What showpiece fish should I get?

[AndreySmores]

I have a 46g bowfront, moderately planted, with 8 emperor tetras, 8 cardinal tetras, 8 cherry barbs, 8 ghost shrimp, an albino bristlenose pleco, and some mystery snails, and now all that's left is the showpiece fish. I was wondering if anybody had any thoughts on some pretty showpiece fish that would lead to overstocking the tank. I was thinking about getting a male betta (with a backup tank just incase it hits the fan), but I also wanted to look into less risky options.
Thanks!

 

[Aiken Drum]

I think a betta would look a bit lost in a 46g tank.

How about gourami or maybe a pair of bolivian rams?

 

[Fishlegend]

I support the rams option. It's possible you could specify if you have light or dark gravel, Dark makes fish deepen their colors, you could try a gourami.

 

[rlederer]

I'm not fond of the concept of centerpiece fish, as if one were arranging a bouquet of dead flowers. Fish are generally more happy with others of their own species, with some exceptions like bettas. Maybe get a betta or more tetras or barbs.

 

[shramp]

Apistagramma maybe? Like a pair?

Idk I gave up on finding a centerpiece fish bc literally all of them have the risk of being mean to your smaller fish and killing/eating them it feels like. I ended up just deciding to get a bigger school of what I think is my prettiest schooling fish.

 

[jake37]

Depends what you want. I would not get a pair of bolivian rams as they can be moody and generally prefer to be solo (not pair). Some of the more passive apisto are fine if the tank is scaped correctly and has soft substrate however they will hunt shrimp. In fact most cichlids will hunt shrimp so there is that to consider. If you go with a male betta you will want to keep the tank around 79 degree so there is that to consider which is the higher end (but acceptable) for your stocking. 3 Honey gourami might fit your billing; or pearl gourami - avoid dwarf gourami (while colourful they have other issues).