It is hard to find a recent review of these speakers. The few comments I been able to find on the Mk 11 version is that they are either very good or very bad. All reviews seem to like the bass response, that is a good thing, but what about all the other qualities ? Like treble, midrange, dynamics, soundstage , etc.
I am really interested in these (I like the way the look )but I have no way to audition them in the southeast corner of Michigan.
So, please anyone that can give an honest opinion of the speakers sonic qualities would be appreciated.
If your comments sound like a winner, I may hop on a plane to hear them somewhere.
Your room is very close to mine in size. My room is 15.5' x 26' and I have my HSEs 76" into the room measured to the back of the cabinet. They are only about 8 ft. apart, center to center with about 1" of toe in. This seems to give me the best balance between SS width and image density. But if the Sr.s are like other VS offerings I have heard, you probably are only about half way there with break in. It took my original VR4s about about 500-600 hrs before I felt they sounded their best.
Ozzy It took I'd say at least 500 hours for full break in of my VR4Sr's but from where you are they should be pretty stable, and just get slowly sweeter and better. I have not had much trouble at all with bass even though I am only about 18 inches off the front wall, given the new forward firing port. Von and his son both have said to me that they really attempted to design so that closer front wall placement would be possible. What I do see with close placement (and a TV in between - even covered with blankets) is a challenge in getting the soundstage to really lock in fully. It is a trade off I have to do becuase of being in a multi-use room.
I have a large 62" LCD in between the speakers. I have placed a ASC 1/2 tube trap behind the TV and I have 16" dia 8 feet tall Tube traps in the corners. I also have 3 room lens ,2 outside the speakers and the third behind my listening position. The first and second reflections also are treated.
I am using the room also for home theatre with a seperate Amp, Equipment and speakers for that.
Actually, the VS front speakers are 52" from the back wall and with the front port I thought it would be fine at that distance. I can bring them out a few more inches but beyond that with my speaker cables it would mean I would have to move my Pass Labs Amp out into the room. However, I like the Amp where it is, on the side of my TV stand .
When I turn down the VS rear speakers the soundstage seems to lock in better, but the instructions says in order to break the rear speakers in, let them play at full level until all the speakers are broke in.
Wow, you guys are saying 500 hours, thats a long time for break in. But,what the hey. They do seem to sound more refined now than from day one.
Since I have the speakers almost 10 feet apart I tried sitting that same distance to them. You know the triangle thing. I find that moving back a few feet more brings the soundstage together more. Thanks again.
Definitely need to play the VS at least 400-500 hours of solid music playing level and leave the rear tweeters on too. After that full burn in, you can fine tune the rear tweeters to your liking. I love my VR-4 SRs MKI, they are really that good. With proper placement and equipment/cabling you will be rewarded. It does take time, but it is well worth it. I still keep getting a grin on my face everytime I play music thru the SRs...money well spent.
Tvad, Courtvision21@, Audioblazer, I will continue on with playing music thru them for additional breakin. Probably at some point , I will turn down the rear speakers. Are you guys using them at full output?
The new spikes provided with the Mk2 version are the cheap screw type not the Audio Points as in the Mk1. For the speaker Outriggers that I mentioned earlier go to the Soundocity web site. The metal bar frames screw in just like the spikes did , for the VS you have to ask for 3/8"-16 thread size Go to this site for a picture.http://www.soundocity.com/Picture_0106.jpg
They extend outside of the speakers. The spikes are adjustable and allow the speakers to be fully stablized. I am using the 2" tall spike and they look really cool. They come in a Black/chrome or gold brass finish
After my SRs were fully burned in (after 500 hrs), I started to adjust the rear level tweeters and critique. The rear tweeter settings, depend on your room, equipment/cabling and personal tastes. With all these pre-requisites factored in, I dialed mine in at about 6-7. At that level, I find a good balance. Obviously your mileage may vary due to your own room, equipment/cabling and personal tastes.
Does anyone have any pics of the VR-4SR MK2 in Ebony? There aren't very many pics of this finish anywhere. The sample pic looks like they are brown and black striped. If you have any pics, send them to me at davids39@bigplanet.com. Ozzy, do your speakers sound good at lower volumes?
Spenceroo, the outriggers mounted into the same holes that the spikes go into. They look great !. My floor (cement) was uneven and all speakers would rock where I placed them. With these outriggers the babies are level and solid. Great product. I have 302 hours on the speakers. Low volumes they sound great. I cant wait until I can start turning down the rear speakers, I think with my room, full on is too much.
I just got done moving the speakers around in my room and I find that now the rear speakers full on sounds better. Also, after 300 hours of music playing thru them they are developing a very large soundstage.
I now have my speakers 36" measured from the side of the speakers to the side wall. The back of the speakers are 30" from the back wall, making the front of the speakers about 59" from the back wall. Do I need to bring these out into the room even more? Should they go closer to the side walls?
After reading Douglas excellent review, he had them placed 40" out into the room and 30" from the side walls. To place mine at those positions would require big time room and equipment re-arrangement.
But, I would like to place them in the optimun location. With the weight of these speakers and the outriggers 2" high spikes moving them is a challange.
Please share your placement info.
My room is 18' x 25' with a 8 foot ceiling. I have 8 foot 16" tube traps in the corners.
You must have a verified phone number and physical address in order to post in the Audiogon Forums. Please return to Audiogon.com and complete this step. If you have any questions please contact Support.
