VANDERSTEEN 1C's..........I'm obviously biased, because I'm incredibly happy with my 1C's. Give them a listen...they should sound terrific with your amp.
Good Luck, and Happy Listening. |
Easy one.....Vandersteen. If you liked mainly Jazz, I'd probably say Maggie....except, your rooms to small for any dipole....IMHO.
Dave |
Have to agree on the Vandersteen in that room, also a fairly satisfying amount of bass for a smallish speaker. |
Vandersteen they will image better. The 1c's are not great with loud base but you can alwas add a 2wq later if you feel you want more and the price is hard to beat. |
Maggies no doubt. If you want more bass, just add a higher power ampliphier, and no speaker will image better than a Maggie. I love Vandy's but dude.... not a contest in my book. The 1c is not a great speaker, it is not the little brother to the excellent 2ce Sig, it is the "Red Haired Stepchild" of the line. Maggies need more power, but will play louder than the 1c and I will beat it for bass as well, and once again, imaging, it's the Maggies. |
I have an idea!! Buy the Vandy's used here on Audiogon, then order the Maggie's from Magnepan. That will work since when the don't come for sale here very often and when they to they go in about 10 minutes, and the price used for the Vandy's is close to the Maggie's new. Then compare them.
I believe Magnepan has a 30 day trial period. Just send them back if you like the Vandy's better. If you like the Maggies better, then sell the Vandy's again. I have done similar comparisons a bunch, thank God for Audiogon.
Good luck.
PS - I would love to see the numbers on how many sets of Maggies have actually ever been returned. |
I would never say Magnepan in that size room, I owned the MMG and its a nice speaker but the Vandy will work better for you right now, if you ever move then maybe move into Magnepan but once a Vandersteen man then many times you will just move up to better Vandersteens. |
I have both and a I like the Vandies better in any situation. |
The issue with Maggies will be placement - they need to be at least 2-3' out from the rear wall, and a couple of feet in from the side walls, which may be a problem in a small room. My old MG-IIAs (roughly the size of 1.6s, so bigger than the MMGs) are 5' out from the rear in my 13'x20' room, and 3' in from the side walls. I love the Maggie sound, but they are difficult to "blend in" to anything other than a dedicated room (unless you have an understanding 'significant other'). |
I've owned MMG's and 1.5's, as well as 1c's, 2ce's and 3a Signatures. I think the Vandies would work best. The Maggies are tough to place and can sound pretty harsh on poorly recorded/produced music (60's & 70's rock). |
Like I said earlier and seems to be corroborated by some others, regardless of their comparative qualities, your room is simply not ideal for Maggies, the 1Cs will work. Whether you then move on up the Vandy line, many do - graduating through the 2s, 3s, and 5s or swithch to Maggies, which many also love - will depend on your taste, room, and electronics. With the room you have, I don't think you have much of a choice between the two, the VS are simply a better match in you situation. |
I would also go with the Vandys. I have had a pair since 2000, along with the Vandy center, and since then added a second pair for surround use. I also picked up a pair of 2Wq subs which blend seemlessly with the 1Cs. My only caution is the upgrade path outlined by Pubul57. Although my room is large, the area available to place the speakers is small. The 2CeSig MkIIs are considerably larger than the 1Cs. Vandys need to be placed out into the room for best results, so your room might be a little small for this upgrade path. The only way I could upgrade in the Vandy line is to move to the Quatro, which has a slim profile, but I can't afford them, even used. So, I am forced to look at other brands. Compact floorstanders I would also consider in this price range would be Silverline Audio Prelude ($1200/pr), used Totem Arrows or Ohm MicroWalsh Tall ($1000/pr). Don't get me wrong, I like the Vandy 1Cs a lot, but they are not my last speakers-for-life. The 2Wqs, however, are going nowhere - they are incredible. |
I agree with Bondmanp that upgrading with the VS line does require the appropriate room and willingness to place the speakers optimally within it. I found the VS 3As needed 5 feet from the back wall to sound their best, not always easy without a dedicated listening room. I think the 1Cs are not speakers for life, they are a very good start, and in some rooms, like this one, maybe ideally suited. |
I've had both and have to say, even in a "smallish" room the tonal quality and musicality of the Mag's are far superior. The vandy's tended to get a bit "shouty" at times and I have never had that problem with the Mag's in the same room with the same equipment. |
I've had both and I like the Vandies much better. They have do better all types of music and have a better sound stage. They have a smooth sound with good bass. |
Well, it should all be perfectly clear now. |
