bobt wrote: since they have to be at least 2 feet from the sidewall

Where is this coming from? Again, they do not HAVE to be two feet from the side wall. I have mentioned before that the spacing between is more important than the spacing to the side wall, especially if the sidewall reflections can be tamed. And just to reiterate, the setup for the Tritons is no different than the setup for any traditional high-end loudspeaker, and thanks to their bass section level control actually more flexible than most.

Back in 2011 Sound and Vision reviewed both the Def Tech BP-8080ST and the Goldenear Triton 2. Which speaker won the "speaker of the year" award? Drum roll please...GE Triton 2's, and the list goes on and on.

GoldenEar's Triton Two tower wins the 2015 AUDIO VIDEO EXCELLENCE AWARD for Recommended Loudspeaker of the Year, from Audio-Video Magazine South Africa, saying, "In terms of absolute authority and presence, of believably recreating musical performances, of thrilling the listener with real, ump-in-the-throat music, the GoldenEar Triton Twos are astounding. And for sheer bang-for-the-buck value in this league, they're impossible to beat."

OK... lets get down to the bottom line here. The new Polk spec's have nothing to do with the SDA's... or even any older speaker.
If you say they can be 1 1/2 feet off the sidewall.. that's fine. The fact they need to be separated more then 7 feet apart is a problem.
That's the most they can be in my room.

Now the other problem is I've read reviews NOT from pro people that think the bass, does NOT match the BP8080, and if you push the GE 2 in rock the guitars seem to get messed up. Not there words but close. Pretty much if you push these speakers... not so good with rock.

Now I don't know if I by that.. but there opinion on it. The tweeter does come out a winner, but after that... not sure.
The major problem is I can't hear these speakers.. either one... I have to guess.

The most major problem is I have to get people to send me these speakers.. fine I pay them the bucks.. and were not talking cheap, 3K for either of these. I can get DT stuff from dealers sent to my house, and I can "TRY" them out for 30 days . THE GE stuff I don't know if some dealer(brick and mortar store) who even do that.. nore would I get back any money if I did not like the speakers....

BIG problem........Cruchfeild will send me the speakers "DT"... I get 30 days if not more to "TRY" them out..IF I don't like them.. I can send them back, yes I have to pay shipping I would guess.. but I get my 3K back...
There in lies the problem....

Bobt,

You're definitely in a difficult situation. I would certainly not want to choose without hearing both of these options first hand. You are in the classical dilemma of making a safe decision or taking a leap of faith.

You can find opinions to support whatever decision you want to make. Listening to subjective opinions in different forums is risky. Professional reviews are the closest you can get to peer reviewed and trusted opinions. These opinions are by professionals and often backed by objective measurements.

At the end of the day, the responsibility lies on you and nothing anyone else says matters. You have to decide what the best decision is for you and your situation. If you go with the DTs you may like them and since you are not likely to hear the Tritons, you won't know what you're missing. Or, you can take the leap of faith and go with the Triton Twos that are widely accepted as the better speaker. Whatever you decide, good luck and please share your results.

Cheers,

T Cobe

Back in 2012 I was going through the same dilemma. I had purchased some Acoustic Zen Adagio's a few years prior but was wanting a change. My local dealer sold Def Tech, B&W, Paradigm & Klipsh, but I wanted something different. I did some checking and ended up with a choice between the Polk Audio LSIM707 and the Goldenear Triton 2's. Closest dealer was 398 miles away, what to do? Read review after review and the GE T2's always outperformed everything in its price range and above, not to mention the awards. So as T Cobe stated, I took a "leap of faith" and ordered my GE T2's from Custom Electronics in Ohmaha Nebraska. ..best decision I ever made.

Major problem here is.. again.. I can't hear any of this. BUT with the DT stuff... I can get a dealer to send me the speakers and in some cases have over 30 days to try them out. I don't need more then 30 days, but that is nice.

WE are talking 3K speakers here... NOT junk money and not something I want to loose, if the speakers don't work.

The Golden Ear speaker people are small stores.....
The chance of me getting a set of them to "TRY OUT".... I don't see it. you either buy the speakers or you don't.. if you don't like them..well.... the 3K you just spent.. pretty much there answer is buy another speaker, but we are NOT giving you back your 3K.