the big one: how do you choose speakers? By what features, data?

YOU have to decide what YOU like IN YOUR ROOM.  When I had my shop, I spent some time with a customer finding out what they listen to, where, etc.  I then asked them what hardware they had and worked with them on that.  THEN, I let them listen to various speakers in the shop to see what they liked.  Listening in a shop has NO bearing on how they will sound IN YOUR ROOM, so we then would pick a pair and set them up in your room at home and see what was what.

This is not an easy process as there are many speakers out there today.  Also, what you like the first few tunes may not be what you like long term.  SO, evaluate your hardware--high end tube gear is one thing; mid-fi solid state gear is something else.  Listening to loud rock (mostly) vs listening to classical or opera may require a different set-up to make YOU happy IN YOUR ROOM.

Take your time.  Demo a couple of pair and then decide since speakers are fairly expensive and you have to live with them after you buy.

PERSONALLY speaking, if you have high-end tube gear, I would suggest demoing Magneplaners in your room.  They may not work for you, but they are about the most accurate speakers around. Whatever you decide upon, best of luck!

Cheers!

So the common theme here seems to be go listen!

That is one thing we lost in the transition from dealer networks to direct sales - teh ability go simply go listen.  When I could first afford to actually go buy a system, I listened at several dealers and it became clear that one brand in my price range gave me the best combination of tone and dynamics that I was looking for.  I purchased a pair of ADS L810s.  Many years and systems later, after I had moved on from the L810s, I was frustrated with speakers I had purchased based on reading reviews, so I looked up one of the designers of those L810s and discovered Michael Kelly at Aerial Acoustics.  The Aerial line offered similar qualities that I liked about the ADS speakers, but better, and I am still using their speakers. 

So, don't read too many reviews but instead go listen at shows or at B&M dealers, if you have one in your area.  Get the speakers that provide the sound you like on the music you listen to.  After you zero in on the speakers, then work on getting the amplification that makes the speakers sound their best.

Speakers, amplification, and then you can play with whatever front end you want.

Go to an audio show.  So many speakers to see, and listen to.Believe me, it is worth it.

thank you all, I am learning a lot. I was looking for key quantifiable data that would give me a decision tree - aside from price.

I think for a novice like me it has to be a trade off between accuracy and warmth and brightness and listening fatigue. Which I thought is in how the speaker performs at various frequencies.

@larryi can you list a few examples for dynamic speakers? What makes a speaker dynamic?

I think besides the questions above, I determined that I need

• not a lot of low end due to the type of music I prefer.
• no floorstander due to size of room, furniture, listening height
• a lot of detail, clarity
• "scratchiness" - I don’t have a better word. It’s basically about sounds to stand out and "matter" more to the ear e.g. when a singer stresses a note, it’s pronounced, or a piano key fills the room. Maybe that’s dynamics? It may be the opposite of flat but I also know it add to the listening fatigue. Which is a lower priority for me, I don’t listen to music for hours, I have 20-40 min, one LP at a time.

It's not that difficult. 

1) First, you need to decide on which speakers will work in your room. For any given room, some speakers just won't be able to perform up to their capability if they cannot be properly located. For example, a pair of panel (dipole) speakers need to be placed well off the wall behind them. If your room is too small to accommodate this need, you will never get your moneys worth from them.

2) Once you have eliminated those speakers that won't work in your listening room, decide which are best suited to the type of music you like to listen to. A little research will give you a general idea of speaker suitability for your music preferences.

3) Once you have narrowed down the list from steps 1 & 2, determine the amplification needed for the speakers to perform as designed. Some speakers require lots of current, others can be driven by only a few watts of power. Speaker impedance curves and sensitivity will dictate this. 

4) Now that you have identified the speakers that will work in your room and what is required to properly drive them, determine what you can afford. 

5) Most important, try to get a demo in your listening environment. How they sound to you is the most important thing but how speakers sound in an audio showroom or your buddy's room does not necessarily tell you how they will work in your room.

6) Finally, consider cosmetics, WAF, place of manufacturer (if that is important to you) and support.

J.Chip