WILSON AUDIO.....BIG NAME, BIG PRICE........ARE THEY THAT GOOD?

for a number of years i did rely on reviews and feedback from others for guidance. and it got me to a dead end of Mark Levinson electronics and Wilson speakers. 

There you have it. Wilson are a dead end.
Love that quote. Green with envy.

Hmm, might want to go and read Mike's follow-up post

I really like Wilson, the dynamics are incredible which makes a huge difference in sounding real,  there are many other great qualities as well which I won’t go into since so many have already said in these forums. . I haven’t heard the Watt Puppy 8 in a long time but remember thinking  they were one of the better Watt Puppies I’d heard. I also really like the current stuff they have. I’ve owned the DAW and the Alexx 2, moving up once again soon.

Sounds like if you were able to demo the Sasha DAW and really liked them, then that should be conclusive.. I’m sure you understand they do prefer/require nice upstream components and cabling.
But if you liked the strengths and presentation, you should look for pairs within your budget. You can get W/Ps in the $5-7K range, Sophias in the $7-9K range, and Sashas 1-2 in the $10-12K range. Only Wilsons I would stay away from are the much older Witt and the Cub. And some folks seem to think the Alexia 1 had some coherence issues.
I have a pair of W/Ps, and the small form factor (as long as there are dynamite dynamics), while not totally determinative, IS important. Big horns, or Maggies, or other obscure shaped speakers - while they may sound more immediate, or live, or ’real’ - are more visually problematic over the long term. Wilsons can get you pretty close sonically, in a much more real-world package that’s a lot easier to live with.

that's what I was considering keithtexas. I can get a pair of Watt puppy 8's for 6 grand. Sasha DAW used is still beyond my budget as well as Sasha 1 or 2. Sophia 3 if I stretch maybe.  Really would like to get their newer models with the silk dome tweeter. Don't care for the Focal metal dome.