What I would say from personal experience is that the Spendor D series definitely requires thought and care with equipment and cable matching. The rest of your system from source to amp better be on point, because the Spendor D will let you know when something is not right. You will be handsomely rewarded when you get it right, even with lower quality recordings. That type of transparency is its strength, but to some who prefer having that warm glow type of sound no matter what song or music genre, or want speakers to be forgiving of subpar components, Spendor D is definitely not it.
The D series will have more neutrality, speed, extension, transparency and bass definition than the Classic series. The Classic will be more mid-range centric, more body to the sound and a bit more tubby and less articulated bass.