New Speakers under consideration - but I’m afraid

My guess is OP was meaning "worried" but somehow ended up with "afraid".

@ritter06 , yes, worry is always on the back of mind, however much auditioning/research you have done. It took me 2.5 years and 2 AXPONA shows to finalize my current speakers. So, don't worry - and as others have suggested, try to listen to as many loudspeakers as you can, read up, reach out to folks (not reviewers) who own the speakers you might be leaning towards, etc and you should be good. Have fun during auditioning.

And the most important thing - even if you purchase the world's best speakers there will ALWAYS be people who would say, you should have gone with X rather than Y. Learn to ignore such comments and you should be happy with the new loudspeakers for another 25-30 years. Good luck.

“Afraid” was too strong a word. Apprehensive is better. And exciting.

Check the Dali Epikore line. New model is priced at $40K per pair. I have spent time with the $60K Epikore 11 and it is one of the most effortlessly natural sounding speakers I have heard. I am very familiar with B&W 802 D4, Focal Sopra, Utopia Scala EVO, Wilson Sasha DAW…all have their strengths, but the Epikore 11 is the whole package. The price is largely due to its huge size…the cabinet is much bigger than the others I named. The new model is reduced to 2 8” woofers from 4 per speaker.

I’ve been able to compare Joseph Audio speakers to B&W over the years and found the JA speakers to be superior in every way.  They disappear better, throw off a more expanded and believable 3D soundstage, and they provide all the detail of the B&Ws but just do it in a more “natural” way is best I can describe it.  This is to say if you can demo JA speakers I think it would be very worthwhile.  For reference I compared the JA RM25si to the 803N back in the day and more recently the original Pulsar to the 805 D3.  Best of luck.  

I think you can definitely improve on your old B&Ws. But let's appreciate that they gave you decades worth of enjoyment! Best bet is to find a good semi-local dealer and see if you can listen to some options for yourself. Then see if you can try the ones you like best in your own home for a while.