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Vandersteen 5a, 15 years old vs. new Vandersteen Quatro Wood (upgrade or downgrade)

I currently have a Vandersteen 5A purchased about 15 years ago in great condition. My  equipment  is Thor 150 watt  tube EL-34 monoblocks with a Thor linestage, Sony SACD player and a middle of the road VPI turntable. Was reading about the Vandersteen Quatro Wood CT which I believe retails for $15,000.00. The wood has the carbon tweeter, my 5A's do not. The Quatro also has a 250 watt amplifier for the built in sub while my 5A's have a 400 watt amp.  If I purchased a new Quatro Wood and sold my 5a's would the resulting sound be better overall in my 8 1/2 by 15 foot room?
 My rationale for considering this upgrade, is that I would be getting a speaker with all new parts and would obtain a new warranty.  Any thoughts would be helpful.  In short is todays' Quatro Wood CT a better sounding speaker than my old 5A?  Would this change be an upgrade and would it yield an improvement in sound to justify the cost?

Thank you. 

M

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stringreen's avatar
stringreen
6,368 posts
 
I don't think so.  I have 5A's and love them.  I heard the 5A carbon which has the updated carbon tweeter....  maybe a bit cleaner/clearer, but not by very much at all.  My wife could hear no difference. I'm using Ayre equipment...don't know your Thor so can't judge.  I would guess that Vandersteens work better with solid state ...Vandersteens have a somewhat rolled high end to begin with.  I don't know what a tube amp contributes to the overall sound.
gdnrbob
4,409 posts
 
The best person (besides calling Mr. V- and he will call back), is to PM John Rutan (Audioconnection). He is very knowledgeable about equipment and will probably know if you current set up will avail you to the benefits of upgrading.
That being said, 15 years is a long time, and Vandersteen has been upgrading their speakers all the while (this occurs within the model), so I would say a pair of Quatro's should be an improvement-albeit probably a subtle one.
If I had the space, I probably would have bought them from you, but, alas, I only have room for Treo's.😣
Bob
gdnrbob
4,409 posts
 
@stringreen,
I use Ayre and Atmasphere (tubes for the winter).
Both have their signatures, but they (tubes) do work with Vandy's.
Bob
rpeluso
1,015 posts
 
FWIW, I have a pair of 5A loudspeakers, probably ~9 years old, and would not think of ever trading them in, certainly not for a Quatro.  Like stringreen I love them, and while there may be subtle differences in the CT, I don't think its worth the cost.  Nothing is absolute, but I absolutely love these speakers.  Johnny might advise you to think about a purchase of vandy amps.
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