On different speakers you plan to audition, which you asked for input on:
KEF - Ofcourse they're voiced somewhat different than Paradigm, but they are the same market target... fast, detailed, good air, great soundstage. I haven't auditioned KEF and plan too, but in direct comparison reviews (which are hard to find these days - pro reviewers are commonly sold out to advertisers to not diss one over the other) I've seen, the pro reviewers have stated the Personas do it better.
Golden Ear - IMO, way over hyped because the 3 founders of Golden Ear are reveared Engineers from across the industry, whose booty the magazines kiss. Yes, they have great air, but I auditioned their top of the line when shopping my Tributes. They lack solid soundstage, I could distinctly hear the crossover point between the mids and the Air Motion/folded Ribbon Tweeter, and they just didn't possess the resolution of most of the other gear being discussed here.
Focal - No personal experience
Legacy Audio - They'd be amongst the bests choices for classical and jazz, but it ends there in my listening experience. I've heard their mid range and lower end stuff...sub $15k. Just not impressed. There's too many competitors that do a number of things better for the same money. Those huge woofers just move too slow, and didn't bring the snap to produce the tones I look for in Bass guitar and other notes below the 60 hz range, in my observation.
Sonus Faber - Direct competitor to Paradigm for many years. People either prefer the sound of one or the other. Sonus adds a house "color" to the sound that make them pleasing to many. Paradigm, despite some complaints about "brightness" (mostly small rooms without room correction, and paired equipment, quite frankly), are more purist than Sonus. But again, you may love the Sonus sound for your listening preference, and that's all that matters. You're the one living with them, and flipping the big bucks on 'em.
Horns - I'm just not a fan, though I've only listened to middle of the line Klipsch horns. The Personas Be is often referred by pro-reviewers as having all the strengths of the horns, without the odd order distortions and other associated issues.
Monitor Audio - This is a totally different approach to sound. Much more laid back. They do that great, but don't bring the live impact and actual way a band sounds when its right in front of you. Again though, its about how you prefer to hear your music. But if you like Monitor Audio, then you have to look at Dynaudio.
Best Regards!
