Best high end monitors?

meat on the bones ... mbl 101, ohm walsh, hhr-laser tls-I, german physics - only walsh-like omnidirectional drivers can do it (forget decware,morrison,duevel)- they put much more well distributed energy into the room - the hhr-laser (ohm f remake) is even a singledriver-pointsoure - think about that.

best affordable 2-way monitor ... genelec 8050A - progear,active,8",cast aluminium cabinet, gainclone amps - best nonesoteric technology available on the market for a progear price. pair with a good tube pre (aesthetix/einstein...) and you could be happy

its only a matter of taste and time, spent on checking gear and adjusting your roomacoustics

good luck

stp

So my search for really good monitors continues. Here's what I have been auditioning:

Focal Electra 1007 BE
Very nice, but midrange is too lean for my tastes and the tweeter can call attention to itself (pretty much exactly how TAS called it).

JM Labs Micro Utopia
I love the midrange on these speakers. They have meat on the bones, but they are dark as hell up top - at least in my room. Saddens me because I'm in love with these otherwise, but I need that sense of air that these seem to mask.

Salk SongTowers
Not exactly a monitor, but light enough that I can move it in and out of the room (which is a necessity as I setup my 2 channel listening in front of a huge movie screen). It gets rave reviews but sounds very solid state and harsh to my ears (and with my Theta Citadel 1.5 amps). It does however allow me to hear what's on the recording which I appreciate otherwise.

Aerial Model 9's
These are my home theater speakers that excite the room way too much (4 bass drivers per speaker). I only mention them for reference. Not my cup of tea for 2 channel.

So I don't know what to try next? Usher Be-718? I'm looking for detail, air but meat on the bones. Don't care about extremely low bass as I have a Bryston crossover and a pair of F113 subs.

Try a tube pre-amp with any of those speakers.

As a fan of separate monitors and subwoofers, I agree with several posts here with the following caveats:

German Physiks Troubador 40. Almost as pricey as Magicos, though.

Genelec actives, but their low 10kOhm input impedance is a no-no for many (most?) tube preamps.

AAD 701;

And one of my favorites, the little known and relatively cheap Lenehan ML1 from Australia. Check the Audiophilia reviews.

I've heard many hi-end monitors but the AAD 7001 is the best I've heard.

The long retired Artemis EOS Signature was one of the all time greats as well but rarely available in the used market.