Did anyone hear these at the show? Any comments? I am very interested! Thanks, Edward |
Checking the thead below titled..."Von Schweikert VR 4 jr. Worth upgrading to MKII?",I noticed Forum member Bblilikoi posts this observation....
"I just heard the VR 4 JR Anniversary at CES '08 and was very impressed. The sound seemed more lively and forward than other iterations, but I've not lived with any in the line and only heard them at shows or at a dealer's. That said, the sound was very resolving, live, and energetic without being bright or edgy. I normally prefer a more relaxed and smooth presentation, but I have to say I was impressed." |
I just posted about this in another thread as well. First let me say that I love my VR4jr's (mk1)and have no plans to change / upgrade them.
Having said that, the Anniversary editions have a huge / enveloping sound stage, great detail and a wonderful spectral balance. The speakers and room seemed to disappear as soon as the music started.
Overall a step up to my VR4jr's. |
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The all USA assembled Anniversary is now in the same league as their larger siblings in terms of clarity and pitch definition except now you don't need a huge room like you would with a VR-4SR mk.2. It appears they are now using the same Scanspeak Revelator tweeters as those used in the original VR-7 HSEs as well as a smaller version of the Audax mid drivers used in the SRs on up to the VR-11s.
I went to show with VR-4 Mk.2s last year. The A's are a huge step forward.
What surprised me at CES was that they were running it with a ~20 watt 300B push pull (or is it parallel) from Audiospace. While I think 20 watts was enough for the Venetian suite I did hear the amps glare on some loud passages. I'm sure given a bit more juice the Jr. A's would have been even more impressive.
Too bad the new UniField line from VSA was only on static display. |
Does anybody know how the $6,000 African Hazelwood VR4 Anniversary Edition compares in sound to the more expensive Piano Black VR4 Anniversary Special Edition? I'm sure that they both sound great, but I wonder how much difference there is in sound. Do they both have all of the same drivers. Thanks again! |
Those of you at the show probably know that the APL player was being used in that room. On Thursday afternoon about 3:30 just before the end of the event, an APL prototype tube hybrid was put in the system in place of the Audio Space. I was on the end of the couch listening when Albert sat in the middle (sweet spot) and took a serious listen. He got up and took Alex Peychev aside for a talk.
I can tell you that the APL amp took those speakers up to a much higher level. The clarity was the most obvious improvement with a more three dimensional presentation. It was an obvious difference. |
The Audiospace 300B pp integrated sounded very impressive with the VR4 Anniversary, especially it's only about $4k. Didn't see the APL hydrid there. For sure it'll be for a bundle considering it's APL. Their 3.0 NWO cd player there is going for $30k! |
Hi M-mibby. I was told the Audiospace is $4700.00. The APL hybrid integrated is supposed to be $5000.00. I believe it uses the ecc99 tubes and has 85 or 90 wpc and is able to drive difficult loads.
I too thought the sound in that room was good with the audiospace but when the APL integrated went in it all came together and showed what the VR4 Anniversary were capable of. Besides the noticable difference in clarity as I mentioned above, a slight upper midrange glare disappeared and the bass went deeper as well.
When this amp is availabe, I'm sure that Alex Peychev will have another big hit. Especially for the price. |
Has anyone heard the African hazelwood version? |
Hi Frank, I went early in day 1 of the show and saw the guy from Audio Space brought their KT88 version of R3.1 to try with the VR-4; great clarity and more pace and punch, but without the magic in the mids from 300B's. It's easy to get more bass out of solid-state backends, just not sure how it would perform better than what 300B can give you in the mids, which is my sweet spot, and most of other's too. That's why VS stayed with the 300Bs I think. I was a bit disppointed though that the VS room didn't have analog source to show the tubed phono section of the R3.1. Definitely want to listen to the hybrid to see what it is all about. Do you know when it's out? You must have missed the AS sign in VS's room; it said $3900. And I looked it up from AS's site, 300B is $3900, KT88 is cheaper.
http://www.gini.com/index.php?id=int-amp |
The Audio Space 3.1 ref integrated 300B is only $3990 with phono(tube) Also avaiable with more power is a new 3.1 Ref integrated KT88 version at $3390 both of these pieces were very well recieved at out home show this fall in Michigan. If anyone would like more info please see us at PrimeOnemedia.com
or call me Dennis at 248-553-4573 |
Sorry for the misinformation on the Audiospace price. Your right, I didn't pay much attention to the price sign at the show. Someone else told me $4700.00 later. I do know that Albert was VERY impressed with the APL unit. |
I've spoken with Chris Moon, the Director of Marketing, a few days ago, and they have not yet set the price for the new Anniversary, which is supposed to be out in about a month. But he indicated that the price will be around $7,000 due to the raising cost of manufacturing. |
It has been several weeks. Has anyone heard the price of these yet? Also does anyone know when VS will be updating their now outdated website? |
Hi Elb,
I heard them at CES in January. I was very impressed. Overall one of the most natural sounding speakers I heard at the show until you get to about 4 times the price. The VS people were very friendly and knowledgeable. VS speakers are some of the best there is and they work well with tubes and solid state gear. There are LOTS of good speakers in this price range though - especially if you are willing to buy used on audiogon. Just my two cents trying to share my experience.
Brad |
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