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In Reply to: Re: Vandersteen question. posted by Rufipennis on April 28, 2007 at 10:17:15:
The Vandersteens I've heard have always struck me as sounding veiled as well. I recently auditioned an Ayre C-5xe in a high-end audio shop that used a pair of Vandersteen 5s, but was a bit disappointed. The sound was smooth, but seemed to lack detail. I suspect this was due to the speakers and not the universal player. The preamp was Audio Research; I didn't recognize the pair of amps.
Follow Ups:
What is your definition of veiled? Compared to what? Other speakers? Live music? What speakers don't sound veiled to you? I'm trying to get your point of reference. I have been listening to Vandys for over 15 years and have never found their reproduction of music veiled. And I have had the opportunity to listen to several high end and mid-fi speakers - B&W 808, Genesis, the big Maggies, Paradigms, NHTs to name a few.
Compared to Avalons and Thiels I've heard, which have the most "transparent" and "open" mid-ranges I've heard, the Vandersteens are "veiled" in that some voices and acoustic instruments lack that sense of "immediacy" wherein it takes little to no imagination to think that the performer is in your living room. Clear as mud, huh? Or let me put it this way: the Vandies make some performances sound more like they're going thru a microphone (which *is* the recording chain!) rather than a live unamplified performance. To be fair, this effect seems to be lessening as I log more time on the speakers. I'm probably at about the 500 hour mark now and I'm less bothered by this than I was the first 100 hours. Also, I'm hoping to gain more clarity when I get them properly bi-wired. I notice, however, that even diehard Vandersteen fan Shane Buettner commented on the open and clear sound of the Thiel 2.4 compared to the 3A Sig. OTOH, my Thiel 1.6s could sometimes sound "shouty" with certain female vocals, whereas the Vandies keep their balance on everything I've thrown at 'em.But let me repeat, IMO the 2ce Sig IIs are really sweet, musical speakers. I find myself sinking into the music rather than fretting over how "veiled" are.
Actually, my queries were directed more at dbphd. I have not had the opportunity to listen to the Avalons or the Thiels. I would like to someday though.
then - you probably already knew that!
"Man is the only animal that blushes - or needs to" Mark Twain
The 1's, 2's and 3's do have tweeter level controls. I'm surprised by how few actually use the controls which can also boost the treble by a couple of dB.
Uncle,I wonder why some audiophiles vehemently object to bass and treble controls on the amp.If Vandersteen can provide level controls on the speaker, it should be OK to use tone controls on the amp.Detrimental effects on the sound due to additional circuits applicable only for amps?
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