Any new up & coming high end speaker lines?


At some point in the somewhat near future, (within a year or two), I am hoping to upgrade from my Revel Studios, toward what will probably be my final set of speakers. (I like the Studios, and I consider them to be a very good all around speaker, and a good "bang for the buck" speaker. However, I realize that while they are "very good" at everything, they are not truly "great" at anything.

I have determined which speakers are, what I would consider, a true upgrade from the Studios, and what I like is pretty damn expensive. Speakers such as the Rockport Antares, the Sonus Faber Stradivari, the Avalon Isis, and the Kharma Midi Exquisite; all of which are really expensive. Even used, most of these speakers are in the $25+K range, which is beyond my financial means now, and in the foreseeable future. I am looking for a speaker that is highly refined, and pretty much full range (without being boomy).

So, my question is: Are there any "up and coming" speaker lines that can be bought used for $15K used, (maybe up to $20K if I really stretch it), which would be a big step up from the Revel Studios? (The new price on speakers would therefore be between $30-40K, as used prices tend to be about 50% retail.)

FYI, speakers I am NOT really interested in are:

Big Speakers, such as large Planers, such as the Quads or the Sound Labs, (as my wife would not be happy with such a large speaker, especially after she finally managed to get me to upgrade from the Martin Logan Sequel IIs, (a six foot tall speaker, that she really never liked, but put up with because I had them when we got married). Or, really tall dynamic speakers, such as the Dali Megalines, or the Dynaudio Temptations. Again, way too tall to get the WAF.

Speakers that require a subwoofer (or have a separate subwoofer box). I don't like trying to integrate subwoofers into a 2 channel system. (Having a subwoofer in a HT system is okay, but then again, I don't listen to music on that system, just the special effects.) I don't have room in my living room for more than two main speakers.

Wilson Speakers, or speakers that are like Wilson Speakers. (No offense to Wilson owners, but I have determined that is not the direction I wish to go in. The Revel Studios are similar enough to the Wilson line, that I wish to try something else.) Plus, I am not a fan of the Wilson Aesthetics, as I consider them to be a bit to robotic looking, (which is too bad, as that would probably make things easy, as I could go with a W/P 8!).

And, just so you know what I have in the way of electronics:

I use an Ayre K-1xe preamp, (with phono boards), and the Lamm M2.1 (200 wpc) monoblocks. Both of which I will probably hang onto for a very long time, (i.e. I consider both of those to be, probably, the last preamp and amps that I will own).

Sources include a Basis 2001 TT, with a Vector M3 tonearm,
and a Dynavector XV-1S cartridge, and a Resolution Audio Opus 21 cdp. Except for the turntable, I will probably keep those for a long time too, - the 2001 TT will probably be upgraded to a 2500 (or a 2800), at some point, when I get the funds.)

Cabling includes a balanced Nordost Quattro Fil between the preamp and amp, and a pair of Audience AU24 speaker cables (a pair, as I bi-wire the Studios currently). I am not married to this cabling, but I find these to be good value cables.

My room is 16' x 24' (with 8 foot ceilings), and I have the speakers on the long wall. (The speakers are pulled into the room a couple of feet). And I have a bay window behind my listening position, with blackout blinds. I have no problems with my room acoustics. (Well, none that I have care to worry about at this time anyway!) :-)

At this point, my choice would be the Avalon Eidolon Diamonds, which used fall (almost) into my budget. And while they fulfill most of my requirements, they are not truly a full range speaker.

Okay, so let fly with the suggestions!
(And thanks in advance!)
kurt_tank
FYI: As an update to this thread, I did upgrade my speakers about six months ago to the Eggleston Works Andra II speakers. (I found a very lightly used pair for sale locally at a great price. The seller even let me try them out first in my system.)

They are indeed a more refined speaker than the Revel Studios, especially in treble response. (The Isotar tweeter is amazing, IMHO.) They also image and soundstage better than the Studios.

The bass response is defintely more forceful, which is both a good, and a not so good, thing. Good, because now there is that chest thump that I was looking for. Not so good, in as that there is a small mid-bass hump, which I feel will require some room treatments to solve. It is also possible that the cause of this mid-bass hump is the room itself. (FYI: It is not a huge mid-bass hump as it is still very listenable even with it, but it is worth mentioning in case anyone else is following this thread.) I am probably nit-picking about this particular sonic attribute, but given the system I have put together, this is about the only thing I have left to nit-pick, and being an audiophile means picking nits, if you know what I mean!
:-)

All in all I am very happy with the Eggleston Works Andra II speakers.

PS Their looks, originally a stumbling block to my picking them, look much, much, better than the picture you see of them on the Eggleston Works website (and in all the reviews). That picture gives them a barn like appearance, IMHO, which I did not like. When in fact, in person, they look great actually, especially with the black granite sides. And I much prefer their looks with the grills on, unlike how they are shown in said picture. (And since they have an incredibly thin fabric grill that does not affect the sonics, this is not a problem.)
Fly, dont run or even amble to the SP Tech Revelation III that are for sale on A'gon for $6500 - new $20K. These are amazing speakers. Google them now!
I live in the pro studio world and very rarely audition consumer electronic products. We like to refer to your world as the "dark side," where consumers routinely get screwed buying into the hype of the next new and greatest sonic invention. I rely on products that are true reference products, bombproof, reasonably priced, and can't afford to have ANY down time. Companies like ATC, Chord and Benchmark.

Occasionally, I stumble across consumer electronic products that just sound right. With that said, I was pleasantly surprised at what I heard from Dali (The Ikon 6 is a steal at $1,600) and TAD/Pioneer's new EX line. I have a friend who is the father of HD television editing and he has wonderful KEF 207 speakers.

Given your budget, you might want to "downsize" into pro products that, IMHO, deliver striking price for performance, rather than some flash in the pan reviewed product that will be yesterday's news in 2010. Your consumer electronics industry delivers that worst depreciation of any product category--usually 50 to 80% off the retail price over a three year period. If you have money to burn, fine. I just can't get excited about buying the sonic road kill being offered up in the threads above.
So you like the Andras. Pleas post a thorough review. I have been interested in these for a while.