How would you desribe Von Schweiket VR-4jr sound?

No I don't own the VR4jrs...but I have heard them in many different dealer rooms and shows over the years. The only time these speakers caught my attention was at the NY Highend Show this year. They were being driven by the DK integrated with NOS Mullards and sounded very impressive, actually the first time ever it sounded good to me. The imaging/staging/dynamics/bass were superb with the DK. Before this, the VR4jrs always sounded hi-fi to me. If I didn't own better similarly priced speakers, I would have seriously considered buying a pair. But after about 1/2 hr of listening, something started to bother me. I was getting fatigued because the upper midrange and highs sounded gritty to me. Not sure if it was the amp, speaker, CDP etc. Too bad. I was really impressed for the first 1/2 hour.

Bartinimi, "sounded hi-fi" means unnatural. Perhaps I should have said "mid-fi", like many of the cheaper Sony's, Marantz's, pioneer's, etc. But don't misunderstand me, I would not put VR4jrs in that category at all. Before the NY Highend Show, they sounded good but below what you would expect for $4000.

I think most who have not had a chance to hear speakers with seamless integration of drivers such Apogee planars, full range electrostats, Source Technologies mentioned above, or Hyperion 938s (which I own) would not appreciate the mild lack of driver integration that the VR4jrs can exhibit. VR4jrs are very dynamic, alive sounding with great imaging, but they do lack that coherence you hear with the speakers I mentioned above. For me it was very enjoyable to listen to the VR4jrs for a short time, but in the long run I don't think I could live with it.

Luciahd, you misquote me. I said the VR4jrs sounded "unnatural" when I auditioned them prior to the NY Highend Show, and I did not say they sound "midfi" if you read my posts carefully. At the Show, as I have stated over and over, the speakers really impressed me driven by the DK. I'm very sensitive to high frequency information - I literally can not walk a city block if I hear car brakes squeak. I hear what I hear, and I couldn't get over the high fequency "grit" of the VR4jr room at the Show.

I can't comment on the wood version of the 938s you heard because I was not there. But I can comment on the black 938s you heard at the Show because I was there. The room was small and I do agree with you to some extent on the bass and high freq performance at the Show. I also heard them at the '94 NY show, and they sounded so different. They were in a larger room, the same size as the VR4jrs were in at this years show, and they were the best sound at the Show for me in '94. So much so I bought them based on the show performance. They're comparable and in some ways better than Apogees and stat setups I was used to because of the dynamics of the 938s.

As for Pink Floyd's DSOTM, I have the SACD version and played it through my 938s using the 70lb class A Junson integrated amp. Let me tell you, the imaging, bass, and dynamics were on par with the VR4jr setup at the Show and without the high frequency "grit" I heard through the VR4jrs. Too bad the Jungson developed a problem just as it was starting to open up, and I had to return it for a replacement. So I can't agree with you when you say the 938s are only good for small jazz combo or pop.

I don't know if the high freq anomaly is inherent in the VR4jrs, but I have heard similar anomaly on different setups through the VR4jrs. May be a really high quality class A amp may get rid of the problem. I have not heard this problem with the higher models from VS.

Hey, if the VR4jrs do it for you, congradulations! I'm happy for you. In the end, it's your ears that matter, not what others say. But it's always fun to have a friendly discourse.

Brrgr, I agree with you completely about enjoying the music and not get caught up with the equipment. Bravo, very well said!