2.1 to 5.2 (Vandersteen 2C)

Sounds awesome. Happy for you. 

@ctsooner That Lyngdorf AV unit finally arrived… just waiting on cables, center channel and surrounds now… slow progress, but some progress none the less.

You know how much I love my two channel for tv in my room. Lol

@intermediatic Thanks!

I did hit the button on a VCC-5 last week, and also a pair of VSMs.
I’ll likely resock the VSMs as it is likely to be the only way to get a WAF score high enough to get them into the room that they need to end up in.

And it is a similar story for the VCC-5. I’ll likely put it into a cabinet/table to hold the TV and the electronics.
Shipping is time consuming, but it has started. The VCC might be here by XMAS/Chanukah/Quanza.

And the TV is sounding fantastic on 2.1 at the moment.

I found a Vandersteen Center Channel and sub on Craigslist. It’s not that hard to do. For sides, I just used an old pair of Athenas. Since that system wasn’t 4K, I also found a nice Rotel surround sound processor to pair with a Cary Audio amplifier. Sounds fantastic. 

Also, the most important thing to me is having the same speaker voicing for the C that you won't get if you step away from the brand you use for L and R 2 channel.

A "soundbar" can be 3 channels (L/C/R), but in many cases it is actually only 2 channels (L/R).  They are generally very cheap speakers and very small in a tiny plastic cabinet, usually around 3" to 4" drivers.  You can get more expensive sound bars in the $1200-1500 range, but they are not going to match the quality of even budget level Elac separate speakers.

A good L/C/R is nothing like a sound bar to me.  They are separated for a reason.  There are so many compromises in even the most expensive bars, that you just can't get great sound out of them in a comparison.  JMHO, but I'm sure you all understand what I'm saying.

But is “like” a sound bar conceptually as it does L/C/R…
(Just in 3 pieces.)

Or… to put it another way


One would run both a sound bar and a L/C/R

More than progress.  That's awesome stuff!!!

A good L/C/R is nothing like a sound bar to me.  They are separated for a reason.  There are so many compromises in even the most expensive bars, that you just can't get great sound out of them in a comparison.  JMHO, but I'm sure you all understand what I'm saying.

Had to go get a new antenna cable as we moved the OLED on top of the fireplace hearth.
Listened to a sound bar while we were there… and after we left I asked the boss how she liked it. She said it was “screatching” to which I said, “yeah it seemed… bright”. She said she would not take that one for free.
So we are making progress.
The question to Eric was… The L/C/R does essentially what a sound bar does... right?

It's just a center channel that is matched to be used with the Vandersteen line.  As you know, I personally feel that folks need to keep all their speakers with the centers that are built for their various lines to keep the sound similar.

Eric,Is the VCC is essentially a 3 channel sound bar?(Or when combined with Left and Right becomes 3 channel)

I have a processor coming so i am hopeful it will output and EQ some better audio.

And thanks.

I agree with Eric.  Vandersteen's are outstanding to many of us.  They make the best speaker to integrate with yours.  

for those as I who refuse to put their TV right smack in the middle between our ‘front speakers’, a center channel speaker is a must. '

Clearly I wasn't speaking to off-center watching.  With some Netflix series you'll have a serious problem anyway, since you will have no center at all (unless you are lucky enough to have a processor which will force 5.1 to Dolby ProLogic). :)  You'd be much better off with a 3 channel sound bar.

Best,

Erik

Thanks Doc… I’ll likely use a Hypex plate amp, as I already have a couple of the 502 (500W X2 Channels)… so I can test one iut with a buttkicker and one with a bandpass sub.

Hi holmz, glad you made it over here and getting some good advice. I can't comment on the above info except to say about 3 years ago my wife and I added two bass shakers under our couch and absolutely love them. Aurasound and a beefy plate amp which we enclosed in a walnut cabinet. Dialed in the crossover and volume and smile every time they kick in. They're not for everybody but it was money well spent for us. 

One cool thing about them is they can be fully active and as soon as you stand up you can't tell they're on. Good luck.

@bkeske I have AV processor coming, so I figured I would take the XLR to RCA and run the L/R through the stereo amp…(Is this what you meant?)
Then I think I can just run the AV outputs to some plate amps the only level matching would be to remember to set the stereo preamp to a known position like 12 o’clock.


@erik_squires I have an MP-50 on its way (used). So that is HDMI-in and HMDI-out to the LG.Mostly there is just a NUK (Intel PC) streaming in NetFlix. We have a handful of DVDs, maybe 10–20 at the most, and rarely view those. So it is NUK—>LG now, and will be NUK—>MP50–> LG.
I considered a MiniDSP, but the lip syncing, etc had me just jump to a full AV-preamp… plus I wasn’t sure I could get HMDI into MiniDSP… (think I should have checked before jumping in)


@bkeske Yeah I think used is fine for me… The room is 18’ wide + another 12 for a dining room, and 14’ deep. The ceiling it’s 11am high. (I can supply those dimensions in metric, rather than freedom units - but it is probably sort of common for a mixed use room in an older house).
There is not a lot of room as the sofa is against a wall. So I was thinking a used set of VSM1 on the left and right wall 95 degrees to the sides of us.(Definitely no room for a 7.x.x system.)
On the Vandersteen Q&A page, it looks like a VCC1 is not enough so I should be looking at VCC2 or a VCC5. I will probably go for a VCC2 as the WAF is the hardest part to address.
It should probably help if the TV is wall mounted, and if I put together a cabinet below it for the gear to sit in.
I am also thinking of putting a buttkicker on the sofa for the 10-30Hz, (so we remember to evacuate when the monsters or other scary sounds/feeling happen.) Or something to do the <20 or <25 Hz stuff. The other aspect related to the WAF stuff is that she both doesn’t like loud sounds (hyperaccousis) , and simultaneously has a hard time hearing the dialogue.Is a butt kicker a decent option to augment “bottom end” LFE sounds?

The sound from my Samsung TV was quite anemic, so I bought a zVox for $250.00 and love it.  I has settings for dialog and now we don't need the TV loud to hear what is being said.  I never use my audio system with the TV.

@erik_squires

I used 2 channel stereo for my TV for years, and although what you say may be correct, and may work, for those as I who refuse to put their TV right smack in the middle between our ‘front speakers’, a center channel speaker is a must. In fact, in ‘TV mode’ it is the most important speaker I have. Yes, also for years, I had my TV in between my speakers in 2 channel stereo mode, but that doesn’t work for me anymore as my system set-up and ‘main speaker’ placement is optimized for 2 channel music listening, and again, my TV isn’t going in the middle.

And as I said, I would never use a multi-channel receiver/integrated/processor for my 2 channel listening again. I tried that. Not good. If others don’t mind, good for them, but not good enough for me, personally. I know you can spend gobs of money on ‘good’ multi-channel processors, but for me, I would rather spend most my money on dedicated 2 channel amplification/equipment for music, and keep them separate.

I guess it comes down to how much of a ‘true Home Theater’ experience you desire, and how important it is vs 2 channel system for critical listening. For me, my multi-channel set-up is fine, and sounds wonderful when I am watching/listening to the Berlin Philharmonic steaming live, or watching a football game, or a movie, TV show, or the news. Others may require more. It all depends what your priorities are.

But back to the original question by @holmz, yes, Vandersteen makes speakers you can use for a full HT set-up. But for the potential cost, how critical is that vs. money spent? You can always buy used, and as a Vandersteen ‘fan boy’ myself, that is what I would do if it made sense. But I also think that if ‘true Home Theater’ is the goal, there might be better speaker manufacturers who are more geared to that set-up.

PS - I'm talking specifically about Netflix streaming missing center channel.

If your LG is like mine there is no analog output.  I suggest you use something like this which is a DAC + EQ for it's output:

https://www.minidsp.com/products/dirac-series/ddrc-24

You can use the auto-EQ features and tweak them for better dialogue. :)

If you like Vandersteen there's zero reason to switch. While a center channel will enhance the experience be aware a lot of alleged 5.1 content is actually missing center, so if your L and R aren't sounding great for dialogue a center won't necessarily enhance it.

What you need to consider is a good processor instead OR adding some EQ between your LG and your 2 channel rig.

My point is the center alone won't help the dialogue but a processor will, and a processor with a good center will be great.  Stick with Vandersteen.

Vandersteen makes a center channel (actually 3). I also have 2CE Sigs. I thought about the Vandersteen as my center, but it is a bit of an awkward size for my set-up, so finally went with an Elac Debut 2 center, (after a few others), bought it used, and quite happy with it for dialog. I have 1C’s as my rears. Some use the Vandersteen VSM-1 for that application, but you have options. I just had the 1C’s after my 2CE purchase, and used them. Keep in mind, IMO, you do not need ‘great’ speakers for the rears.

That said, I keep my 2channel and HT set-up amplification totally separate from one another as my 2 channel preamp has HT pass though. Thus, my AV receiver/processor is only used in ‘tv mode’, nothing else. If you go that route, I would advise the same.

I am not overly critical about my HT quality compared to my 2 channel listening. But believe me, it is more than adequate.