Anyone heard the Von Schweikert Unifield 3?

Stringreen,

Bob asked for comments from folks who have heard the Unifield 3. The Unifield 3 is in many ways a scaled-down version of the VR-9. It is a very neutral speaker. If the upstream components produce an anemic sound the Unifield 3 will reflect exactly that. This was clearly illustrated in a comparison of another setup vs. mine. It's not fair to blame the speaker without taking into consideration the room and the upstream components.

What I was cautioning is that there are many including me that have heard this brand and have found them lacking. When I say no bass, I mean it. The texture was wrong: they were flat sounding..no depth, no air... The ancillary equipment included fancy tubes and high priced cables. The speakers were unacceptable to both my friend and me. If you like that sound, fine, but I cautioned in my post against buying hype. Their website, specs, etc., are hard to be believe. I also remember listening to the Jr.s. They too didn't make music. There is usually a house sound to manufacturers. I am simply stating a cautionary note. By the way...I auditioned the 20,000 dollar Triangle speakers and thought the VanSchweikerts were better.

I auditioned a pair of the Unifield 3's a couple of weeks ago in my home. I'm a current user of the VR-4 SR's. I'm also very familiar with the sound of the VR-9's, since a friend of mine has a pair. I found the Unifield 3's being one of the best sounding speakers I've heard. The high's were silky smooth, with no grain. The bass is tweaked on these to deliver a nice warm, rich bass, but no subsonics. Which, as another said, is due to it's small foot print. But I found this trait worked very well with adding a subwoofer to the mix. I listened extensively to these speakers with, and without my Sub (Velodyne DD-18). I found that they mated easily with the sub without any bloating, or muddying up of the music. Because of the low efficiency of the Unifield 3's, I would say you need a big, beefy amp to drive them (which I have). And I agree that like so much other hi-end equipment, their performance is going vary depending on what they are mated with. But in the end, I really liked them, and I am in process of getting a pair.

Thanks for the responses. I will be going to So. Cal. next week to the Von Schweikert showroom to listen to the 3's. I will post my opinions.

Thanks again, Bob

Stringreen- As a very happy VR-7SE owner, I have to agree with Varsharun. Your little or no bass comment is not a characteristic of any VS speaker, so what you obviously heard was a poorly setup system. "fancy tubes and high-priced cables" in no way suggests knowledge of system synergy, etc. I could pretty much guarantee you that is was not "the speakers" that were unacceptable to you, but the system behind them.

Your other comment about "many people having heard that brand and found them lacking" was inappropriate and misleading at best, as this can be said of any manufacturer out there, including Vandersteen. There are many audiophiles around the world, including many who have posted to this forum, who own or have owned and enjoyed VSA speakers for years and have nothing but good things to say about them. You actually might want to hear them in a decently-set-up system before you make such broad negative generalizations about them to someone just looking for some guidance. I know this is subjective and everyone is entitled to their own opinion - I just thought I would add mine.

Bob - Obviously the best guide is your own ears, and you will get to hear VSA speakers in properly set-up systems, which, while not as helpful as an in-home demo, is probably the next best thing, and could actually be better in some ways so you can hear what the speakers are capable of and compare them. You will also probably be given tips as to synergistic amplification, cabling, etc. by the excellent staff at VSA. Good luck Bob and have a great time!!(which I'm sure you will)