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Vandersteen 5A or Eggleston Works Andra II

I will be upgrading my speakers in the near future and I have been waiting to one day upgrade to the Vandersteen 5A. I have read some good things about the Eggleston Works Andra II and I have included it on my list.

I have listened to the vandersteen 5A as well as the Quattro and will listen some more. I hope to be able to finally listen to the Andra sometime in the next 2 to 3 months when I travel to a place with a dealer for those.

I listen mostly to jazz.. world music, reggae, and everything in between that moves me.. sweet music i say.

I am interested in a speaker that is full range and flat all the way down to 20 Hz!

I usually buy for long term keeps so whatever I decide on will be staying for a long long time.

Room size is T shaped --12 x 32 long and a 9x14 short and carpeted. Whatever I decide on will move with me if I ever move, then it will be to a more dedicated room in the future I hope.

Current gear:

McCormack DNA 500
Modwright Instruments SWL 9.0SE LineStage
Integra DPS 10.5 Universal used as a Transport
Benchmark DAC1
VPI SuperScoutmaster with Signature arm and Shelter 901 MC
Mirage Frx-9
Velodyne HGS 15 II

Thank you for your suggestions and keep your other possible recommendations coming as well.
ije
fjn04
1,561 posts
 
It is tough to beat the 5A. It will definitley work in more room applications. The Andra 2 is a nice speaker, but I sold it to move to the 5A. I have no regrets, the Andras were much more difficult to drive. I had a 200 watt tube amp, and honestly felt they either needed a big VTL ( maybe the 450) or solid state. If you are not planning a venture in to tubes, the Andra may be a nice choice. The Vandersteen is also supposed to be a nice match with Mccormack.
evita
112 posts
 
Anyone use the 5A with the grills off? I find the 'moving blanket' cloth surrounding the drivers to be kind of cheesy. Can you replace it with a more attractive alternative? Thanks to anyone who might know.
rex
245 posts
 
Evita - the 5A was designed to be used with the speaker grille installed. The cloth face on the speaker is an integral part of the design. Vandersteen told me he chose every single component of the speaker with great care and deliberateness. I would not make the type of changes to my 5As that you are contemplating.
evita
112 posts
 
Thanks for the response, Rex.
martykl
3,578 posts
 
Re: The 5A sounding laid back. I don't know the Andra, but I've auditioned the 5A's extensively and offer (FWIW) just two observations:

Unlike the passive Vandy's, I find that the 5As are less sweet and somewhat more analytical sounding speakers. However, unlike most speakers fitting that description, the 5A doesn't sound harder as the volume increases. In fact, for dynamic impact, I've found they sound better at SPLs significantly higher than my usual listening volume.

The bass tuning capabilities are amazing. Most systems of this type have left me lukewarm at best. I've heard the 5A in three different systems (Optimal Enchantment, Brooks Berdan, and at a friend's home) and, in each case, bass response was as good as I've heard and significantly better than my Verity P/E in any of the three rooms in which I've had them.

Overall, I think the 5As are very fine, unusually versatile speakers with superb bass that sound best when played LOUD. However, I don't think I'm impressed enough to replace my Vertiy P/Es.
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