I just got a pair of the Vandersteen Quatro CT's and was able to have them painted in any color I wanted. I chose Audi Havana Black. Had the electrician drop in a 4" LED Daylight can above each one yesterday and man are they awesome. So much metallic flake, lol.
The best part is the sound. Speakers are just so personal. I have heard all the speakers that you have on your list and many many more. I personally fell in love with the Quatro's for anything under 25k. I like them much more than the top Paradigm with powered subs and I've heard them now at 4 stores. Always sound the same to my ear and that's harsh on top.
some nice speakers on your list, but I hope you go listen to the Quatro's in addition to the others. For many of us, they sold themselves. Great luck. If you are near CT, you can come listen anytime. |
Lot's of good options depending on your taste. I've heard most of the recommendations and for my ear many are tilted up too much in the high end, but others love that sound. I will often use the term WAF, but to me that just stereotypes us. My wife and daughter hate that expression as they too care about the sound of the music more than the looks. If anything, I'm more into everything looking great, lol. That's why I paid a small uncharge to have my Quatro's painted, lol....I do get a ton of complements on the paint job. Even teh electrician who installed 4" daylight LED's over them said they were nicer than his car's finish, LOL...
Sorry, not meant to put down the WAF deal, but many of us also care about looks and functionality of our systems since we can't have dedicated rooms. Good suggestions for auditions for sure. |
He probably has seen and or heard a few speakers in this range and wanted advice before auditions. I had a great pair of speakers and they were only around 8k, but I heard a pair at 14k that was nearly the same, but has built in subs that had room eq and I have a difficult room. Best money I spent on my system. It also took my in room bass from low 30's to mid 20's.
I do agree with you 100% that price doesn't mean a think in audio, but the more money you spend, you most often can probably get better sound. |
what city do you live in? I know when I was going to get a new set of speakers, I ended up getting teh Vandy's from a dealer in NJ, Audio Connection. They are nearly 3 hours away. For a few other speakers that I wasn't going to drive that far for, I found folks online who offered to have me listen. I actually have let a lot of folks over to audition gear that I have. Have made a few friends that way also.
I actually have found that a couple of companies had 'dealers' in areas that didn't show up on their sites. |
I need to go to the local shop again to hear the Focal's. I have a lot of friends who love them. I used to own a pair fo their Micron's back in the day, when they first started to sell their own speakers. A close friend has the Sopra 2's in his office system and swears by them.
Every time I've heard them at various places, I haven't 'gotten' them. There comes a time when I feel it's not just a bad set up for me, but I'm thinking that has to be it. I'm brutal on speakers and feel 'hifi'ish', but folks who's ears I know and trust seem to really like them.
Btw, if you haven't had a chance to listen to the Vandersteen Treo CT, which is a bit less than the Kanta 2, it would be a good comparison. I have a feeling that the reason I may not 'get' the Focal's is that I don't love the Beryllium tweeters on any of the speakers I"ve heard them on. I've only heard a diamond driver sound good on the Tidal's too, so that's just me and my ears. It's sure a nice looking and well built line of speakers. I even took one of their models' home a few years ago as I was close to getting it, but in the end, it wasn't what I wanted. I felt badly for the dealer as he had to lug them to and fro, lol. (with MS, I Cna't even help move empty boxes, lol.
Glad you like them as that's the only thing that matters in audio as we all hear so differently. |
Love this thread. It shows that we all like totally different things. I've heard many of the speakers talked about in the last many posts and only have liked a couple of them. Many I couldn't listen to for more than 30 minutes. That said, many seem to love them. All of us are correct as that's what we seem to like right now, with our gear in our room.
I guess that's only true if we actually own the gear we are discussing or have heard them enough times in different places and systems to know that they are just not for us. This is why it's so important to go listen for yourself or you will always be chasing your tail and never finding what you want or think you want. JMHO |
good post. It does all come down to what flavor you like in your system. How will the speaker match up with the components you are using. To me, that and the room are the two most overlooked things. Lot's of great choices, so go listen and let us know what you are hearing. |
Had the Treo's and love them. Sold them to a member of the board and got the Quatro's. Best value in high end for my money. Lot's of good choices depending on what OP likes. |
Guys, the problem you run with adding subs in any system is integration of the subs. It's VERY VERY hard to get subs that share the same sound as the main speaker. This is one thing that Vandersteen was able to do. I know many of you have subs and love them etc... and that's cool. I"m not trying to rain on your parade. I you go read how Vandersteen does the crossover adn how his amp is able to pick up the same sonic character as the main amps, then you will understand what I'm saying. I too felt the Focal's bass was good, but very limited, especially in this price range. Many think I'm married to Vandy's, but it's MY money and I want what I personally like best, so I went with the Quatro's as I didn't' hear anything under 20k (and more) that I liked nearly as much overall. I play a ton of old rock and there is plenty of bass, plus it's tunable as I've said before. That's so important in most rooms. It's not the digital Turing either, that does negatively affect the sound if you listen closely. I felt the set up was easy. The dealer came over to do that part. The PRoac would also be my second choice. |
Ozzy, I totally agree with you. I personally don't get the voicing myself. |
At Axponia Vandersteen will be showing my Quatro's with the new subs that will have his famous built in 11 band EQ. This could be a game changer for most as you can dial in the bass for any room. I have a difficult room to say the least and this EQ has done a GREAT job smoothing out the bass. All I needed was an sound level meter that I downloaded free on my iPhone. It worked just as good as the expensive one that the dealer used. Got the same readings, so that was cool.
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I would if I was there. I do wish I could go. I bet it will be a blast. Also go check out my favorite IEM's in Empire Ears with Effect Audio cables. I have their Phantom, which is the first CIEM (custom in ear monitor) that I can honestly call reference quality. They are just incredible. |
