Vandersteen Dream Come True

[Maceo23]

Well, its finally happened. I have finally made the jump to official Vandersteen owner and I couldn't be more thrilled. It happened a couple of days ago. I woke up and pulled the laptop onto my lap top. I did my usual morning browsing finally ending up on the audiogon website for my normal daily drool, hoping to stumble onto something to good to be true. While usually a futile waste of time, on this day, luck happened to be on my side. I enter my usual Vandersteen search and there in black print was an ad for a pair of 2ce signatures, which actually isn't a rare occurrence. However, this gentleman, happened to live in my city. To top that was the fact that he was actually looking to trade the pair for a good set of LCR speakers. At this point I was starting to get excited. He listed a few brand names, but unfortunately, my Ascends weren't on the list. I decided to send him an e-mail, and offer my set to see if he was interested. To my shear delight, I received a quick reply telling me that the Ascends were actually on his short list, and that he had been intrigued by the brand, with all the love it gets on the boards. With that, I packed up all of my 340se's and stand, and hit the road to his place. 45 minutes later I pulled up at his house. I was very pleased to see that the pictures really didn't do the Vandy's justice, they were in great shape, top to bottom, and man did they sound sweet. Being very familiar with the product, I was not surprised. My main concern was that he like the Ascends, that personally I think sounds great for the money, but really aren't in the same ballpark as the Vandersteens.

We hauled all my equipment up into his house and set everything up. I have to admit that I was pretty nervous sitting next to him for the listening test, but he liked what he heard, and I had my new (used) speakers on an even trade. I'm not a religious man, and have always said that I was Jewish until the age of reason, but God was looking down on me that day my friends. Everything just turned out my way, and the guy was just great.

Well, I got them home, called up a buddy, and set off dialing in the perfect room placement. After a few hours of critical listening, and a small yet terrifying wiring snafu (bad crimps, that gave of a slight static sound), my twins are up and running. All I can say is ! They are everything I have been waiting for. The only unfortunate part, is that after proclaiming that my theater was done for the immediate future, I now have to upgrade my electronics to match my speakers. Even more of a problem is that now I have to find a VCC-2 center channel which are extremely rare on the used market, and a little to pricey new, so i guess this is a call to everyone, to give me a shout if you stumble across one.

[salvasol]

Congratulations

Remember: "Good things come to those who patiently wait"

[Sonnie]

Congrats... sounds like you may have to host the Houston meet on month.

[Otto]

Congrats, Maceo23!

I also really warmed to the Vandersteen sound and ended up with a set of my own. I had to wait for over a year before I found the center I wanted, but it finally showed up. Enjoy the 2Ces!!!

[Maceo23]

Thanks guys. Actualy, I wouldn't mind hosting the Houston GTG, but my theater is very small, I really couldn't accomodate more that 3-4 people, so it wouldn't be much of a get together. Otto, is it just me, or does it seem that Vandersteen gets little love on the boards. It really doesn't make sense to me. I know some people don't like the black sock appearence, but they are far from objectionable. In my opinion, there is nothing on the market that comes close to the performance for the money, and used, they are just a steal.

[blast8180]

I had two 2ci's, I loved them so much I got two more. ( couldn't find the VSM's at a good price...)

What are you using to run them?

[Otto]

Hey Maceo23,

I'm not sure why Vandersteens aren't as popular as some other speakers, but I'll give my thoughts. First, I think you're right in that their physical appearance isn't as appealing as other speakers. Some consider them a non-starter just because of that, and some worry that kids or pets will attack the socks (but the black sock thing seems to work for Definitive...). Similary, they're also big and imposing, and won't fit into many decors. Second, since they are not available in Best Buy and other major electronics retailers, they just don't get the visibility that products available in big stores do. Many people interested in HT and audio might still be put off by going into a "real" hi-fi shop, and that's the only place they're available. Third, their website sucks, so maybe some discount them for that. Finally, they're somewhat expensive -- I read a lot of people that want "bang for the buck." If you want a 5.1 system for $1K, then the Vandersteens will seem very expensive. Of course, if you shop used, there are good deals to be found (I bought all five of my Vandersteens on AudiogoN).

But, if you can overcome the above, they are great speakers. I've had mine for almost two years now, and I don't have any plans to change. Well, I would like the Quattros, but I don't want to pay for them!

[Maceo23]

Yeah, I would have to agree with everything you said, Otto. As for the Quatro's, I fully agree with you, they are absolutely stunning, but definately on the pricey side. My main issue is that last week I finally proclaimed that I was officially at a point in my theater that I could quit spending money. It wasn't at a point where I was able to say that I didn't want to upgrage, but it was finally in a place where I was satisfied enough to stop digging myself further into debt. I figured I could hold off until the wife finished school. Now, I need a new center. My receiver (Marantz SR7500) needs to be upgraded to preferably seprates. Lastly, I think I'm gonna rebuild my sub, and go from sonotube to an enormous sealed enclosure. WILL IT EVER END????

probably not

[conchyjoe7]

To chime in a little on why they (the Vandys) don't get a lot of love on the boards... IMHO, it has a lot to do with what has already been said, and it also has a lot to do with they're not "new and exciting". By that I mean that they're not a new brand, but of course extremely well established brand. They don't tout any "new" technology (despite claims; neither do 99.9% of everybody else), and they're not flashy. Make no mistake in sales though...Richard Vandersteen isn't flying his own personal jet all over the world because he's poor! One thing they do do is: They just happen to sound terrific and as you've said are probably one of the best deals in all of audio $ for $. I owned a pair of 2ci's for years and I loved them. Had I another room now that wasn't already equipped, I'd get a pair of 2ce sigs in a second and never look back.
Gosh I'm tired of waiting for my Eggleston Works Andras...
Cheers,
Konky.

[tonyvdb]

Vandersteens are great sounding speakers I had the opportunity to listen to a pair at our local Hi Fi shop years ago and really liked the sound however the price tag was way out of my range. the Vandersteens are in a very select few homes because of this but none the less worth every penny if you have them.
Just like so many other brands of speakers that are hard to find my Missions that are made in Brittan very few have heard them because they were only available in the north American market for a few years back in the early 90's before they decided to build speakers that would cater to the low end market and almost bankrupted them.
Tannoy is another speaker manufacturer that doesn't get the praise that its due.