I heard these speakers in Marietta, GA for the first time yesterday. I've been waiting for an oppurtunity to hear some Vandersteens since I stumbled upon this site several years ago. My preconceptions were that the Vandersteens were more or less an "organic" speaker. They would present music in a natural, pleasing way but might lack some audiophile attributes that may or may not be realistic like pinpoint imaging, extreme detail, holographic 3-D presentation, etc.

I didn't have a choice in associated components because I walked in after taking care of business in Atlanta. The speakers were driven by a NAD C320BEE integrated with a NAD cd player, probably the current BEE model but I'm not sure. I was a little skeptical because of what I've read here about the 320BEE's tendency to mess up the soundstage. I'm not even sure if the 1Cs were set up properly. They were on their Vandy stands, though which I understand are necessary for best performance. These small stands lift the front of the speaker off the floor no more than about 4". Thus, the speakers are tilted back slightly. The 1Cs were slighly towed in. Since I'm not a good judge of distance, I would guess the speakers were about 6-8' apart measured from the middle of each - probably closer to 6'. I was not in a dedicated listening room, but in the front of the store with a wall about 2 1/2 ft behind the speakers and a glass window about 3 ft behind me. Side walls were a considerable distance from the setup. I listened from about 6ft, then nearfield at about 2ft. Here's what I heard:

I was surprised at the detail these speakers revealed. The cd was not familiar to me, but it was drenched in reverb. The instruments included sax, bass, guitar, keyboard, drums etc. It was kinda jazzy with a funk beat. As I said it was drenched in reverb. You could hear the notes linger from the reverb even when another note would begin. Rests during and the endings of each track were uncanny in that every drop of reverb and decay could be heard. But, this didn't intefere with the attack of the next note. In fact, attacks had impact. This was particularly noticeable on bass solos and staccotos. The aforementioned bass was impressive. I thought the 1C would be a small floorstander, but it was taller and a little wider than I expected. The bass repsonse in volume and extension was more than adequate in relation to size. Being accustomed to bookshelf speakers, I had no issues with the quantity of bass. I was only mildly concerned about the quality. The midbass was slightly pronounced compared to the low bass and the midbass may have been a little fatter than what I would consider natural. The lowest bass notes were audible and succinct, but seemed to be presented a little more cohesively than the midbass. This may have been a product of setup. But, this was not a major issue at the time and my mind may be emphasizing it more now than is appropriate. Overall, I was impressed with the bass performance.

Again, the treble output I thought was incredibly detailed without being nasty. Details were plentiful. Cymbals sounded like cymbals and not a tinny haze of white noise.

The soundstage was there between the speakers. You could tell where instruments were located in the mix (or on the stage). But, their positions weren't overly pronounced. The soundstage began at the plane of the speakers, but didn't seem to go very deep. The presentation was almost 2-D where instruments are spread across the stage but at the same depth. I don't know whether this was attributable to the recording, the setup or the 320BEE. This simply reminded me that next time I should come prepared with my own music and a little more time.

My initial impression is that the 1C is an excellent speaker overall. I was impressed with the treble response because it really dug into the recording and revealed what I would consider to be all the detail there was to reveal without spitting it in your face or grating your ears. The bass extension was impressive for a manufacturer's entry-level speaker. The bass quality was good too, but I would like to experiment a little more to see if the midbass hump could be eliminated. I understand that Vandersteen includes an excellent manual with very specific setup guidance that might be helpful in this regard. Finally, I would also like to experiment a little more to see if the 1Cs can present a sound stage with some depth. I don't mind that the soundstage begins at the front plane of the speakers instead of being thrown out into the room. On my on system, I enjoy that sensation because it pulls me in; however, I'm used to the soundstage going all the way to the back wall and sometimes apparently beyond it with certain sources and recordings. As a result, I wasn't ready to walk out of the store with them, but I was intrigued enough to want to give them another chance.

These can be had with stands for between $800 and $900. I didn't press for the absolute lowest price because I wasn't going to buy - maybe next time.