++Marakenetz. And if you find certain brands you like then check here on AudiogoN (and maybe other sites...) and with a little luck you can find speakers that retail ~$2K but now sell in your budget. I will freely admit I haven't bought "new" speakers at retail in quite a while - but I've found stuff here that I really like, that were much more affordable than new, and were graciously broken in by someone else...
