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Help: Searching for Vandersteen-like speakers...

I have been searching hi and lo for the right speakers until I found the Vandersteen 2Ce and I thought my search was done. Ok, so, after hearing a few amps, I think I am really in love with SET tube amps of one kind or another. The thing about SET amps that I have seen is they have very low wattage(one had 3 watts and another had 18 watts) and this leaves the Vandersteens out in the cold with an 86db sensitivity. I can see why Vandersteens go well with SS amps. Plus, besides the sensitivty, Vandersteen 2Ce also have a recommended amplification of 40 to 160 watts. This sort of leaves SET amps right out of the question.

My thing here is that I would like to find something like the Vandersteen 2Ce in the $1500 dollar range or else forget about an SET; however, if all else fails, I will go back to my original idea of mating the 2Ce with an ARC 100 watt amp.

Any ideas?
matchstikman

Showing 4 responses by phasecorrect

phasecorrect's avatar
phasecorrect
2,013 posts
 
Maybe a tube pre, tight solid state bass power,coupled with Vandy boxless sound...I wouldnt get too wound up on SETs...there is only one Vandersteen...and a plethora of ways to incorporate tube sound...
phasecorrect's avatar
phasecorrect
2,013 posts
 
Precisely...all the benefits of tube "warmth" in the highs with tight,clean,bass from the SS power...am I the man or what? Jolida makes some decent hybrids...check out their website....if you want to go that route...
phasecorrect's avatar
phasecorrect
2,013 posts
 
Even with speakers that supposedly do 35hz...it is recommended to crossover the sub at an octave higher...in this case 75 hz...because BOTH would be -3db down at 35hz...

A note on Vandersteens:although I do like their sound, they are not designed to be played even remotely loud, and their bass...although musical...is not the fatest or tightest bass around....for this reason...SS bass power is a must...a tube pre helps "round" things out....
phasecorrect's avatar
phasecorrect
2,013 posts
 
Bigtree...my experience with Vandies have been relegated to the series 1 and 2 loudspeakers...the 2 being their best seller...and supposedly the best-selling "hi-end" speaker of all time..with over 100,000 pairs sold...and I must stress...I do like Vandies...and for their price range any bass at all is a plus...but to be honest...I do feel bass performance is their weakest ability...odd since they are known for erring on the side of bass...but for bass dominant material or complex musical passages...especially at what i would consider modest volume...the bass quickly became ill-defined and somewhat slow...they are however outstanding on vocals,strings,acoustic material,etc...and work reasonably well with laid back jazz,hip-hop,trance,etc at low volumes...only when slightly pressed...the speaker "gives out" and appears to be working more hard than it should....
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