Help with new speakers

Gary ..., you posted that "[m]y choices are b&w, totem, golden ear, paradigm, mcintosh, dyn, and focal. Thats it.
Ive owned all of these brands except golden ear and totem which i just dont like ...."

Tell me about the B&Ws and Focals. These speakers have garnered some good comments. In particular, I am interested in your reactions about the Focals, especially the 1038 Be IIs. I ask about the 1038s because they have the beryllium tweeter which is a very special driver. I've seen some preowned Focal 1038s (v2) going for $8500 or so here on A'gon.

Can't comment much about B&Ws, other than to say that the higher end models can be amp crushers. Better have plenty of watts and currents, i.e., high quality SS amp.

That's all. I'll turn the floor over to you and the others.

Well, now we know what you have and why you want to replace the speakers, but you're still not telling us what specifically you're looking to improve upon or what aspects of sound reproduction are most important to you. Without that information our recommendations are not nearly as useful as they could be -- actually they could be counterproductive since the Paradigms are pretty good in their own right.

That aside, I think it's great you sold your amps as now you can buy amps/speakers that will compliment each other sonically and work well together functionally -- as it should be IMHO. And -- sorry to be so blunt -- I think you should sell your preamp too as it will be a significant weak link in your audio chain. Once you find the right amp/speakers it may be as simple as partnering a pre from the same maker as the amp, but maybe not.

Anyway, if I'm you and looking at this price level I'd suggest taking some good long road trips to hear speakers that are of interest. Again, telling us what characteristics are most important to you would be most helpful in letting us guide you to what might be worth travelling to hear. Or, alternatively, you can use the recommendations as guidelines as to what to buy used, and if they don't work out you can hopefully sell them at little or no loss if they don't significantly improve upon the Paradigms.

Frankly, since you're just looking for a change and seem hesitant to tell us what specifically you're looking for it makes me think you're not really sure of what you're looking for. If that's the case I'd seriously recommend taking some roadtrips to go listen to some well-regarded high-end speakers so you can start to find what really knocks your socks off. That would be better than any recommendations you're likely to get here. In any event, best of luck in your search.

In looking at the equipment you list, my personal feeling is that you'd be better off upgrading the preamp and amplifier before you give up on the speakers. Rotel is good stuff but not as nuanced as higher end equipment, and the speakers you have could probably let you hear the difference in the improved electronics. But what do you mean the room WAS 10 by 12? That's a small room, and I wonder if you can get the best out of any full-range speaker in a room of that size. Are you going to be using a new, larger room? If not, I think you might be best served using smaller speakers designed for smaller rooms (think stand-mounted monitors); that way the room isn't overloaded and you're not listening to speakers that are intended to be listened to at a distance of 10 feet or so. Just my $.02.

Firstly, Not trying to be mean at all, so please don't take it that way.
Secondly, I'm not real familiar with your gear.

With that being said, I'd change everything EXCEPT your speakers, chair and acoustic panels.

I'm sure someone else can better guide you on what to keep, but I'd fill the "I need something new and improved, bug" on a new amp (which you need), a better pre amp that pairs well with your new amp, and get different cables to match your new set-up...

I've switched out gear for a lateral move, or sometimes, for something I didn't like as much, and that feeling sucks. I hate it when I spend hundreds of dollars and drive hundreds of miles, only to end up with something that I didn't like as much.

Again, where do you live? Maybe someone here from the gon can help you out in person.

Again, thanks again for the great advice.

So yes the new room is much much larger. I dont know exactly but its in the 30ish by 20ish range and will be in the main room of my new house. Im looking for a focal point of the room and i'd like this to be it.

I owned the focal/jmlabs 936's and actually i really liked them. The downfall to the 936's is they were butt ugly. I had them in my living room and everyone that would come to my house commented that all they needed was orange surrounds on the woofers and they'd look like 1990's cerwin vegas.

Compared to the b&w cm9's i had its no comparison, and i really liked the cm9's until i heard the tributes haha. The tributes real value is that tweeter. Its so smooth and the cabinets are gorgeous, but i think i'd like something physically larger for this new space. I even debated on staying in the brand and going up to s8's but i owned a pair of sig s6 version 2's a few years ago at the same time i had the 936's and if you listened to them side by side youd pick the 936's every time. Now with the berylium tweeter its a different story.

I really appreciate the help but i think the suggestion to do a road trip and listen to some other brands is a great idea. In the mean time an audio buddy is going to let me borrow a vintage mcintosh mc275 and a krell 200 watt integrated to play with until i decide what i want to do. This should be interesting.

I'll keep everyone informed when i decide what i want. But if you see the tributes in the for sale section you'll know i bought something new and awesome.