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B&W vs Vandersteen?

After a long search and lots of auditions I narrowed my options down to 2 very different yet excellent brands. I know they sound very different but still. For my 50 sq.meter living room with 5 meters between the wall and the sofa (something like 3,7 meters between the speakers and my ears) and approx. 2,4 meters distance between the centers of the speakers I'm choosing between B&W and Vandersteen at the moment. Each option has something going for and against it.

Vandersteen 3A Signature is

much cheaper than even 802, not to mention 801 and 800 and is not as difficult to drive. I can buy it right now.

It has glorious musical midrange and highs and sounds big.

Since Vandies are not as deep as B&W I can give them more space between the speakers and the wall - up to 1 meter (maximum 60 - 70 cm in case of B&W)

But I'm not sure if it can be as open and dyamic or as fast and tight with heavy metal and other modern rock music. Also I'm not sure it's perfect for movies because of the same PRAT issues.

And most likely I'll have to move away from the well known McIntosh line (I'm a Mac guy for many years now) since Mac and Vandersteen is not a perfect match and get back on audiophile treadmill of choosing amps etc.

The weird small-spades connections make any audition of cables almost impossible since I can only use cables specially made for Vandies.

B&W 800 or 801 or 802?

sound absolutely neutral and equally great with Carpenters and Celtic Frost.

The can be cranked up as high as possible without becoming shouty. Their speed must be perfect for HT use.

I can stay with Macs since they are a classic combo.

Demand huge and highly expensive amps.

Are much more expensive themselves. The only model from the old 800D line still available is 802 so unless I can find a good deal on used 801 and 802 I'll have to settle for 802s or start saving for new 800 Diamonds which I'll be able to afford by the end of this year with good luck...

What do you guys think? I know some would say - audition both at home and choose for yourself. Not possible at the moment and anyway I'm interested in your opinions!
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antonkk
bigkidz
3,307 posts
 
Call John Rutan at Audio Connection who is a dealer in Verona, New Jersey. John carries both lines and I think is the largest Vandy dealer in the US. He is an excellent person and will give you the best advice for your equipment. John knows how to mate and match components to get the best out of both speakers. You simply cannot go by most opinions here because John can get the best out of each speaker line. His number is 973.239.1799. I am no way affiliated with the store and John.

http://www.audioconnect.com/
jeffkad
211 posts
 
I will throw my two cents in here and say that I've listened to the 802D against lots of competition and they hold their own and sound great. As you already know, all spkrs have trade-offs. The 802D's compromises are ones that I can easily live with. As for Budt's complaints, hey, they are his ears, his room, his music, his electronics and his taste. To each their own. I just don't agree with him. BTW, I recently auditioned Maggie 20.1s at Audio Connection and I must concur. John really seems to know his stuff. Good luck. Both are very good choices.
budt
157 posts
 
As a last ditch effort I am going to try a big kick ass power conditioner( torus) and a bigger amp( maybe a 600 watt per channel). Maybe that will wake the 802Ds up.I know 330 per channel of bryston power isn't enough.Maybe a digital amp is the answer.
What amp were used to drive the 802Ds?
macdadtexas
1,794 posts
 
A buddy of mine uses the McIntosh 501's that we didn't like with my Maggies, but sound absolutely SUBLIME with his B & W's
daverz
487 posts
 
I've only heard the 802D in the shop, where the music seemed to just float free of the speakers. Though deeply impressed, I was not willing to part with $14k at the time. I was not as favorably impressed with either 803 as I found the B&W tweeter in these models attracted too much attention to itself.

However, if you're considering the 802Ds, why not consider the Quatros as well? The Quatro bass (120 Hz and under) can be tailored to the room and to taste, which can make a huge difference in how the rest of the audio spectrum is perceived by the ear.
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