FWIW, bass reinforcement is nothing to do with the rearports, downward firing ports, front ports, or indeed any ports at all! With bass being omnidirectional, bass reinforcement is simply to do with speaker output and wall proximity. The legitimate concern with rear firing ports is interference with the airflow if the rear of the speaker is very close to the wall.
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+1 for the ProAC speakers…
I am biased since I have used ProAc D2D speakers in the past and for the past few years have used ProAC D30RS speakers in my system which is very similar to yours. Hopefully you have a dealer close by and can arrange to have a home demo. Good luck with your decision!
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Funny you mention them… my appointment is booked! 
Yes, they’re on my list.
Harbeth Compact C7ES- 3XD on TonTrager stands.
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Obviously I’m not the op but I’m considering Harbeth speakers what makes these stands so special compared to the others?
Hello dmu,
I realy don’t know.But they are specialy,and only made for Harbeth.And they look nice.
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Only my opinion
As you can already see you’re going to get many suggestions of what people chose for themselves. What’s most important is what sound you like. So auditioning is the most important part unless you don’t mind losing money going through the journey of owning many speakers.
Having said that in the past couple of years I’ve home auditioned or owned
Audioplan Kantata
Dynaudio Heritage
Kudos 505
Kudos Super20A
Audiovector r1 arette
Audiovector sr3
Borresen Z1 Cryo
Harbeth SHL5 XD
Store demoed a few more like Kudos 606, Audiovector R6 and a few others.
At the end I much preferred the Harbeth 30.2 XDs to my surprise. In the list of speakers I auditioned there were some that were far more expensive but they just didn’t do it for me like the 30s. So make your short list and then audition the Sh*t outta your choices. 
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I’m guessing I’ve probably answered this question before but I’ll answer it by comparing some of the speakers I auditioned.
The kudos sound is just not for me. Too bright in my system. Boxy mids and a very defined and dynamic bass but that’s it really. It didn’t do the emotional aspect of the music for me.
The treble on the Borresen Z1 is sublime with the AMT tweeters. Same with the Audiovectors. These two speaker brands were comparable in sound. But again I wasn’t tapping my feet or having as much fun.
The Harbeths just deliever everything I want. They sound more natural than the others. Almost like they aren’t trying too hard to impress. The midrange is much more open. More airy sounding than all the others. I also prefer the mids on the Harbeth 30 XDs than the HL5 XDs. The kudos are actually revealing more information than the Harbeths but somehow with my system the Harbeth 30s were always a more enjoyable listen. The 30s don’t
have wallops of bass and the AMT tweeters on the Borresen and Audiovectors exhibit sweeter treble with more information. But somehow the way everything comes together with the 30s is just right for me. With my Naim system they have the right amount of bass, treble, openess, speed and so on. Btw they sound very different depending on the stands they are on.
Mine are currently on rock Solid Burmese Rosewood stands and they’re the best stands I’ve ever heard. You get the speed of metal frame stands with the bass weight and organic tone of wooden stands.
I’ll attach a photo just because I want to 
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I’ll be interested in how you get on. If you have qobuz, make yourself a playlist now, you’ll be able to play it on the ndx once Andy lets you on to the WiFi.
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The speaker test list is already made… 
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Great.
Which speakers made it into your list ?
Good luck
R
Currently Proac D20, Atc Scm 40, PMC 25-32i, Neat Ekstra, possibly Spendor A7… I’m open minded about anything else. These seem to be the ones coming up at my price point. Haven’t looked at Harbarth yet so can’t comment.
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That’s already a great list!
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I think the A7’s are worth a demo, I have owned both the A7’s and PMC 25.23’s, good speakers, as are the Proac’s and Neat’s. The new Neat Elite Classic is also worth a look/listen. Currently I use Atc Scm 40A, I like the ATC sound.
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If you add the new Neat Elite Classics as suggested by @glasnaim that would be exactly my list of suspects to try on the end of my SN3 and HiCap DR, I also have a quite close to the rear wall requirement so it will be very interesting to hear how you get on and any comparisons between each model would be well received.
Good luck on your journey
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Good luck with your project
FWIW, here is our similar shortlist, for an ongoing project to find a new pair of speakers, (£4-5k), which is taking forever and no end in sight.
In no particular order…
- Pro-ac D2R / D20R / DT8
- Spendor A4 / A7 / D7.2
- PMC Twenty5 23i / 24i
- ATC SCM 19A / SCM40 (passive)
- Kudos C20 / Super 20A
- Neat Ekstra / Elite Classic
Note : The reason some of these options extend beyond target £4-5k, is thinking one might become available ex-demo’, at a saving, and shoe horn into our budget? (Wishful thinking).
Currently, the PMC Twenty5 23i stands as our likely choice.
Hope this post is helpful as a resource…
Our intention is for a good floor standing option. However, our most recent audition, just a few weeks ago, was with the new Epos ES14N. It is a great sounding speaker. Like the original, its strength is with an outstanding midrange. But with much more control of bass (than original version). So, we are now considering this stand mount. Albeit, we wonder if rear port might restrict how we wish to use them. (Like original Epos ES14’s, fussy on placement, away from rear boundary.)
Good luck…
KR
R
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£4k is well within the purchase price of fabulous condition pre-owned SL2s
Perfect for 282/250
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Sonus Faber are doing a very good trade in deal at the moment so maybe worth having a look at them too 