Speakers costing range of 2500-3500 per pair

I have to say that I too like the Vandersteen 2's with an integrated.  I have heard them driven by NAD or Emotive or Rotel or Yamaha's and they always deliver.  They will sound better and better with much more expensive gear adn to me, that's the sign of a great speaker.  If you really want to have a speaker with great tonality, extension, able to move some air in teh room and not fatiguing, you owe it to yourself to bring your amp into a Vandy dealer and listen to your own music.  

There is a reason it's been around since 78 and it's only gotten better and better.  Still as good a value as there is in audio IMHO.  

speakerpeeper2 posts01-27-2018 11:47amI vote for a pair of speakers hand crafted by Fritz Heiler. Why pay to support a large company's glitz and overhead when you could be using your purchasing power to get the same top of the line drivers used in the "big box" speakers, superior series crossovers, and hand made, expertly veneered cabinets for much less? Fritz is a one man army. He built me a custom pair with the same configuration as his Rev 7 model but with the 4 ohm 7" Scanspeak Revelator mid-bass driver instead of the 8 ohm, which adds more robust bass and quicker overall response. The teakwood boxes are flawless and look amazing. Fritz takes a personal interest in each customer and will help you choose the best model for your system. Check out the many reviews available online, most of which are linked to on his website. 

I haven't heard any of his speakers, but I hear folks say 'why support a large company' all the time. What is large to you?  Most audio only companies are not large by any means.  This is such a cottage industry so most companies never get that large.  What you will get with a company that isn't under 5 people is more stability when you need help in the future.  Many have been burned by companies that are 'small'.  What a company does have if they produce enough is economy of scale.  They also have much better R&D and most often can produce a better product as the same cost.  I have purchased a lot of stuff from a one person company and will continue to do so, but I purchase with some risk also.  

I've yet to hear any of the speakers that are one to three man shops sound better than a great pair of Vandersteen's.  Not taking anything away from Fritz's speakers as I haven't heard them that I know of.  I just don't feel that he is giving you better sound because he's a one man shop.  Also, you mention personal interest with customers, you have a shop where you can audition speakers adn they take a personal interest for sure and love building life long relationships.  Most companies I purchase from also will let you get in touch and care when you have questions your dealer can't help with. Heck, Richard Vandersteen even has a board on his site where he personally answers the questions and if you call there, you can most often get in touch with him.  Lot's of great companies out here.

audiozen has a beef with Vandersteen and it shows in your posts.  That alone makes anyone question what you say.  You have the general idea about pricing down, but not in all cases.  That's a fact. You speak in absolute terms and fail to realize that many dealers carry equipment that is much better in sound and quality than direct sell.  Not in all cases and that's why I own a bit of each in my own system.  I just want what sounds best for me like most folks seem to want.  

You can speak in absolutes all you want about cabinet materials or expensive drivers and crossovers used, but that means nothing if not implemented correctly.  Maybe the Accent guy does that, but they still won't be the right speaker for everyone.  I love Vandersteen's and Tidal and a few others right now, but that doesn't mean that everyone will or should.  This is why there are a ton of makers out there.  

If a direct buy company doesn't offer at least a 30 day 100% money back guarantee, then I personally won't purchase from them unless they bring the product to the house (yes, I'm lucky since some folks are close to CT).  Maybe that speaker company does that.  If so, good on them.

As for Vandersteen using ghost writers, I highly doubt it.  As for his temper, who knows how you were with him.  It takes two to communicate.  I know a few folks who have had negative conversations with some of the biggest gentlemen in the industry.  It's ironic as I've overheard Richard speaking with an engineer about design concepts etc...  He may not be an engineer on paper, but he surly seemed to know what he was talking about.  Not all engineers have a degree or need one.  They can be self taught too.  

I personally don't care too much about all of that as I'm more into the music and great sound.  You can get that from a variety of components and matching as you pointed out in your Denon response, is THE key thing.  No need to purchase anything if you aren't going to match it with the correct devices.  Thats' at all price points I personally believe. 

I'm not going to disparage anyone or any product in this thread as I don't have a beef, like you admitted to with anyone.  The OP needs to get out and audition as many products as they can in order to figure out what they really want.  When folks actually get to stores and listen for a bit and not let the dealer or the manufacture talk them into something, they will find out they really do like one thing over another.  So often folks don't think amps or pre amps etc, really make a big difference until the sit down and listen to a few of them adn notice that they may not want what they came in look for.  I had that happen wiht me when I thought I wanted Vandy 2 back in the late 90s and walked out with a pair of floor standing ProAc's instead.  

Clock forward to about 4 years ago and I went into the closest ProAc dealer as Richard G (former distributor) sent me to Audio Connection.  I wanted  to purchase a new pair of the newer D series monitors and I walked out with a pair of Vandersteen Treo's.  The owner forced me to listen to all the speakers in my price range, because we all hear differently.  

OP, forget all of us and go listen.lol

audiozen, congrats on liking only off the radar companies.  Good luck with auditioning everything before purchase.  Also, good luck when the company eventually fails and you need work and you can't find the drivers for a pair of speakers.  

As I said, I'm fine with smaller companies, but for audio to succeed we need both brick and mortar as well as upstarts to keep it fresh.  

Also, iRT Vandersteen and his 'education', he was trained in electrical engineering in his time in the Air Force and then took many classes in engineering in college when he got out.  He said he didn't care about the 'other' courses so he took all the important ones.  

I'm glad to hear that you listen to music two hours a night.  Congrats I guess?  Glad that you can make a blanket statement that audiophiles aren't into music. I"m not the only one who took that statement that ways, so it's not just me.  I've always felt that many audiophiles are into gear mostly and listen to audiophile tracks etc..  Then there are folks who only care about the music and want a decent system.  Then there are many of us who love both gear and music.  

Having MS, I too listen to music daily.  I usually listen 4-8 hours a day and more on days that I'm not able to leave the house.  I speak with many 'audiophiles' who listen a few hours a day or more.  I'm sure no one cares, but you can love both gear, audio, folks with things in common as well as folks with nothing in common. 

Oh, I'd love to say I'm sorry for misspelling the speaker company that you posted about and that I never disparaged, but I'm not sorry.  I'm sure that everyone reading this thread, knew what company I was talking about.  

No need to retort, but you probably will.

Back to the OP.  as you can see there are so many options for you.  Going to listen to as many as you can will help you much more than we can, lol.  

Not talking specifically about Ascend.  Thanks for calling my statement a joke.  Greatly appreciated, lol. ;).  I"m so glad that you love the company and the man.  I say that in all honesty.  I won't put him down either, since I don't know him.  I"ve heard good things about them from folks who own them.  That's awesome.  

I"m also sure that he has a succession plan in case something terrible were to happen.  As someone who came down with MS at a fairly early age, I know how the best laid plans of mice and me often go astray.  As I said, I too will often have a piece in my system from a small or one man show.  It's just a buyer beware, that's all.j

Zen's post:
"My focus in my recent threads is mainly on boutique companies that stay off the radar, that make their products solely for music lovers, not Audiophiles that are just into gear. "  

Ok, rereading your post, I can see what you mean.  You just pointed out only Audiophiles who like gear and don't seem to like music too.  In reading it still comes off as they only make their gear for music lovers and not those of us who love both.  I guess there really must be gray area here.  Of course there is gray area.  Sorry if I have stepped on your toes in anyway.  Was just pointing out a couple of things that you posted initially that were wrong or misunderstood.  I hope to someday hear the Ascend line of speakers somewhere. It's all good.