Vandersteen 2ce Signature, I don't get it!

[Geoffcin]

Just got a used pair, excellent condition. But here goes, These are in my 24 year audio experience the worst speakers I've ever owned. I hear bass, treble, no midrange presence. Midrange suckout galore. I hear a smoothness I guess, but lacking transparency, inner detail, slow, veiled. Everything upstream equipment wise is fine. I just got rid of my Dynaudio monitors and boy what I wouldn't give to get them back.

I've tried every speaker position short of hanging them from the ceiling with fishing line.

I know I'm stepping on sacred toe ground here, but when is the last time Vandersteen 2ce owners that rave about this speaker went to hear live music. Cause I'm not hearing anything close to it.

Sorry Vandy guys following, just my opinion here!

Ok, fire away.

My father has a set of big vandys. I'm OK with them, but the real thing is they work well for him, and that's all that really matters. I like my Maggie 3.6's better. Some people prefer another sound and that's OK, heck, I even have a totally different rig for HT and I love it too. If you've got issues with your speakers, especially ones as easily sold as the vandys, but all means SELL them.

Oh. I didn't find ANY suckout in the midrange with the vandys, perhaps you have a defective set?

[RGA]

Wooch

"The reviewers who own vandersteen and only vandersteen - ever in your life see them review something positively that wasn't a Vandersteen? Ahh."

And? Have you? Your answer should be YES so what's your point. They positevely review spekaers they personally wouldn't want to own. Ahh yet again. I positvely reviewed the Paradigm Atom and Wharfedale 8.2 - but I would not want them.

[Buzz Roll]

The tough thing with Vandys is set up (the listening window is rather small). I've heard that they have to sit on the stands just right (tilt), otherwise the sound goes out the window. When they are set right, they do perform very well.

I didn't notice a suck-out in the mids either.

[Woochifer]

The tough thing with Vandys is set up (the listening window is rather small). I've heard that they have to sit on the stands just right (tilt), otherwise the sound goes out the window. When they are set right, they do perform very well.

I didn't notice a suck-out in the mids either.

I heard a set of the 2ce Sigs in a 5.1 setup with the speakers aligned to the ITU reference placement, and in that arrangement, they sounded amazing. Still had the bizarre tonal characteristics that I'd noted earlier, but the imaging was about as spot on as I've ever heard in a multichannel system. I also heard the 1c in a different room, and they needed some tweaking to get the imaging right. But, I didn't think that they were nearly as fussy as some of the panel speakers that I've tried.

[Garrardman]

I'd never heard Vandersteen's until the Bristol (UK) hi-fi show last February, when Exposure were using a pair of 2CE's.

I thought they were bl**dy fantastic, and the people I went with hated them!

Guess they do polarise opinion.............................

Adam.

[Woochifer]

"The reviewers who own vandersteen and only vandersteen - ever in your life see them review something positively that wasn't a Vandersteen? Ahh."

And? Have you? Your answer should be YES so what's your point. They positevely review spekaers they personally wouldn't want to own. Ahh yet again. I positvely reviewed the Paradigm Atom and Wharfedale 8.2 - but I would not want them.

The point is that you're writing in riddles. If you intended to make a point, why not just state it, rather than talk in these self-aggrandizing circles just so you can insert your little "Ahh" at the end? As such, it's quite easy to interpret your sentence the way that 46min did. Sometimes your excesses are your own worst enemy.

[heywood]

My father has a set of big vandys. I'm OK with them, but the real thing is they work well for him, and that's all that really matters. I like my Maggie 3.6's better. Some people prefer another sound and that's OK, heck, I even have a totally different rig for HT and I love it too. If you've got issues with your speakers, especially ones as easily sold as the vandys, but all means SELL them.

Oh. I didn't find ANY suckout in the midrange with the vandys, perhaps you have a defective set?

Maybe I used to strong of language in regards to ''midrange suckout". I notice some speakers present the sound up front, sort of an ''in your face'' sound more like live music up close. That's in all fairness to the Vandy's, a preference I've cultivated over the years. I think a few years back I might have actually preferred the Vandersteens sound, I would call it more of a studio presentation quality ( for lack of a better phrase). Again please forgive my verbage. It's hard to find analogies to describe something that in the end is so subjective.

The 2ce's display in general a laid back perspective( Relatively Speaking!) to the music ''Presentation'' in contrast to the speakers I've grown accustomed to as of late. That's a big thing with me these days is how the music is so to speak ''laid out'' even with warts and all before you. as opposed to pleasing sounds and laid back.

Granted the systems I've heard lately are very efficient Horn loaded and single driver based speakers with small powered single ended tube amps. The sound is to the extreme almost very forward to the unaccustomed ear. It was hard to get used to a first. My Dynaudio's were foward too!

But I started noticing that it felt more like the excitement of a live performance. Fast! Stand up and take notice! Macrodynamics Galore! I now realize that the ''live sound'' sound is definitely not to everyone's liking like I assumed.

The Vandersteen 2ce Signatures just surprised me to say the least, because it has such a huge following. And it was just simply hard to fathom how so many people preferred that type of presentation.

My Sky Cam has pulled back since last week when I was so emotional about my purchase.

I'm sorry my topic generated such a semi-heated discussion on the reviewer topic. I tried to stay out of that since I didn't have much knowledge on the subject. I sensed there was a ''history'' there if you know what I mean.

Also just an FYI here; My amp that everyone questioned might be the culprit? It's an amp that Richard Vandersteen is very familiar with according to a few dealers I've talked to. It's an Audio Research VT100 MK.II- powerful- trust me.

This amp dove the Stew! out of my 86 db efficient 4 ohm load Dynaudio Contour 1.3 MKII's. where the Odyssey Stratos ( I can hear the faint rumblings in the distance of a new heated discussion) became unstable. 150 WPC 40 amps High Damping Factor!!!
Go Figure!

Oh yes, I almost forgot, I owned the Vandersteens for a week and sold them in a day.

Thanks, Let the Show begin- and I agree- let's have some fun- not so serious- it's just audio. Yea I know, I've got room to talk. huh?