I’m surprised you haven’t received any responses.
I owned the Maggie 1.7is and the Vandy 1Cis. Overall, I think the 1Cis are the better speaker. The 1.7s require 80db ^ volumes to really open up. At lower volumes, they sound anemic and have little dynamics.
The 1Cis have deeper bass and are far less power hungry. Additionally, they have a more realistic timbre and decay. To my ears, they’re superior in every way, with the exception of midbass speed and slight distortion in the upper midrange of some songs.
I’ve since moved onto KEF LS50s. These speakers are about as musical as the Vandys, but have a more refined midrange. They don’t sound as "open" but have a wide sweet spot that doesn’t require painstaking setup. My room is rather large for the KEFs, so I fill in the lowest octaves with a sub.
Even though I used resistors with the Maggie’s and the treble attenuator of the Vandys, some recordings were still overly ripe in treble. My Yamaha amp has tone controls but I never reach for them with the KEFs
For reference, my ears are 32 years old. I’m not a musician but have many musicians in my family (my daughter currently plays the viola) and I’m familiar with the sound of live instruments. When shopping for my reference system earlier this year, I auditioned dozens of speakers under $5K and concluded my search with Spendor SP2/3R2s.
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Since you already use a good sub and high-pass crossover, definitely consider KEF LS50s or the Reference 300s. Unlike the others, they’re not finicky about placement. 8’ is practically near-field, so your room size is not a detriment unless you’re a bass junkie. With the exception of low octave extension, the KEFs are simply better in every way. They even trump 1.7s with vocals. I was quite stoked with the performance value of the 1Cis, but the LS50s take the crown. Their current price is a steal and icing on the cake. You could put the savings toward a better amp.
As for used 2Cs, not a bad idea, but keep in mind that Vandersteen is constantly making slight, unpublished revisions to those models. The current 1Ci has a superior tweeter to the older 2Cs, so I agree that you'd do well to seek out a used pair of 2C sigs. |
@tomic601
Being that I had to set the treble attenuator 1.5db down to achieve my preferred tonal balance with the 1Cis, I’m doubtful the VLRs would work for me. They don't include the trim pot. Also, I noticed upper midrange sibilance in the 1Cis, even after break-in, and fear the VLRs might have the same issue. Otherwise, they’re a very attractive design.
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If you get a chance to listen to the KEFs, pay attention to the trailing edges of vocal notes, especially female vocals. Both speakers do this well, but I found that the KEFs are just a bit more refined and detailed. They have none of the upper midrange distortion that the 1Ci exhibited with hot recordings.
Jeff Dorgay of Tone Audio claimed to prefer the VLRs over the LS50s, but in his 1Ci review, he says the LS50s have greater resolution and imaging. So I wonder if the VLRs are possibly better than the 1Ci, sans bass extension.
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I wouldn't pick gear based on a single review. Jeff's opinion is intriguing but he is already a Vandersteen owner and likely has some level of bias.
I don't agree that the LS50s need "top quality" or high power amplification. I tried them with both of my <100 watt Yamaha amps (one of $500 and one of $2500 MSRP) and they sound great with both. If you listen above 90db much of the time, then you'd probably want a 200 watt+ amp. At moderately loud volume, they're not terribly power hungry. Vandys will certainly be easier to drive, but listen to both of you can swing it. IME, in home auditions are a must when choosing speakers. Let your ears be your final guide. |
Congrats! Be sure to invest in some heavy, high quality stands.
Please report back with your findings.
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You could do much worse than cinder blocks. Blu Tack also works great.
I think you made the right move with speakers. Schiit is an awesome company. I once sent them an email at 1:00 a.m. on a Saturday and received a reply within 20 min! |
@audioconnection
When I had 1Cis, they had a strange distortion characteristic in the upper midrange. It wasn't present in all music, but often enough that I couldn't live with them. I let them break-in for about 100 hours, but this trait remained. It was the only real qualm I had with those speakers. Being that the VLRs are slightly higher in price, are they a better speaker than the 1Cis (with the obvious exception of bass extension)? Are they smoother through the midrange?
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You’ll notice a much greater difference with by going the route of amplification.
IMO, SS DACs belong in the category of placebo products, i.e. cables, fuses, and most power conditioning. If you want a different flavor of sound (not necessarily better) you can get it with a tube DAC.
Another path that will yield greater results is a speaker stand upgrade. Anything that’s mechanically coupled to your speakers will affect resonance behavior and therefore, the sound. This is clearly audible. $600 on Sound Anchor stands is a vastly better purchase than $600 on a DAC.
If you get something like a Bifrost, and you’re objective in your listening, you’ll realize why the $300 V90 DAC is rated "class A" by Stereophool, higher than far more expensive pieces like Shiit’s Yggdrasil. Hint: it’s not because it’s better.
BTW, I’ve owned the V90 DAC. I also own a DAC that retailed for $1800. If I’m honest with myself, they sound almost identical to my $100 Topping DAC. |
