Drumbe, I also have a small room and found the LS50's kinda wooly and bloated in the bass as well. I now have ProAc Tablette 10's which are sealed and sound great in a small room. Nice tight bass and great imaging. You will need a sub (get a small sealed one) if you want to add deep bass though. You might be able to find a pair used in your price range.
Seek non-ported speakers - $700 to $1500 To stop the port-itis in my room!
I have a smallish room 12x12 that has an unusual ceiling. I've used several highly regarded speakers in the space and the real ported ones are the biggest problem. I tried KEF ls50's and wanted to love them but the lower-end was too puffy sounding. Front ported speakers do have less of a "port-itis" issue. I found a used pair of polk lsi9's and they sound very good in my room but not great. I'm looking for ideas for non-ported or ported speakers that are less problematic. Range $700-$1500. Thanks for your input audio brothers! Drumbe the retired drummer.