Hi Tubegroover,
I am not going to go into detail telling you about my various auditions of the Vandersteens and everything surrounding that and why I ultimately passed on them. As I think this thread has already derailed enough and its quite sad. Having folks come here to bash or give unsolicited negative opinions, on a VS thread no less, about how bad those speakers and the company are, with generalizations, even admitting they did not even listen to the speakers in question, speaks volumes about the posters. But back to the Vandies for a moment. I would have rather spent 17K rather than almost double for my speakers. As I really did want to like them, given good press and all. But ultimately they did not impress me at all. Sorry if that offends you. There were lots of things I did not like about them for their asking price, including the minor inconsequential things like their looks, (they are truly ugly IMO, especially for 17K), but others seem to like that plain jane look . The mid-bass hump was more like pronounced bass, overbloated and overdone. It was with various pieces of music, including vinyl. Maybe the setting on the bass amps were off but I heard that in various setups. I have a couple dealers here where I live that carry/carried Vandersteens, but the auxiliaries where I listened to them the most were all Macintosh equipment, the other place was a mish mash of equipment, but mostly Ayre. So maybe it was that, but I didnt think so at the time. I have been an audiophile for 20 years and I know what I hear. Again, sorry if that flies in the face of your experience . I would not have brought it up if not goaded by Stringreen. Maybe with setup and mix and matching of auxiliary equipment it would be better, and probably is, but I had heard enough at that point to turn me off altogether. I am sure the 7s are better, but at 45K they better be.
Stringreen
My hearing is perfect. Perfect flat line at 0db on the audiogram, six years running. I get it checked yearly. Also I go to dozens of concerts yearly including many unplugged ones. I love all types of music. In fact I am going to see Blackfield next week should be awesome. It is funny tho how quickly you went on the defensive when I said something negative about your speakers. Someone famous once said you can dish it out but you cant take it. You should think about that before posting broad generalizations about anything, especially negative ones. Oh BTW, the comment that Chad made about you being a musician, as if that somehow entitles you to some special hearing ability is nonsense and does not make you an authority for anything, especially in what real music sounds like. I know quite a few musicians personally that are stone deaf because of all the playing they have done in their life and a acoustic guitar player or two that couldnt strum a chord cleanly if their life depended on it. Besides, most of my musician friends listen to pro gear that sounds absolutely NOTHING like your Vandersteens, and most musicians would probably not be caught dead listening to them. But hey, I am glad you derive pleasure from your speakers, and I have no doubt you have optimized them to your liking, but dont make judgment calls about what others listen to and like just because it doesnt fit into your small view of things/experiences. Also WGAS that Albert doesnt belong to some high and mighty audio fraternity, as if that has any bearing on quality of speakers the man designs.
Back to the music boys....Im done with this nonsense.
