@lowoverdrive - Sorry it's taken me a few days to get back to this. You asked, "Do you have any links to audiophile reviews on these speakers that you think are authoritative?"
I haven't found a review of Emotiva's T2s online, but there is a good review of their T1s on Absolute Sound. The T1 came out first and is what I'd liken to a little brother to the T2, smaller.
http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/emotiva-airmotiv-t1-loudspeaker/
The T2s were not available to purchase until middle of this past summer, but they were featured at last year's CES (2017) as part of a larger home theater setup. There is a positive review of that here:
http://www.avsforum.com/best-of-ces-emotiva-airmotiv-t2-tower-e2-surround-c2-center-7-2-system/
I heard the T2s this past September at their Emofest event in a two-channel demo room, and they were amazing. (Two-channel music listening is my thing, so I spent more time in that room than anywhere else.) As different groups of people would come in for a demo session, someone would invariably say, "where's the sub?" and be astonished to find that there was not one, however I will assert that the big bass end is just one of many great things about these speakers - crystal clear with "clean edges" to the sound and beautiful imaging, lots of depth and separation. I have their older XRT 6.2 towers which I love, but have to admit, I am longing for the T2s with their monoblock amps after that listen!
I really would encourage you to reach out to the Emotiva folks and chat, try to audition them in your home. I feel pretty sure you'll be very surprised (if not amazed) at the big bang for the buck! And I feel like the Emotiva staff would work to accommodate your need to purchase through Amazon too. It is a fairly small company, very personal and family-like, with wonderful customer service.
I haven't found a review of Emotiva's T2s online, but there is a good review of their T1s on Absolute Sound. The T1 came out first and is what I'd liken to a little brother to the T2, smaller.
http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/emotiva-airmotiv-t1-loudspeaker/
The T2s were not available to purchase until middle of this past summer, but they were featured at last year's CES (2017) as part of a larger home theater setup. There is a positive review of that here:
http://www.avsforum.com/best-of-ces-emotiva-airmotiv-t2-tower-e2-surround-c2-center-7-2-system/
I heard the T2s this past September at their Emofest event in a two-channel demo room, and they were amazing. (Two-channel music listening is my thing, so I spent more time in that room than anywhere else.) As different groups of people would come in for a demo session, someone would invariably say, "where's the sub?" and be astonished to find that there was not one, however I will assert that the big bass end is just one of many great things about these speakers - crystal clear with "clean edges" to the sound and beautiful imaging, lots of depth and separation. I have their older XRT 6.2 towers which I love, but have to admit, I am longing for the T2s with their monoblock amps after that listen!
I really would encourage you to reach out to the Emotiva folks and chat, try to audition them in your home. I feel pretty sure you'll be very surprised (if not amazed) at the big bang for the buck! And I feel like the Emotiva staff would work to accommodate your need to purchase through Amazon too. It is a fairly small company, very personal and family-like, with wonderful customer service.