RGA, are we talking the Tannoy Prestige line to get that kind of speaker? I once owned a pair of Tannoy Mercury F2, which I felt was a great $300 speaker. Since then I have always been interested in the brand, and also what with learning some of their history and just how much the Tannoy name means in hifi circles. But the Prestige line is too expensive for me right now. The Revolution Signature line is in my price range, but I'm thinking you would consider that to be in the category of the others on my list. There's a great dealer in my area that carries Tannoy and I've listened to a couple of the Prestige speakers. They are impressive for sure, the only concern I'd have is that they perhaps sound a little too refined, maybe a little too perfect. But I'm not comfortable in passing judgment on them after only listening to each for about a half hour.

You said you wouldn't touch Paradigm with a 50 foot pole. I'm curious what it is that you dislike so much. I just came across a positive-feedback review of the 20 that pretty much echoes what the Stereophile and Soundstage! reviews said about the speaker's strengths. They seem to be exactly what I'm looking for in terms of sound.

That said, I've listened to enough of the this kind of speaker over the last year. After this purchase I'm definitely going to start listening to other kinds of designs.

bobsticks, you are right, I'm not a newb. I'm also far from the most experienced and I've still got a lot to learn. I'd say that I pretty much know what kind of sound I want, but it is like RGA said - that's within the context of having listened to primarily one kind of speaker design, all powered by relatively affordable SS amplifiers. I really don't know what else is out there.

I'm curious what you guys would suggest when it comes to these other kinds of designs, if playing primarily rock music. Like, are electrostats even worth considering for that genre of music? Can a single driver speaker do rock justice? Etc. It would seem to me, that the ideal might be a medium/large sized room with a pair of efficient speakers that are both wide and tall, and house at least a 12" woofer, powered by a smooth but powerful amp.