Speaker recommendations for Proprius based system?

I am considering buying a new set of quality speakers to replace the 20-year-old pair that I use with my Majestic and Proprius hi-fi system in the lounge. I am looking for a pair of speakers that will be compatible with my wonderful Proprius amplifier system. I know that Graham favours the Sterling LS3/5A which I heard at the Aylesbury Roadshow. But, even though they probably would be a good choice, I have nothing to compare them with. I had originally thought of something like a decent floor standing unit in the region of about £3000 (I have the agreement of she who must be obeyed!) that can bring out the same kind of clarity and detail that I get from my Grado PS 1000 headphones.

Although I am reluctant to trust the write-ups in the hi-fi press certain makes do seem to crop up again and again as being of good quality. Names like: B&W, ATC, Spendor, Monitor Audio, Harbeth, Tannoy being prominent amongst them. As I know a number of people on this site have Proprius amplifiers I would be very grateful for any comments or recommendations of compatible speakers that I could look at. I find it difficult to get into many dealers listening rooms (with my wheelchair) and would hate to spend a lot of money only to find that the ones I'd choose are not a step up from my 20-year-old Mission 753s. These are by no means bad speakers however they have softened off a little after many enjoyable years of use.

If I was spending £3k at a dealer on speakers, I would want a home demo to make sure that they worked in my room. Do you have a friendly dealer in the area that would do a home demo for you due to the access issues to demo rooms that you have?

The most important factor with speakers is how they sound in your room, and only when you get them home will you really know how they sound.

If the Proprius monoblocks have signature, I'm yet to hear it. An AKG K1000 from Proprius is simply incredible; it's one of those "holy crap!" moments as the sheer purity is pretty jawdropping.

To get that kind of performance from speakers is going to take careful consideration of so many factors. There are many aspects of room interaction that affect perceived performance. Are conventional cone-in-cabinet speakers even capable of a fully non-boxy performance? I mean, I know they can sound really good but for a complete absence of intermodulation distortions (lag) and boxiness, I think that a different technology is the only way forward.

CageyH wrote: If I was spending £3k at a dealer on speakers, I would want a home demo to make sure that they worked in my room. Do you have a friendly dealer in the area that would do a home demo for you due to the access issues to demo rooms that you have? The most important factor with speakers is how they sound in your room, and only when you get them home will you really know how they sound.

I think you're probably right! I would expect any decent dealer to give me a home demonstration before I buy. As far as the room is concerned my lounge has much better acoustics than the previous house that I lived in. My Missions sound much better here than they used to in my old house. Even so the quality of the speaker will make a difference within any room. The speakers I had before my Missions was a pair of series 2 Keff 104s. This was a large speaker but the smaller Missions proved to be slightly better and a lot more convenient because of the smaller size.

Electrostatic speakers have been around for many many years. Possibly well over 30! They are, I believe, an acquired taste. It is also my belief that a good pair of speakers can give you a more realistic soundstage because, like live music, they are vibrating the air around you and not just in your head. This isn't to say that very good quality headphones can't be more revealing and impressive than many speakers. What I'm after is masses of detail, A good and controlled bass, and yet musicality too!