New floor stand speakers

I went with Vandersteen Treo's when leaving my Proac's after over 20 years.  I love the newer Vandy line and the Quatro is in your range and ar killer for the price.  Very clean, fast and natural sounding.  The disappear easily too.  I'm with Mel on Wilson's.  I just don't get them.  They use inexpensive speakers and spend money on the cabinet and marketing.  Ton's of great marketing and they well because of the name. Similar to B&W.  I have heard all of their line recently from the XLF's to the new Sabrina's.  They keep telling me how great their soft dome tweeters sound. Why didn't they use these since day one?  Even the silk ones are way too hot.  The have a ringing upper mid range that just gives many a headache. I was at a Wilson dealer a few weeks ago and even the guy helping me out HATED them. It was hilarious as he ripped most of the speakers in his shop.  There were two lines they carried that he likes, but we put the Sabrina's on with CH Precision gear.  I know that gear sounds very good, but even with nearly 100k of gear the Sabrina's just didn't sound good.  Even the owner came in the room and rolled his eyes.  I joked that at least they sell and they don't need to spend much time with the customer.  He agreed with me.  That was all I needed to know.  The owner used to be a VAndy dealer and wishes that he still had the line as he said that customer service was great and they were a great value.  Sorry to go off topic a bit, but I thought it was a funny story to share in this thread.  

Hope you get to listen to some of the speakers in this thread.  Lot's of choices for you, but you'd be remiss to not have Vandersteen Quatro CT or even Treo's on your short list.

Dynaudio should be another consideration. I prefer the Contour (non LE) and Confidence. They aren’t as picky as some speakers as far as set up and disappear very nicely. But you should listen yourself. No one can tell you what YOU like. They are rear ported and do sound a lot better when away from the back wall

I'm a bit surprised your local shop recommended the S1.5 and not the S1, which is a proper floor stander. I haven't heard the Crystal's, but have heard the Magico S1 and Sabrina, although in different shops. I'm not sure I totally agree with the very negative opinions on the Sabrina's, while they weren't my favorite speaker, they're by no means terrible. If you're looking for slam, they definitely have that. Compared to the S1's, there's a lot more lower end as well (remember, you're comparing a ported 8-inch woofer to a 7-inch sealed design). I didn't feel the bass was flabby on the Sabrina either. I listened to them back-to-back to SF Amati Futura's (both powered by a Boulder integrated), and while the SF were more musical and realistic, with greater bass extension, the Sabrina's are about half the price. Like another poster mentioned though, I think the Sopra's are a better choice, for a bit less money, but these two speakers are voiced very differently. If you listen to the Sabrina's, and the sound appeals to you, then my advice would be to go for it. At least you'll be able to hear all three of these speakers in the same room, same electronics, in my opinion that's a much safer bet than buying something without hearing it first!

Ctsooner,

i agree with your comments about the Wilson speakers. I have heard most of their speakers and have never understood what the big deal is about them. I have listened to the Vandersteens 7's at the last 2 Newport shows and thought they produced some of the best sounds at the show. To me they sound so much more refined than the Wilson's. I honestly think some people buy the Wilson's because of the name. 

I don't feel the Wilson's are a contender to any of the speakers in that class.  They are dynamic, but not refined at all and they all produce an upper mid ringing that drives folks nuts.  I was speaking with someone last night about the XLF's with the Boulder top electronics and DCS stack and we both were polite, but had to start talking and not listening during the first cut. After a few cuts we both had to leave as our ears hurt.  There are too many choices out there for all of us to love and enjoy.  We all feel passionately about what we like, but that doesn't take away from what others can do either.  There are two lines of speakers that I just don't get and I listen to them often.  B&W D3 and Wilson.  I've heard a couple of the smaller B&W sound ok , however I heard that new D3 803 I believe is the first one released. I was their third down in the line I heard two weeks ago.  It was so forward I thought the piano was in my lap, lol.  There was no refinement and the rep was the one who set it up with what they want it to be shown with.  I know folks buy into what we are told in ads or read on line, but that speaker was just bad.  I had a Wilson dealer tell me that the cost of their drivers is very inexpensive, but they put a lot of R&D into their enclosures.  Maybe if they gave you what Vandersteen or Magico or Proac does in their drivers, they'd be a contender.  I always check out how many Vandersteen's from the Treo on up are for sale as well as other high end models.  It's pretty rare and that's mostly because original owners get it and love what they have.  You can find Wilsons all over the net.  I'm sure there are Wilson owners who will now hate me or grill me, but the proof is in the pudding.  All I ever hear from Wilson dealers is that the reason their metal tweeters never sounded good was because they needed to be driven by top of the line gear.  Please stop it.  Everything sounds best that way.  Even with top of the line stuff, I've never heard a Wilson I can live with.  JMHO