Thiels or Von Schweikerts

I know the CS3.5, CS3.6, and VR4-JR speakers intimatly from listening in many systems, including my own. Thiels can sound harsh, aggressive, and over analytical with the wrong equipment. I hate them with Audio Research electronics. But with the right equipment they have incredible detail, dynamics and imaging. VSs can sound boomy, rolled off, and boring with the wrong equipment. They NEED the High Definition of Audio Research to come alive. Only then can they provide their musical warmth with the detail that audiophiles seek. Thiels require careful equipment matching to present some warmth; VSs require the same effort to avoid sounding boomy and rolled-off. But they bouth can sound absolutly fantastic with the right equipment. Of course, this is my opinion from my listening experiences.

Did I read in one of the responses that Adcom electronics will be used with one of these speakers? Well, this would change my whole approach to answering the question. With an Adcom amplifier any Thiel or any VS will vividly show its weaknesses and hide its strengths. In other words, either choice will sound bad with this amp. The Thiels will be thin and aggressive, with very little hint of their capabilities in the areas of dynamics and imaging. The VSs will be dull and boomy with no sign of their ability to sound like real instruments. For ANY speaker, the right amplifier is paramount in importance. I would say that any good speaker can sound bad with the wrong amp and any good speaker can sound great with a well chosen amplifier. Don't bother auditioning these speakers with Adcom. You will not get a sense of what they do well with this amp. It will only become a choice of which sounds less bad. There probably are some speakers that would be well served by an Adcom, but not the two brands mentioned in this thread.

May I use this thread to bash Adcom a bit more? My friend bought a pair of Acoustat 2+2 speakers from a guy that had Adcom electronics. When we auditioned the 2+2s in his home, it sounded so dead and boring, that my freind di not beleive me Acoustats are any good. There was no bass at all, and the highs were obviously rolled off severly. I assured him with good electronics they can be fantastic... as good or better than my Thiels. He bought them brought them home, hooked up Bruce Moore tube amps, and WOW what a difference... not subtle. The sound went from VERY bland to VERY dramatic. How does this apply to Thiel vs. VS speakers? Whatever good speaker you choose, you MUST mate them with a complimentary amplifier. Do NOT expect them to sound good with whatever amp you happen to like with your previous speakers.

Zaikesman good advice; Rustler good move. Back to the original question. I believe, as a rule, VS speakers will be warm and pleasing, with a tendancy towards blandness. Thiels will be detailed and exciting, with a tendency towards edginess. But a given amplifier can render one of these tendancies moot. Every amplifier will complement the speakers' qualities differently, so for a given amp NOBODY can predict which speaker will sound better without actually hearing the combination personally. Both manufacturers make speakers that are capable of fulfulling any audiophile's dreams, and many fine amplifiers can make either speaker sound terrible. If you cannot audition the speakers and amplifiers together, then its a crap shoot. You'll probably have to end up changing something again later. These are my personal experiences, specifically with both the Thiel CS3.6 and VS VR-4JR. Let me say it this way: you cannot choose a great speaker and a great amp and expect them to sound great together.

Zaikesman's comment (B) is fantastic, and I agree 100%, as another Thiel owner. Any Thiel can make beautiful, and pleasing music with no listener fatigue. But with the wrong equipment they can send you out of the room. VS presents exactly the same issue, although results are very different. The right equipment will make beautiful music, anything else will bore you into losing interest in listening. Unfortunatly, you just CANNOT believe reviews, or other's opinions, because every system needs different medicine. Owning Thiels, I learned to chose each component carefully by auditioning and comparing IN MY SYSTEM. Krell and ARC sounded too analytical in my system, but others LOVE this stuff with THEIR Thiels. I would have never guessed any of my final decisions without hearing them first IN MY SYSTEM.