Best speakers for Classical music under 10k used

Hstokar, I would highly recommend you consider Magnapan's MG -3.6s that are great speakers in general but really shine on classical, jazz, and big band music. If you could find a used pair of MG-20's, they rarely show up used for sale, it would also be a great speaker for you.

I just upgraded my Thiel CS2.3s to Linkwitz Orions. After listening to lots of models these were the only ones that really offered overall improvement IMO. However, the Orions are not easily heard as they are either DIY or sold direct fully built. LInkwitz has a list of owners who allow a private audition on their website @ www.linkwitzlab.com. I also listen primarily to classical music and the Orions are amazing. The only problem I had was the bass, as they produced some bothersome nodes in my room that the Thiels did not. The Orions have two 10" woofers a side as opposed to one 8" in the 2.3s. I tried some RealTraps and other fixes but the addition of a TacT RCS 2.0 room correction preamp made a huge difference. I cannot ever imagine having the need to upgrade again. This truly seems to be a "get off the merry go round" sort of speaker.

Tim McTeague

A local friend of mine is all about Classical music and he had tried many speakers including the Eidolons before he finally kept the Talon Firebirds w/ diamond tweeters. They can be found around your price range at this time.

Quad 989s. Magnificent.
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The Sophias are an excellent speaker and a good value. However, I can think of no better speaker for the classical genre than the Harbeth Monitor 40. These are rarely available used but will set you back a lot less than a pair of Sophias--and will perform better. If you can stand their appearance (huge boxes) then this would be my top recommendation. Cheaper used and similar (but less revealing) are the Spendor SP100. I had a pair a while back--excellent speaker, one of the best I've owned. You might even consider the Harbeth Super HL5 which is a phenomenal value and can be gotten used for around 2.5K. It is less full range than the Monitor 40 but you won't miss much on the bottom and the coherence and instrumental timbres are faithfully revealed. I know that each of these recommendations are considerably below the 10K price point you set but I really don't think you can do better for classical music regardless of the money--why not put the balance into upgrading source and electronics?