My first suggestion is to try to find a way to demo as many of the speakers as you can. I say that because speakers are very much a matter of personal taste. I'm very fond of my Paradigm Reference v2 speakers (which would exceed the $2000 budget with the new v3 line), and so would tend to agree that the Paradigm Monitors are a good choice to consider. Axiom's are going to have a similar sound to the Paradigms (both share the Canadian speaker design lineage), and based on the M3ti surrounds that I have I would consider them to be a good choice to consider as well, especially of the Paradigms seem to suit your taste. There have been several similar threads in the past, but Outlaw_Tim's current what speakers are you using thread would be a good place to find speakers that might be worth auditioning.