Dear Thom_y:
I am sure you are trying to keep your list of eligible speakers to a reasonable size, but it occured to me that another speaker that certainly fits your profile is the EgglestonWorks Andra II. They are VERY refined and musical, they disappear into the soundstage really well, but they can really rock. The only caveat is that they are more expensive, at US$19,000 list, than your other contenders. An option would be to buy the original Andra used (there are currently a few on Audiogon), and have Eggleston do the $3,400 upgrade to Andra II status. The original Andra was no wallflower, winning Stereophile's Product of the Year in 1997 (that's "Product" of the Year, not just "Speaker" of the Year). They completely overhaul the speaker and even restore it to like-new cosmetic condition. EgglestonWorks is in Memphis and I know, through a friend of mine who owns a pair, that they are a really good company to deal with.
Again, because you listen primarily to rock, you need to keep your eye on speakers that can handle real power and transients without compressing -- as a consequence, otherwise really fine speakers like Kharma and Verity are, in my opinion, best left off your list. For the same reason, I mentioned the idea of big Bryston amps. The Sim amplifier is a very, very good amp, but I were listening to Radiohead (about the only modern act I know anything about, incidentally!), I would want amps with tons of clean power in order to protect my crossovers and the voice coils on my tweeters. To the extent that the Sim has somewhat more finesse than the Brystons, so be it, but your not going to need it listening to multi-track rock (and in any event, Bryston amps are underrated -- with top-notch cabling, they can sound really good with even the most challenging music). If you go with a really efficient speaker like the Sofias, you will not really need the extra power provided by the Brystons, but for pretty much anything other than the Wilson, I would want mono amps with lots of current for listening to rock.
Good luck.
I am sure you are trying to keep your list of eligible speakers to a reasonable size, but it occured to me that another speaker that certainly fits your profile is the EgglestonWorks Andra II. They are VERY refined and musical, they disappear into the soundstage really well, but they can really rock. The only caveat is that they are more expensive, at US$19,000 list, than your other contenders. An option would be to buy the original Andra used (there are currently a few on Audiogon), and have Eggleston do the $3,400 upgrade to Andra II status. The original Andra was no wallflower, winning Stereophile's Product of the Year in 1997 (that's "Product" of the Year, not just "Speaker" of the Year). They completely overhaul the speaker and even restore it to like-new cosmetic condition. EgglestonWorks is in Memphis and I know, through a friend of mine who owns a pair, that they are a really good company to deal with.
Again, because you listen primarily to rock, you need to keep your eye on speakers that can handle real power and transients without compressing -- as a consequence, otherwise really fine speakers like Kharma and Verity are, in my opinion, best left off your list. For the same reason, I mentioned the idea of big Bryston amps. The Sim amplifier is a very, very good amp, but I were listening to Radiohead (about the only modern act I know anything about, incidentally!), I would want amps with tons of clean power in order to protect my crossovers and the voice coils on my tweeters. To the extent that the Sim has somewhat more finesse than the Brystons, so be it, but your not going to need it listening to multi-track rock (and in any event, Bryston amps are underrated -- with top-notch cabling, they can sound really good with even the most challenging music). If you go with a really efficient speaker like the Sofias, you will not really need the extra power provided by the Brystons, but for pretty much anything other than the Wilson, I would want mono amps with lots of current for listening to rock.
Good luck.