Downsizing for Blade 2 and hunting for smaller floor standers

kef Ref 1

fyne 501

Take a look at these Silverline Prelude Plus floorstanders. Silverline speakers are very natural and produce 3D imaging and a huge soundstage much like KEF speakers.
http://www.silverlineaudio.com/main/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=67:preludeplus&catid=51:prelude-plus&Itemid=69

But, if you have a bigger budget then Boenicke speakers should absolutely be on your radar.  They need some room to breathe, but if you can give them that their diminutive size will amaze you with their huge, 3D soundstage.

https://almaaudio.com/products/boenicke-w8-loudspeaker

QLN Prestige one

QLN Signature if it is in your budget

Emerald Physics OB 2-3 series. I have 3.4s which are 41" tall: NO STAND NEEDED. I have 3.4s 12" concentric woofers with 1" polyester tweeters. No longer in production, great prices for used

try it, you'll love them.

Perlisten s7t have different qualities than the blades and you might like them

Martin Logan Statement 40XW at about 2:45 into the video can hang on your wall and WOW, they look amazing:

We are a kef dealer there are very few loudspeakers which can maatch the

blade twos

the blade twos will outperform any of the speakers mentioned

there is only one loudspeaker we have heard which is smaller which can rival the blade twos;

that loudspeaker is the alta audio adams

the altas throw a gigantic soundstage and produce ridiculous deep bass down to 20hz due to their patented bass loading design which combines a transmission design with an infinite baffle load

the result is very fast impactful bass out of a very compact floor stander

the altas also have remarkable clarity thanks to their state of the art ribbon tweeter and proprietary midrange driver

the adams sounded better the a 40k pair of wilson daws just amazing sound for less then 20k

at only 41 inches high this is one of the few ultra compact loudspeakers which can compete with the 

blade 2

dave and Troy 

Audio intellect NJ

kef and alta dealers 

Find a Spendor dealer and give them a listen!

https://spendoraudio.com/d-line-loudspeakers/

I’ve been extraordinarily impressed with Ascend Acoustics Sierra Towers with the RAAL ribbon tweeter. They are easily driven by most amps, including tube amps, and the impedance never dips below 5 ohms, nor does it swing wildly. The company is small, U.S.A., and run by nice, talented people. They have a trial period. I prefer these to others I’ve had, including ML 60 Xti, Focal 936, Dynaudio Evoke 30. They are wonderful. 

What’s your budget?

Sounds like you have the need a new toy disease. The Blades are great speakers. If you really like them it will be hard and costly to find a superior replacement. Remember since even good speakers vary a lot it matters that you pick one that has the pluses you need and doesn't have anything that bothers you. In an imperfect world balancing all the qualities of speakers that's a hard thing to do, especially if you convince yourself you need to find new speakers. Better to  live with ones you love and audition speakers over time with no commitment to buy and wait til you come across one that grabs your attention(and then take your time auditioning it over time). 

I’m lusting after the new WB Act 3zero, as an owner of Vectors.  Price is gonna be north of the Blades, I suspect.

(Note to self:  cross the Adams off my short list.)

@bwang29 

The LS60 is to big of a jump down, but you might try the Reference 3 or Reference 5’s.

+1 @hilde45 

I had a pair of Ascend Acoustic Sierra towers with raal tweeters too, for like 7 years. They were absolutely wonderful, wide clear sound, not tiring, with amazing bass for their size. I just moved to larger speakers to get a more immersive sound in my then new house of stereo. And David at Ascend is the nicest owner you will ever meet.

+1 @steakster 

+1 @maxwave 

I also think Marten Parker Trio could be perfect. I heard the small Parker Duo recently and they were great but if you want bass then the Trio should be way better.

@hilde45 

Thanks for the info on Ascend ... spent about 30 mins on its website.   So is it Salk or Ascend? ... now i'm confused!!  

without budget, room size, source/amp - system info, sound preference, any suggestion seems random

Thanks for everyone’s advice!

to add more context, my budget can not exceed $20k, and my sound preference is top to bottom clean, relaxing, slightly sparkling and neutral with strong emphasis on mid bass impact (which is basically Blade 2 to me). I also like sleek and unique designs as my home decor is very minimal and industrial. 

@bwang29 design-wise: "Nordic"?

Given your preferences I’d give a look to (in no particular order although I think the first four are more visually distinctive)…

Boenicke W11SE
Alta Adam

QLN Prestige 5

Vivid Audio Kaya 45

Joseph Audio Perspective 2

Usher ML-802

Verity Audio Lakme

Vandersteen Quatro CT

Best of luck in your search.

Smartest move of course is to stick with your Blades.  

Totem Element Series. Fire or Metal V2's.

Rockport Atria ii would be well worth an audition. Good luck! 

I have the blades and I got the itch for some different speakers and went to the shops but nothing I heard sounded better. Sometimes I think a pair of mini monitors in a second system just for a change up. but I don't hear anything better to my ears in my price range or would fit my room.

I have not read through the whole thread but I am highly impressed with how my new Magnepan LRS+ sound. I have other formats and systems but I am primarily using a streaming system because I have found it works well and it is easy to listen to all sorts of music from the couch. I’m saying that I have become lazy and I don’t want to have to get up and turn the record over or switch to a different reel or other device. I pay a small amount for the service and it works flawlessly.  Oh yea I have to say that the LRS + is spectacular and I am still looking forward to getting a set of Magnariser stands which are supposed to have a extra layer of resolution ( which I think will make it like a musical instrument is playing in front of me. So if you have a high current amplifier and the room for a pr I would recommend it as a replacement for your speakers.

Call Perrotta consulting he has a demo blade 2 that just might fit your needs.