Thoughts on which speakers to audition.
NDx S2 streamer/Qubuz
282/250DR arriving soon , have SN3 now.
HiCap
Room size 18ft x 12ft
Currently have PMC Twenty5 22i stand mounts.
Eclectic music taste, mostly female vocal, ambient, violin, pink floyd, stones, Kate bush etc etc.
I know I should get used to the 282,250 first but my son wants my PMC’s so looking to upgrade nowish.
Only have 3 on the shortlist so far-
Kanta 2
PMC Twenty5 24i
ProAc D40rs
What else should I be listening to?
I have a very similar setup, same room size, and very similar female music tastes.
I auditioned the Dali Rubicon 6 Speakers due stop their tweeter design. It was particularly good for female voices, but lacked Bass and midrange. Also tried ATC SCM 40, which for me lacked the high frequencies I wanted. In the end I found Spendor D7.2 was the best of both, and haven’t been disappointed since
If you like the way transmission line bass (and I’ve been hooked since first hearing over 45 years ago), then the obvious move is up the PMC range (20 or 25 series, or Fact, or even higher!) Or there are a few other current manufacturers who use TL in at least some of their speakers, such as Kerr Acoustics and Castle.
There are lots of speakers you can try, though some will be more keen than others to be kept far away from the back wall and sidewalls. Hoe dems a very important here because speakers are so room-dependent.
When I went speaker shopping a couple of years ago (with 52, SC, 250). I liked the PMC Twenty24 and would have bought them were it not for the competition. They were beaten to all present by Neat Xplorers and (to my surprise and in my house) by B&W 804 D3s.
Neat Xplorers or Orkestras would be a great choice if you value involvement and fun above tonal perfection, so perhaps not too different in biases to PMC. If you are not so sure that describes your taste, then a comparison with Spendor 7.2, passive ATC SCM40 and Harbeth (perhaps Compact 7ES?) will showcase 4 very different choices.
Making a shortlist of (say) 4 - 5 and getting (say) 2 comparative home dems should not be impossible, given the cost of these speakers. You may find your perfect speaker - at worst you’ll know exactly what you do and do not want in a speaker.
Given the VFM aspects, I’d budget on probably wanting any speaker or Isoacoustics Gaias or similar instead of spikes - esp if you have a wooden floor.
Finally, I know you asked about speakers only, but…
I now use NDX2 +XPSDR into 52/SC/300SDR at home, with ND5XS2 into 82/HC/250 (and Neat Xplorers) in a holiday cottage. While putting that second system together, I had great opportunities to mix & match.
Given that experience, I rate the ND5XS2 as great VFM, though the NDX2 is audibly better through 82/250 or even SN3 and improved further with a PS. Your new 282/250 (with Hicap I assume) will work well with your ND5SX2, but would really show the difference with a better source.
One way to do that would be to get a second-hand nDAC (a better DAC than is in the ND5XS2) and use the ND5XS2 as source only. That would give you a source at around the NDX2 level for not much outlay, and you could pay for it by looking at sightly less expensive speakers than you might otherwise consider.
I will be looking for an nDAC for that second system in the new year.
I hope that helps.
Had the same system with Kudos 505 and it was very special.
The ATC SCM 40s work really well with a 250 and for the money, I personally think they are the best all-around performer at their price point. Owning a pair I would of course suggest including them in your shortlist to see if they offer what you want.
The Splendors look promising going by the various reviews, certainly on the short list, thank you GadgetMan
How about sticking with your existing speakers… ?
They appear to be quite expensive - around £3.6k - in the UK…??
Get your son something else… Less expensive… 
I’ve got the PMC Twenty5 24i’s, powered by a Uniti Nova. Absolutely love them
Remember that of all system components, the speakers have the single biggest effect on the character of sound of your system, so choosing carefully makes every sense, even if it means listening to many different models and taking time. It is worth bearing in mind that secondhand or ex demo can give you greater buying power.
However, don’t change just for the sake of it - but do change either if there’s something tiresome or lacking about your speakers, or if you have the opportunity and funds to get something that sounds better to you.
A bit over my expected budget but if they sound as good as they look!
Aesthetics do play a big part as the other half has to approve the looks.
Initially I assumed floor standers were the way to go but as my room is not that big perhaps stand mounts would be preferable.
The Kudos website has a diagram of the ideal placement of the speakers in the room, it is my exact setup!
Gotta try these!
If you can afford the 505s you won’t be disappointed. In fact the 505s will probably save you money in the long run as their capabilities will exceed your 282/250DR/NDX2 environment. Placement with these speakers is also so easy, they are very accommodating. I changed my 282/250DR/NDX2 system to Aavik and haven’t been tempted to upgrade these speakers at all. Hope you can demo them
I think these are first on my list at the moment
My vote would be for the ProAc D40RS Speakers.
I have used ProAc D2D speakers in the past. Currently use D30RS with my NDX2 > NAC 282 > NAP 250 DR and they sound fantastic.
Hopefully you can demo at a dealer and home prior to making decision.
I have always been a fan of transmission line speakers had TDL’s many years ago, PMC FB1’s for 15 years! and now PMC Twenty 26’s I did try B&W’s but just could not with these. I can’t comment on the 25 range but the Twenty 26 can be had now for around £4000, I absolutely love the midrange driver on this 3 way speaker, fantastic for vocals. I do have mine sitting on Townshend Isolation bars, PMC often use these in demonstrations and probably informed the new base design on the 25’s. I have added Townshend Super Tweeters since and this has just upped the performance even further. If you look at the Fact range my advice is to audition, I understand these are less forgiving of poorer recordings and I am told more analytical and accurate, going to better suit some musical taste over others which is why I went with the Twenty range as listen to a real mix of music.
Those Kudos looks pretty sweet. I bet they sound great.
As a Harbeth user, I will suggest you try out one or two of their models. They are end game speakers for me.
If you are looking at standmounts, have a listen to the ATC SCM20 passive and if you want a bit more bass extension you can pair with one of ATC’s subwoofers.
Keep your speakers, up your streamer.
(Lad can sort himself out.)
I thought his source was a NDX2 when I first read it. I agree, I’d be focusing on the source for the 282/250. It’s leaning mullet now.