Need Small Bookshelf Speakers With a Big Sound


Good morning.  I have been out of any kind of audiophile circles for a long time.  We moved into a house with built-in speakers about 5 years ago, which I really enjoy, but of course it's better for casual listening at a party than for quality listening.  Our family room is in a pretty open space that borders our living room and kitchen, so my wife is very focused on speakers being unobtrusive in appearance.  I was therefor looking for small speakers and got turned onto KEF LS50s, which sounded really nice for the price, and more than good enough for my desires.  And they are small.  But I didn't really focus on their "untraditional" looks.  It turns out that was a deal-breaker when I brought them home to demo.

So, I am back to square one.  What I would really like is a speaker that is about the size of the LS50s, or maybe a little bigger, and has a nice looking, traditional wood finish.  Bright colors and artificial surfaces, no matter how good they sound, need not apply...

I would say my self-imposed budget is around $2,000 at the top.  Unless new speakers leads me down the audiophile slippery slope, the speakers would be powered by my old Adcom 545 II amp and GTP 500 II tuner, with either an Adcom CD changer or Apple TV streaming the music.  Not exactly Audiogon Best In Class, but I think it will bring a smile to my face.  And you never know if this will lead to upgrading the whole shebang.

Any thoughts appreciated.  Not that it matters, but I am in the Chicagoland area.
chiguy
You found Focal and Dynaudio too polite and weren't hearing the high end but Sonus Fabers had it?   I've always found the former two to be brighter than the latter.  I find most Focal speakers to be very accurate and detailed, but most people I know find them overly bright.    I do love some of the pricier Sonus Fabers.
B&W CM6 S2 is in your price range , and they are great looking to boot. I have a set paired with a Peachtree Nova 125 and I've been very happy with them. 
If you can stretch more, Franco Serblin Accordo or Raidho D1. If not, Sonus Faber Toy Monitor. Small, heavy, good mid and look awesome.
I strongly recommend that you audition Neat Motive SX3. They are very musical and the sound stage they throw is huge with excellent dynamics. Within your budget as well.
Go for small open baffle speakers. Hawthorne Audio make some very nice ones. They present a very open and wide soundstage.