Shortening my short list – Thiel 3.6 vs VMPS rm30?


You've all been incredibly helpful in creating my speaker short list. Because I live in a remote rural area and don't have the luxury of auditioning speakers, I'm depending on the opinions/experiences of Audiogoners. So, without further ado... Thiel 3.6's or VMPS rm 30's? Rowland Coherence pre, Edge M4 power & Vandersteen powered sub in a "hard" room with a listening distance of 8-9 ft from speakers. Thanks in advance.
panheadrt
I am currently playing with a pair of Edge G8+. They sound slightly thinner and leaner versus my Pass X350.5 with my Verity Parsifal Encores. I had a pair of Thiel 3.6 for 8 years prior to that, and 2.2 for 7 years before that.

Yes, Thiel 3.6 in a hard room is a disaster waiting to happen, and combining with the Edge amp (if it sounds the same as these G8+). And they need current, your M4 might not be beefy enough. You did not mention how big the room is. You probably want them at least 2 to 3 feet away from the walls. 8 to 9 feet from speaker should be OK. How wide will the speakers be apart?

Thiel 3.6 came out around 1992. The fact that the design lasted this long speaks for itself. They were only replaced by 3.7 last year. I think what Panheadrt was trying to say is that the 2.4 came out only a few years ago and use newer drivers and different crossover/design than the 3.6, so they have different sound characteristics and may suit your room better.

FrankC
While VMPS isnt is no Wilson with build quality, its resale value is about as good or bad as most, as far as bass, VMPS is higjly regarded in this area so there probably was more to the problem then speakers, thats not a common statement about VMPS.
I had the 3.6's for 13 years with a McCormack amp. They love power and space. My room 24x18 was to small they like about 4 feet of space behind them. If you can give them what they need and set them up properly you will not be dissappointed. I went to 2.4's with a THETA amp. Now I am tweaking this system.