I know the only way is to audition them directly. Only then can I make up my mind. But I enjoy the "hunt" as much as the "kill". I'm in no hurry. I want to test and listen to as many speakers and setups as I can. Since sound is so subjective, only then, can I know what will truly work for me!
For instance I went and heard the Totem's Mini's and Rainier's...Rainforest's...Reindeer's, or some such animal! Very nice sounding speakers. Big sound from tiny speakers and large price! I used my own music to listen, with emphasis on instrumentals, vocals and range. Stevie Ray Vaughn, Al Di Meola, Bowie (Ziggy), Floyd and Aaron Neville. Both speakers sounded strong, clear and with good range, the Rain...whatevers...being more impressive. I listened to them in a very large room and they seemed to fill it nicely. However, this may have to do more with the amp section, being high end separates...sorry don't recall the brand "My... somethings". At volume the speaker's disappeared leaving a nice sound stage with strong imaging and impressive mids and highs. I had the salesman run the center only and found there to be a dropout in the mid bass with lower bass holding true...design flaw I guess!?
The only real hiccup was that the right channel kept cutting out! I'm pretty sure it was the speaker cables, fiddling with them brought it back. Impressive overall but the price puts them out of the running!
