Picking Speakers 20k-30k

OP… “But it’s a super-resolving system and lesser recordings have their warts on full display”.

This is one of the major themes of high end audio. I struggled with this off and on for thirty years… of my fifty year history in high end audio. This exact issue. Say on one end (1) you have a warm emotional system with poor detail and on the other end you have an ear bleeding - scrape every detail from recordings system. I’m guessing yours is 7 or 8.

The biggest determinant is typically the speakers… but in no way the only component… every component contributes. I have nudged this relationship at every stage of upgrading my system. The good news is you can have both.

Having both requires work and money certainly helps. In general everything gets better at larger levels of investment. However some folks love systems that sound like 1 or 2 and some love systems at the opposite end of the spectrum. While lots of money makes equipment quieter, less harsh and more musical… there is still its intended audience.

I was into highly revealing planar speakers and high quality solid state equipment which frequently put me too far into the detailed 8 - 9 range.. where all but the best recordings did not sound great. Ultimately i changed directions and I purchased my first set of Sonus Faber speakers which I have been upgrading for the last fifteen years… then I have added all tube electronics. All very carefully curated to move me to say 4 and then with better and better components maintaining that balance. Often you can look at this continuum to be musicality versus detail. My system is detailed and very musical. The product of decades of learning and investment to nail this perfectly for me. All but the very worst recording sound great… detailed, but musical and forgiven.

So, you bring up a really central question when building a system. My only recommendation is to go listen to some Sonus Faber speakers (preferably powered by good tube electronics)…. Well beyond your budget is fine. You want to find your target. If that is it… then scale down the speakers to ones you can afford, and over time support them with electronics that nail the balance you want.

I have the KEF Reference 5’s and really like them.  The Reference 5 Meta’s are supposedly better and cost $23,000.

I find the paradigm persona very bright and edgy with the beryllium tweeter and mid-range go listen to the monitor audio platinum 200 or 300 G3 far superior to the paradigm persona much more three-dimensional and enveloping sound stage and way more natural and warm sounding.

@brewerslaw If you are still pondering the idea of DIY. Troels Graveson will be a very good place to see where options for a build can be assessed.

Troels Website has plenty of projects and quite accurate description of the sonic being created.

 I have listened to a Troels Design and class it as the Best Cabinet Design Speaker I have heard in a system used in a home environment. As a ESL user and having heard ESL's as other models as well, the Cabinet Speaker produced to Troels Design was invisible and perceived as being as Transparent as an ESL. 

There is a general consensus about Troels Gravesen Designs, that strongly suggests, a built model for approx' $7-10K will be a Speaker to hold its own in comparisons to Commercial Models using similar drivers, with a Purchase value of $30K and rising, as a five fold outlay is regular seen as the outlay required to surpass a Troels Designed Speaker.  

PMC MB2SE, if you can get a listen you won’t search further.