Does the Vandersteen 1C Hold Up to Modern Standards?

As far as a more ‘modern sound’, maybe not if you want absolute clarity and detail, but regardless, to me, Vandy’s just sound ‘right’ to my ears.

Well said @bkeske 

I am not sure how much more modern it gets?
most of the “modern stuff” appears to be “modern manufacturing” and “modern marketing”.

At the top shelf, there is a lot of R&D and good engineering in some, but even at the top, there is a lot of designs that do not seem right. (Time and phase)

That said, I did lash out on some new speakers yesterday… which is going to be a bit of project and some months of time until they are ready.
I think that they are better than my 2Cs I got ~37-38 years ago,.. maybe, maybe not. They measure better, and at least I can compare them.

And the fact that I love the 2Cs is saying something when I actual spend money on something else. I heard some 27 k$ focals that I thought sounded better than the 35+ year old Vandys, but not a whole lot better. 

Worst case is I have the 2Cs in the main room, and the smaller speakers in more of a reading room… Plus the Mrs’ old bookshelf jobs (Richter of Au) are a bit dilapidated with the (de)vinyl covering falling off when they get touched.

I doubt I would sell the 2Cs …they are worth more to me than someone would pay me for them. They are too good, 

 

But what is a “more modern sound”?

• I can think of distortion
• … and compression (as two things that are objectively measurable.)
• As well as impulse response… (which most modern speakers still get wrong.)

You have received some great info from Bob, Jim, and Holmz.

I still have my 1C’s, 2C’s, and now Treo’s. All great speakers in their own right. For ‘big sound’ with orchestration, the 2C’s would be better, but, I still listen to my 1C’s in my secondary bedroom system, and they still sound great, even though not optimally set-up. 

How much are they being sold for? I got my 1C’s for about $350 which was a steal. If they are closer to $1K used, I would consider used 2’s, but again, depending on cost, the 1’s used can be a great bargain.

As far as foam surrounds, I believe Richard just stated on the Vandy forum the only 1’s with foam surrounds were some of the original 1B’s, thus, all C’s should have rubber surrounds.

As far as a more ‘modern sound’, maybe not if you want absolute clarity and detail, but regardless, to me, Vandy’s just sound ‘right’ to my ears.

oooops, last time i bought a pair they were 1ci at $1,390 a pair, i see now the + model is $1,887. ;-) There are probably Vandy dealers w demo 1Ci looking to get the  + model. Johnny Rutan is a great Vandy dealer as Bob has noted !

Made in USA ;-)

Jim

oooops, last time i bought a pair they were 1ci at $1,390 a pair, i see now the + model is $1,887. ;-) There are probably Vandy dealers w demo 1Ci looking to get the  + model. Johnny Rutan is a great Vandy dealer as Bob has noted !

Made in USA ;-)

Jim

@spacecadet65 , Jim(@tomic601) probably didn’t consider recent price increases.

I will also say that you could also go with the VLR’s. Nifty little bookshelves that will work best in corners, but can also be stand mounted.

I use them in my office and find them to be a real sleeper in the Vandy lineup.

PM John Rutan (audioconnection). I know he will steer you in the right direction.

Though he is a dealer, he won’t try to sell you something. He offers great advice for free. (And, believe me, I hated dealers until I met Johnny).

Though you probably don’t want to start from scratch, I can say that if you bought a pair of VLR’s or 1’s, added a subwoofer (preferrably a Sub 3), and a Belles Aria Integrated- you’d have the makings of a very impressive system.

My 2 cents...

Bob

@tomic601 Where are these available for $1400? MSRP is almost $1900...

Pair of Model 1 Ci in there somewhere…along w many other speakers, lest i be tagged a fan boy….ha. 

Still in production since 1977 and highly evolved is the 1Ci + model. They sound great but the low diffraction time and phase accurate design is optimized for a sweet spot. A new pair is a inflation beating $1,400 with Soundanchor stands… remarkable value IMO. You can replace drivers and fabric socks yourself w video support on Vandy website. Owners forum same place.

Jim

Thanks for all of the advice folks. I forgot to mention that I have a Schiit Modius D/A and the system runs fully balanced. I'm not sure that it helps much over the D/A that is in the BlueSound Node. But the suggestion from @audiotroy has not been lost on me. The trouble for most of it is that it is so hard to try things out before buying. 

I get that the tonal balance is opposite from the Evos. I'm hoping they are worth the 1 hour drive to get to them. In my heart, I'm hoping for that "sound coming from nowhere" effect that I haven't heard since my friend's Snell A II's back in the day. 

the 1cs are great loudspeakers for the money however they are tonally the exact opposite to the evos  

the 1cs are lacking in detail compared to a more modern tweeter design

so you must tread carefully

i would go with a better dac first

Should be similar to the 2C, which I have had for coming up on 40 years,
At least when I was looking back in the day, I was looking at 1C as well.

Objectively the 2C rate a 4.4 on the olive scale.
So they are still pretty good by modern standards. 
I would make sure that they sound good, as shipping and reforming would add cost. So the Treos should be better, and you would not want to the $ to run up to Treo levels. 

https://www.erinsaudiocorner.com/loudspeakers/vandersteen_model_2/
 

The Vandy 1's are a great bargain for the price, especially used.

If you can demo them, then listen for any distortions that would indicate a bad driver-Buzzing and the like.

All Vandy speakers are time and phase aligned, so they are very easy on the ear.  When set up properly(use the manual-available online), the will offer a wide soundstage, free of 'beaming'.

That you have a sub is good, as the 1's are a bit bass shy-mostly due to their physical limitations-Which is not to say they lack bass, but a sub would definitely improve their low range.

As you are aware, Vandy's are somewhat limited on the used market, so if they sound good and are priced well, I would go for it.

PM me if you want any other info.

bob

Vandersteen does not upgrade a model unless there is a true sonic improvement. If it were me I'd try and find a pair of 1Ci's. I got mine for a really good deal and I use them in my 2nd system.