i also have a pair of VR-9's. my previous speakers were eggleston andra-2's, which are very musical and simply a joy to listen to hour after hour. so i simply adjusted the 9's to sound like the egg's-the 9's kinda sound similar to the egglestons anyway; this took about 2 weeks to accomplish, and then i was done fiddling around for the most part.
the von schweikert midrange driver is, for me, the most outstanding feature and upgrade over the egglestons- transparency and speed similar to magnaplanars; the egg's have an esotar tweeter which for me is as good as it gets, and excellent bass extending to 20Hz, which again is totally adequate. since other von schweikert speakers possess the same midrange driver and, i would assume, an excellent crossover array, you don't have to spend alot to get alot. however, the 9's are meant to portray a full symphony orchestra effortlessly in your own living room (or sound room if you're fortunate enough to have one). since i do NOT have a dedicated room, the adjustments on the back let you taylor the sound to good effect- in my case, although i have some echobusters (on the ceiling!) and a thick carpet, that's all i've done, as i wanted to keep my furnishings and my artwork intact. the speakers do the rest. now, having 2000 watts and two 15 inch subs in the room do require that you keep the bass end of the spectrum in check. this is more speaker than i need, but they still integrate themselves very effectively into the room that i have, with it's various limitations.
i've heard the wilson alexandrias, and i feel the VR-9's possess the same level of accuracy, produce the same sense of scale, have even deeper bass (not that "I" personally have need of that subterrainian level). the wilsons are adjustable as well as the von schweikerts, but in a different way. either speaker deserves professional setup with measuring equipment. but that i was able to adjust the 9's all by myself with minimal effort isn't such a bad thing either. one more thing- i don't have nearly the level of equipment mike l. has, but the speakers sound very, very good just the same.
