Vandersteen claims to have sold 100,000+ units of their model 2xx speakers over 30 years.
Does any dispute this? To me it seems incredibly remarkable. That they have been able to continually refine this product and still keep it selling well AND somehome avoid "the latest thing" syndrome to me speaks volumes about product quality.
Am I missing something?
What they've accomplished seems better than any positive review.
Wouldn't they be the ones to beat in their price range?
Absolutely! I have been a real believer for over 26 years. Its nice to be able to purchase a refined form following function speaker performance product instead of a box.
I continue to place the latest Vandersteen 2CE Sig IIs and 3Asigs IIs with their Reflection free drivers up against anything, anywhere near or double their asking price. Best JohnnyR Vandersteen dealer
The 2C was my entry purchase into this crazy sport back in '87, and I still think they are great speakers for the money. I later owned the Quatro's, and felt the same about them. Vandersteen makes great "all arounders", and they play music.
100,000 "units" - - I wonder, is that individual speakers? or pairs?
The Vandy 2's came out in the early 80's, if I remember correctly. They were my Grail speaker for decades. So, yes, it is possible they made 100K units(which I think means each speaker, not pair) or 50K pairs. That they are still around after all this time shows how well made they are. I remember the Klipsch from my college days- they were pretty big then. A fellow dorm-mate had the Bose, which I liked-but, after graduating from college, it was plain to see that Richard Vandersteen had truly slayed the dragons- and at an unbelievably low cost.
The 100K number has been touted for at least since I bought my last pair of 2s in 1995 or so. I too find it tough to believe since Vandersteen has always had a very small dealer network, with the average dealer selling a handful of pairs a year of all models.........yet still......when you take it over 40 years, it's not that hard to fathom.....
Can you do better than the 2CE's? Yes, I wouldn't trade them for what I went to, Revel Studio 2s, nor what I went to from those, Magnepan 3.7s.........but for the money, you can not do better than Vandersteen 2s.....you can try but you won't succeed.....
Couple them with a mid wattage tube integrated and a great source and you will hear something far more musical than 2K EVER buys......
Use a 32 w Line Magnetic 211IA on my 2CE signatures with very satisfactory results. They even thrive on 12 w Triode. No Difference between that and my Consonance Cyber 800 mono blocks @ 78 w, toss a coin.
These speakers do not need gobs of power, contrary to what people say. They are not party speakers they do not do loud, that’s it, and no amount of power will make them do loud. Tried all sorts even, 500 w @ 8 ohm doubling to 1000 w @ 4 Class D on mine, Nah, wasting your time. For loud, I got Cornscala’s.
They play music like nothing much else, that can cost 10x the price. Properly set up you will pay big bucks to get better.
I owned the original model 2 made in the late 70s. A very enjoyable full range speaker bought for $400 used. Richard offered to buy them back in 1988 in exchange for the latest version. I did not take him up on that however.
I think you'd have a chance in a smallish to medium room with 35wpc. I ran 2CE sigs to good volume in a very large 27x16x10 room with a 60w ARC VSI60, but of course it's material dependent......... I would say strive for at least 50WPC, but the only way you'll really know is to try it out.....in your space......
Those new sigs are really quite remarkable for the cost. Richard has always given you more than you expect at each price point. It's pretty amazing that he's been able to do it.
Is the number real? Yes, of course it is. Richard may be called names by some as he's opinionated and direct (and still a great person who has passion and knowledge), but liar isn't one of them. If you look at the years they've been out and figure out how many he makes daily, you'll realize that he's sold a TON of them. He's one of the few who have moved from lower priced to higher priced speakers and still been able to offer value at all levels. Few companies have been able to do what he's accomplished and that's why he's on the Mt Rushmore of Audio and is as respected by industry insiders as anyone. He also has a great dealer network. I've met many of them and they are all similar in that they care and will go out of their way to help customers or future customers.
My equipment is much like OROS. I have the 2CE Sig II's. I use a Line Magnetic 216i integrated tube amp. I have also used a Parasound A21 with these speakers. Both sound fine with Vandersteen.
My short story.... Once I left the military I had decided to treat myself to a decent modest stereo upgrade. I went out with demo music at as many brick and mortar audio stores within a 60mile radius of my home as I could find. I wanted to LISTEN to many speakers before buying a pair. I listened to speakers made by KEF, Infinity, Klipsch, Magnepan, Paradigm, B&W, Focal, PSB, Rega, Totem and a few others. In the $3K price range I found the 2CE Sig II's to sound the best. Actually the Magnepan 1.7 was very close and sounded as good or better with some jazz and vocal music, but the bass was slightly better with the Vandersteen. Speakers are often a matter of taste, but for me the 2CE Sig II was just a great value for the money. They sound best with space around them.
I have since bought Maggie MMGs for a second system.
Funny as so many Vandy dealers also sell Maggies. Both are totally different sounds that are similar. Many reviewers (as well as we owners) feel that Vandy, for a 'box' speaker sound like a point source. That's what Richard has been able to do and why his speakers are and have been soooooo special over the years. He hasn't had one dud in anything he's brought to market. His new amps are crazy good. Best amps I"ve ever heard, but that's because they are made for his 7's (or any of this that need a high pass amp). I hope he does the trickle down on that amp for the Quatro and 5's! His new 9 subs I bet will become the best powered subs on the market for the cost pretty soon too. It's just what he does. It's why he's always mentioned when talking about manufacturers who give you more than you expect and then support the heck out of the product.
I ended up buying a demo pair of Vandersteen 1ci. The list price in Canada is $2,300. They were selling for $1350 and threw in the stands. I paid the asking price as it was within my budget and I felt the Vandersteen's were worth the money. Low-balling and walking away with nothing was a worse outcome than getting them for that price.
I wish the dealer had told me they only use banana plugs. When I go home I found my spades needed to be replaced. I bought some bananas from a local dealer who put them on for me.
A three feet high speaker is bigger than I realized!
I was worried my Prima Luna Prologue 1 wouldn't have enough power. Well was I mistaken. I don't listen at really loud levels and I initially found myself turning down the volume to get the right long-term listening level.
I really like the speakers so far. Low key though, I don't have that hit-the-ball-out-the-park feeling. Nice bass, sound is tight all around
Glad you like the speakers. That's a special speaker for the price. Richard won't ever make a monitor. More than a few reasons, but you need bass to feel music and get that emotion. I had gone the monitor route in the past and was never fully happy until I got full or near full range speakers. Many Vandy dealers will sell the Prima Luna amps. Vandy's all go great with tube gear as well as zero feedback SS gear. They really aren't difficult to drive. The thing is that all his speakers seem to get much better with any upgrades within your system and I love that. Some speakers just sound similar regardless of what you feed them.
As for the 9 subs, Richard was working on coming out with a new speaker. It would have been a mega 100k speaker. He just couldn't get it to sound coherent and point source which has always been and continues to be his goal. The result however is the 9 sub's. They will be sold in pairs and will use an external 7 series high pass crossover. That frees up your amp from 100k up. With out having to worry about the bass to reproduce, your amps will be very happy and most probably sound better. It's the same type of subs he currently sells, but the cabinet is in the shape of the 7's and it's the auto paint like the 7's. They will go for around 15k if I recall correctly. It's not really cost effective for those with Quatro's and most probably 5 CT's due to the overall cost of the speaker. I you take 30k for 5's and add 15, you are nearly at the cost of a new pair of 7's (money is a bit different when folks play in this level and NO I'm not one who can ever play at this level, but I can still love what I get to audition, lol). Just like all of his subs, the best part is that you an dial in the sound to the room you are in. I've not heard the prototype's, but I'm sure I will soon enough. I already love the bass in the 7's. Tight, articulate...all the superlatives can be used in describing what I heard a couple of weeks ago while auditioning the 7 mk2's, but the word that really comes to mind is the word REAL. Everyone I spoke with who heard the system that day said the same thing. Richards new amps had a lot to do with it all also I'm sure.
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