End of life for Vandersteen IICe?


Hey guys, I have a pair of Vandersteen 2Ce’s that were blown out by a house sitter. To the best of my diagnosing ability, multiple drivers are blown and the crossovers are toast. They are cosmetically in extremely good condition. They’ve been replaced by a pair of Vandersteen 3A’s. Any advice on what I can do with them short of taking them to the landfill?? I cringe at the idea of doing that but I’m getting pretty tired of seeing them sitting around. I’d be happy if a hobbyist was willing to pay the shipping to work on them (which I am not interested in doing). I have the original boxes.

Also have the factory stands which I suppose are pretty marketable.

 

Thanks in advance for any ideas or suggestions.

 

 

 

cantarkus

Hey guys, to follow up on the remaining questions:

1. I did contact Vandersteen and they did not think repairs were worth the cost.

2. The speakers are too tall (and don’t have solid sides!) to be used as side tables.

3. Using them to build bass traps is a very cool idea!

4. I will put the stands up for sale and make an effort to post the speakers, as it is, for a local buyer.

I will put the stands up for sale and make post the speakers, as is, for a local buyer.

Thanks again for the feedback.

 

 

 

 

 

   Checking the amp specs,  arc welder!  If bridged it could put out 600w/channel-8ohms!   My Owners Manual for my 2Ci's has 2 pages of Power Handling info that always seemed very conservative, but max recommended power is 160w@8ohlms.  It talks about the voice coils need to cool between loud passages...a graph shows like 2 mins at full 160w draw.  The horse has left the barn but best use caution with those 3A's too!

Have you tried contacting Vandersteen and see if they will repair or sell you the crossover?

I had a pair of the original Model 2s. When the drivers went out I gutted the interior enclosures and made Bass traps out of them using material from ATS Acoustics.

Wow. All drivers and crossovers?!!! I also would like to know what caused it.  I would think anything this catastrophic would take out the Adcoms too. 

I would list them as Come Get Them Free.   Someone out there (close to you) would not mind tinkering with them.  I have drivers.  Can buy a crossovers.  Building or shipping the boxes as nice as the 2ce's is a problem for me.  Of course, won't sound like a 2ce.

I once blew a midrange driver on my 2CE Signature II and good thing Vandersteen sold me a new midrange driver, installed it myself and all is good now, it has been over ten years now and my 2CE Signature II still sounding great today.

Jayant, I forgot to answer your question. They were blown out by a pair of Adcom GFA555s that are in bi-amped/bi-wired configuration.

Thanks everybody for the useful suggestions. Really appreciate it! Wolfie, I will message you directly.

I’d be interested in having them for a rebuild. Pretty sure I can repair those original drivers. I’ve done more difficult repair jobs.

cantarkus

 

I am curious- what Amp blew out your Vandy II CE speakers?

Based upon where you live, list them (as is) on the net (Craigslist, eBay, Here, U.S Audiomart). Perhaps another Audiophile can use the other parts.

 

Happy Listening!

I'd second @panzrwagn's comment. Maybe someone else can use the cabinets or salvage other parts, or use them as the basis for a project with different drivers. If something isn't worth selling, I always try to give it away to an interested party before putting it in the trash.

I'd c-list them for a nominal sum, buyer pickup. Your junk, another's treasure.

Landfill I’m sorry to say. You can buy another pair used for less than you can but replacement parts and then comes your labor…

If you are handy and can do some light soldering, then contact Vandersteen to see what it costs to replace the drivers and crossovers.

And, since you are Vandy owner, then post on the Vandy forum(go to the Vandy website). I bet Mr. V. will answer.

Bob

Sounds like they are dead and not worth fixing. You can buy a clean used pair for less than $500, so it wouldn’t be worth putting money into them. Nothing lives forever! You can probably sell the stands though.