$3000 stand mounted speakers?


Whats a good contender in the $3000 range for a small monitor speaker to use with an EL34 tube amp w/ 40 wpc? The room is lively w/ hardwood floors and 18' x 22' x  9'H family area.
I'm contemplating the ProAc Tablet 10, but I'm wondering if I can do better by increasing my purchase up to $3k.

(FYI, I don't want floor standing speakers because of WAF, and have no problem from my end on this matter.)
128x128mjcmt
generally, ANY stand mounted speaker will have less bass than ones with large cone drivers which is fine unless they try to do too much, ports, passive radiators, ...

My advice is to avoid rear or side ports, if ports, front only, to avoid rear/side reflections that diffuse directionality.

Consider where a STEREO PAIR of self-powered subs would go now or in the future. IF/when you add those subs, hook them up in a way that the tube amp no longer needs to amplify the frequencies the sub will handle. both your amp and mains will be happier, thus you will be happier.