I tried the tourances off road for the first time last year on the XTR at the lakes meet and found them to be not too bad on the hard stuff, but anything with a bit of looseness and you had to be on your guard.
I cant really see the avons or others really changing the feelings as its the thread deepth and the size of the gaps in the front that really allow you to feel the front.
The only option i would say is similar to gregor would be something like a tkc 80 front or similar. Ive used a front TKC 80 for a good 4-5 thousand miles and it doesnt even look used.
. It does make the front feel a wee bit heavier to turn but the road grip isnt really effected.