Floorstanders 3K

Can't help but recommend a listen to PSB Imagine T2's @$3500/pr. Can't compare to others listed here, since I haven't heard those, but they are wonderful sounding, with far more depth than they have any right to have. They come with plugs to 'tune' the bass to specific room situations. Imaging is wonderful.

Aerial 7b, 8b, 10T

These brands/models are getting very good reviews:

1) Gallo Classico CL-4
2) Tekton Pendragons
3) Ascend Sierra Towers with RAAL tweeter

Gallo gives you 60-days in-home trial with free shipping both ways. Tekton has 30-day trial + re-stocking fee. Don't know about the Sierras.

Also, the GoldenEar Triton 2s have been very positively reviewed...

-RW-

"Liveliness" comes largely from preserving the dynamic contrast native to the recording. Musicians use dynamic contrast to convey emotion, and if your speakers are softening the peaks by several dB, then the music loses much of its life.

"Pseudo-liveliness" comes from things like a hot top end or some other coloration, especially one that increases with volume level, giving the illusion of liveliness but also inducing listening fatigue before too long.

In general, high efficiency (especially when combined with high power handling) is a good predictor of liveliness, assuming the speaker is free from coloration and has good in-room tonal balance. Calculate how many watts it would take for the speaker to hit the peaks you want, and if the speaker can get there at about 10% of its RMS (not "peak" or "short term") power handling, thermal compression will probably be negligible on those peaks.

By way of example, if you want listen at 90 dB average SPL and have your system not compress when a 20 dB peak comes along, those peaks would be at 110 dB. If your speakers are 97 dB efficient, it would theoretically take you 20 watts to hit those peaks. In that case, you'd want RMS power handling in the 200 watt ballpark in order for the speakers to deliver uncompressed 110 dB peaks.

Of course liveliness isn't the only thing that matters, but if it's high on your list, you may want to look at speakers that can deliver the peak SPL you're looking for at well below their rated RMS power handling.

Imo, ime, ymmv, etc.

Duke
dealer/manufacturer

Buconero117
Used ProAc Studio 140's might be appealing.

I agree. You could also look for a used pair of Proac Response 2.5. No subwoofer necessary with these.