Best Entry Points to the B&W 800 Series

What will you  be driving them with. What is your room size. Actually, best if you show your current system under Virtual Systems... this will really help us to understand your current system and venue. The appropriate size will be part of the consideration. 

I've owned B&W 800 series speaker for over thirty years. 

For me, it is and always was  the Nautilus series.  I have owned B/W N802's, N803's, N805's and their flagship Nautilus HTM -1.  They are the smoothest sounding of all their 800 series.  Since then, it seems the highs have been pushed and their following has decreased.  A beautiful pair of N802's can be found these days in the 5k range.  Look for a minty pair and spend no more!  I still have  a pair of N802's and N803's in my vacation home.

I have a pair of 802 Diamonds in my vacation home that I bought nib earlier this year for just south of $10K that are quite good for that kind of money.  They are very easy to live with.  They would image better and the overall presentation would be enhanced with a pair of the better RELs.  Contrary to rumor they are not overly bright, rather they are neutral and remind me of a pair of LS3/5A monitors in my study in terms of overall tonality and balance.  I would rate them 7.5-8 on a scale of 10.

For me, it is and always was  the Nautilus series

100% agree, these are incredible! That's why the N802s are in this list, can be found for around $7k and still deliver incredible performance, while retaining the look of modern B&W 800 speakers.

Try getting a less expensive pair like the 805's first and see if you can live with the tweeter. There's a reason most of us have had B&W speakers, and not have them. I had the 805's, 802's, 800's, HTM and the Matrix HT system. Overall, they are great sounding speakers so long as you can live with the highs.