You might want to try a different CD player. I know when I bought a higher end CD player the bass response of my system went up noticeably. If you don't want to spend money try the following: 1. Spike the speakers. 2. Put lead shot or sand in the speaker stands. 3. Verify the speakers are firmly connected to their stands. 4. Put the speakers a little closer to the wall. You will pay a little in imaging. 5. Biwire the speakers. I did this with mine and noticed a sound improvement. 6. Shorten your speaker cables as much as possible & keep them off the ground. 7. Clean all of your connectors. 8. Sit further from your speakers. Low bass makes very large standing waves that you cannot hear up close. If you do want to spend money you can 1. Buy a cheap solid state amp for the low end. Pick up an old adcom, rotel, denon etc. Put your lower quality amp on the bottom. 2. Buy a used Vandersteen sub. I have heard the old 10 vintage 2w, and thought it added a lot to the vandersteen 2's.
Vandersteen 2Ce and bass performance
I recently bought a 7-month old pair of Vandersteen 2Ce speakers and stands. I am running them with an Adcom 545 MKII and GFP555 Pre Amp. They are biwired with Monster M1.4s bi-wire. The room is large and hard (windows, maple floors, drywall, and brick). I'm hard up for more bass. I'm particularly concerened with the fact that so much of the musical stage is convincing and yet the kick drum in so much of my music sounds reticent. The speakers are reputed for "excellent bass extension," and I do not remember this reticence when auditioning other 2Ces in a local dealer. Suggestions for how to evaluate or improve this situation?? Any help is appreciated.