Best small 2-way floorstander?

I am looking for a speaker under 100lbs with a footprint under 13" x 16" that represents near the state of the art in terms of refinement in sound and build quality, although obviously not the last word in low frequency extension. My room is about 12' x 18' and I cannott have huge speakers that physically dominate the room. Assume that cost is no object here, since the two models I mentioned are already in the $7k range, which are extremely expensive for this size category. I've seen the Totem Arros before but they are actually TOO small, and would likely be a downgrade in sound quality to the speakers I already own.

Thanks for all your input guys, especially Tubegroover for a hearty endorsement for the VSM-SE. I'll wait a bit to hear the VSM Milleniums before I plunk down any green. No Kharma or Audio Physic dealers are available in my area yet, but I will have a look the Meadowlarks when I get a chance. One other promising candidate that I'm going to add to my list is the Dynaudio Contour 1.8 mk II. It only retails for $3.5k. Anyone have any experience with this one?

Wow, Dkuipers, waiting for TWO pairs of new speakers!! Perhaps you need to join (or start up) AA (Audiophile Anonymous) in your area! :)

Wow, Dkuipers, waiting for TWO pairs of new speakers!! Perhaps you need to join (or start up) AA (Audiophile Anonymous) in your area! :)

Since I started this thread, I guess I'll try moderate the discussion a bit at this point. Tubegroover, I understand your frustration, but cut Dkuipers a little slack. Not everyone's an audio journalist. It's easier to tell the world which speaker you like but much harder to describe exactly why, and to put adjectives to paper (er.. screen). That's why some lucky guys get paid to listen to audio gear. I think Dkuipers is trying to say that he feels the Kharmas are more musically satisfying than the Merlins. Maybe he auditioned them after he bought the Merlins. My point is that everyone is entitled to an opinion, although not everyone may necessarily agree with it, and the opinion could in fact, be a very poor one. However, I do think that anyone who would simultaneously upgrade two systems with new speakers have got have some addiction to gear. Thanks for your opinion, Tml2, but unless you've actually auditioned the $65k Kharmas (or any Kharma speaker) and found it to be inferior to the Coincident, please try to refrain from any unsubstantiated attacks on Kharma. Heck, if I owned a $65k speaker (that weighs 600lbs!!!), I think $5.5k (less than 10% of the speaker) for beefy enough stands to put it on is not that outrageous. Geez, did I just say that $70k for a pair of speakers and stands is reasonable??? Well my name is not William Gates III, so I guess it's not! :-) Thank you all for keeping this discussion constructive.

Thanks for keeping the comments constructive, everyone. I'm picking up some good feedback here. Saturn99: Those are good suggestions, but I already have a minimonitor. Inscrutabl: You ask a very good question, and it's one to ponder, especially after reading the thread on price/performance. I think that the $2-3k monitor is probably near the "knee" of the performance curve, and the extra bucks are mostly going to adding maybe 10-15 extra Hz lower and improved decor/WAF. I am still considering integrating a good small sub (Sunfire True Sub or Mirage Substrata 1500) if I just want to add the bass, although the bass from one sub might not be quite as coherent and seamless compared to a high flying floorstander. If I was going to spend the big bucks on a floorstander, I guess I want more than just a plain rectangular column. I suppose they don't strictly have to be 2-way as long as they aren't too big either. Anyone like Silverline Sonatina? Kevin: thanks for the suggesting Avalon. I've checked their website and they do look like something I would consider. I guess you would probably suggest that Muse electronics work well with Avalon speakers, right? (heh)

Thanks for keeping the comments constructive, everyone. I'm picking up some good feedback here. Saturn99: Those are good suggestions, but I already have a minimonitor. Inscrutabl: You ask a very good question, and it's one to ponder, especially after reading the thread on price/performance. I think that the $2-3k monitor is probably near the "knee" of the performance curve, and the extra bucks are mostly going to adding maybe 10-15 extra Hz lower and improved decor/WAF. I am still considering integrating a good small sub (Sunfire True Sub or Mirage Substrata 1500) if I just want to add the bass, although the bass from one sub might not be quite as coherent and seamless compared to a high flying floorstander. If I was going to spend the big bucks on a floorstander, I guess I want more than just a plain rectangular column. I suppose they don't strictly have to be 2-way as long as they aren't too big either. Anyone like Silverline Sonatina? Kevin: thanks for the suggesting Avalon. I've checked their website and they do look like something I would consider. I guess you would probably suggest that Muse electronics work well with Avalon speakers, right? (heh)

Thanks for your recommendation, Saturn99, I will check it out!