at used-equipment prices. I run tubes with the Aeons and am happy with them. Main downside for me (but maybe not you) is the plastic cover. Though it looks nice, I prefer MDF/wood materials.

Good luck!

If you have neighbors below your apt/condo, the stand-mounted Aon 3 would be advantageous over a floorstander by radiating far less directly into the floor. You can also sand-fill many stands, which further damps the speakers' bass notes before they get to the floor.

Personally, for the room size you mention, I preferred the Aon 3s over the Triton 7s. If needed, you can tighten the bass with an amp with a higher damping factor. The GoldenEars sing with tubes, but SS generally controls bass better.

I own the GE 7s, keepers for life.
Very few speakers can give u a taste of HiFi for so little money.
Good enough to compete with $$$$ speakers.
MHO.

Thanks everybody! I heard the Triton sevens and they sounded great. my local Kef dealer doesn't have the q 900 on display for me listen to but I've listened other Kef and liked them. I'd be hesitant to buy focal without hearing them. I listened to some paradigm V20.5? bookshelf and they sounded too bright in the treble with an Anthem 225 amp. Kiko65, I agree that the GE7 are insanely impressive, and sound rich and full, but I'm not sure how tight and punchy they are, I'll need to listen again. My current system will need a dac added so I may be selling my yamaha a s500 integrated and getting a peachtree nova? or nad?, etc?. I will stay with solid state (not tubes). My current speakers are Acoustic Energy Aegis 3 towers, and they are quite good for the price I paid, but the are old and and I don't want to buy anything that isn't a noticed improvement. I listen to jazz, classic rock, modern rock hard rock heavy metal industrial, some country,blues female vocalists,minimal hip hop R&B,etc. Just about everything except reggae.

The focal 836v look to be an impressive speaker too. I'll have to see if there are any local dealers that have them. I may be able to spend $2k in order to best the AE Aegis 3, but if I choose wisely, they new speakers will last me a decade. It's the delicate balance of finding the right dac+integrated around $1500"ish" to tie the chain together in shockingly glorious acoustic bliss that makes me say "damn that sounds mind blowing" 2 years down the road long after the newness of a recent purchase wears off.