If this is a permanently installed pool, a variable speed pump will efficient and quiet. Also, you don't need a large one for a 10,000 gal pool. I think the best one (unless you want the ultimate in automation) will be the Pentair Superflo VS. A 22" Hayward Pro Series top mount sand filter (W3S220T) should work well for you, too

We're Jandy dealers so we are partial to their products. But, the competitors sand filters are just fine.

I would oversize the filter and, use glass media instead of sand. I had an eye opener about 9 years ago whereas glass media was used. I'm partial to DE and multi-cartridge filters and have been for been 30 plus years. I only have 1 customer with a sand filter and when we renovated the pool, we changed from sand to glass. It's a 36" tank on a 40K pool. The clarity is remarkable.

Sand filters for our projects generally take up too much room that's why we opted for DE or cartridge with smaller footprint.

That glass

sounds interesting. Thanks

As far as a choosing a pump, A 1/2 HP pump is fine for a 10K gallon pool. Variable speed pumps are nice and we do use them, but for this application the smaller pump will do the trick. The variable speed pumps carry an expensive up front cost.

Sometimes systems are "over pumped" and on sand filters, the sand bed can get channeled prohibiting the filter's performance.

We ran across a lot of pools built in the 60's whereas a sand filter(steel tanks) was either on ground or partially buried with a small pump mounted directly on top. The pump was a small horsepower and filtered at a slower rate, but enough to keep the pool's clarity-great concept.

That slower concept though was pushed out in the 80's when manufacturers said bigger was better on pumps, when in fact it wasn't. The pool industry has come back full circle and sees the benefit of smaller pumps and lower flow rates with the ability to keep pools clean.