I'd think you'd be better off with matching speakers in a home heater system. the Elac's get great reviews for the money they seem to be the hot ticket right now. I would think they would give you more synergy in your system if you got all Elac speakers. hopefully someone from the home theater section will see your post and chime in. |
Absolutely i would get Elac B5's or B6's for rear speakers if I get the the corresponding Elac floor speakers for the fronts. And yes, they spare appear to be the hot speaker currently. But keep in mind that the purpose of the system is for listening to music, not home theater.
I'm hoping that someone can chime in with any experience with wharfedale speakers as compared to today's speakers like Elac. |
Most of the Elac's are very good for the price. If you can find a pair of Vandersteen 1's you may want to check them out also. |
I remember vandersteen speakers from 30 years ago as mid to high-end speakers, similar to KEF, Dahlquist, ADS, Ohm. |
What changes they have made. I was blown away when listening to their newest stuff a few years ago. That's when I got the Treo's and now teh Quatro's. I was a Pro ac guy for years. I have loved many speakers over the years, but tonality, no smearing etc.. are important to me now. I owned ADS, Ohm and Dahlquist for a bit, but always wanted more. I have no desire so far to leave Vandersteen as I've auditioned soooo much gear over the years adn nothing to my ears, beats them in their various price ranges. JMHO....These aint your dad's Vandy's, lol. |
I bought Ctsooner's Treo's and am a Vandy fanb.....A Vandy fan, too.
Your Yamaha should have more than enough power for a pair of VLR's or 1ci's. With a sub, you should be good to go, though I always suggest a Vandersteen 2w or 2wq sub.
Though you mention Vandersteen as mid to high end, Vandersteen always offered high end sound at a reasonable price. Ohm, Dahlquist, Theil, Magnepan
are often linked
with Vandersteen and I like their sound, as well. The main thing with Vandersteen is the time and phase alignment of their speakers. It just makes thing seem right.
B |
An opportunity just arose for me to purchase a pair of ADS L1290 speakers for $350. I can also purchase a used pair of Elac F5 speakers for the same price. What would you guys do? |
I would get the ADS without any hesitation as long as my room size allows it to breath. Their bass can get boomy if your room is too small or the speakers are too close to the wall. The only other consideration would be your amplifier since those ADS speakers will require a 4 ohm capable amplifier. In my opinion they are in a completely different class from the lower end Elacs. Keep us posted. |
Without listening to them, that's my thoughts as well despite all the rave reviews about the Elac's. I owned a pair of ADS L1230's 30 years ago and they were amazing speakers. My room is about 15 feet by 12 feet and the listening setup will be horizontally. They will be placed about a foot and a half away from the rear wall and about four feet away from sidewalls. My Yamaha DSP A1 integrated amp has 110 watts per channel into 8 ohms and has a switchable impedance selector to 4 Ohms.
I'm going to pick up the speakers today and hopefully they're in good shape. |
One more thing, ADS L1290 ($350) vs Vandersteen 2CE ($600). Listening to classical and jazz. Which one?
Thanks |
If you do go the Vandersteen route, try to buy the most recent iteration. Mr. V. constantly upgrades his speakers, so the most recent will have the best components.
That being said, I would opt for the 2ce Signature. Though it will cost more, the closer you come to a current serial number, the closer you will be to current production.
Vandy's don't discriminate between music styles, they just play it, and play it well. Time and phase alignment, and pistonic drivers make them one of the best buys in hifi. Don't take my word for it, just find a dealer near you or an Audiogon member.
B |
Looks like the Vandersteen 2ce signature speakers are going for at least $1,000 plus shipping (none local) on eBay. The one my friend is selling is not a signature version. It is about 15 years old and in mint condition. He is asking $600 but I can try and get him down to $500. And I can drive over and pick them up. |
I'm not really familiar with vandersteen speakers. I suspect the two series is better than the one and the 3 Series is better than the two. Not sure what it means exactly when signature is put in.
|
Yes, it goes 1, 2, 3, Treo, Quatro, 5 and 7. I would personally purchase a new pair of 1's over a 15 year old pair of 2's. Newer components means a lot in a pair of speakers.
cs, email me at ctsooner@alumni.ou.edu Pete |
Well, it is a little more complicated that just 1,2,3.
The smaller the Vandy, the less bass output (due to less cabinet area).
One of the ways to overcome that is to incorporate a sub-especially a Vandersteen sub(-which allows you to use a less powerful amp), and integrates via a crossover. Very ingenious, and it works seamlessly.
Please do contact Pete. I bought his Treo's. He is a very knowledgeable guy.
You can also contact John Rutan at audioconnection (his Agon name and his store). He is one of the best dealers in the Nation.- And, don't feel pressured, he gives great advice without a sales pitch.
Going the Vandy 1ci route with subs is something I wish I had known about earlier.
B |
Sounds good. Already spoke to Pete for about an hour today and plan on calling John tomorrow. |
Cats and dogs really
and I sold a ton of both to very different customers
the ADas use steep slope crossovers to keep that dome mid alive
they might need a driver and crossover refresh
rising high end but reasonably flat, detailed, etched, great thinking mans rock speaker
far far outclassed by musicality of the Vandersteen
yep owned both
|
Tomic, he listens to mostly Orchestral music and Jazz. That's why I was thinking he should try adn get a speaker with fuller range (not using sub as that's out of his budget when you figure things out) and tonally correct. The new Vandersteen 1's are a couple of hundy out of his budget of 1k max. He can get the 15yo 2's, which I am not familiar enough with. Rutan sold those and remembers how they sound against his newer speakers as well as other speakers. He can look at the Maggie set up as well as B&W's (not my favorite, but many like a more forward mid (he doesn't) and others that are out there. There are options, but I also feel strongly that upgrading from the 1990's Yamaha integrated amp to a newer and better sounding amp will even help his Warfdales sound much better.
He has options and focusing in with one who knows what's up may help. As anyone knows who has dealt with Rutan, he isn't always about purchasing through him etc... he just wants to help out as do many in this industry. |
I am also not a fan of the B&W speakers. Please keep in mind though that I do have a mirage 15 inch down firing subwoofer.
FYI, I hooked up the ADS speakers last night and in all honesty found little difference between them and my Wharfedales. They did have a little bit more at the bottom end, but when I kick in the subwoofer, I really couldn't hear that much of a difference.
I'm going to meet the gentleman with the used Vandersteen 2Ce this afternoon. I'll let you know what I think of them later tonight. |
|
Good luck C. Hope that our call helped. Hope you get a chance to get up to Johnny's with your amp and try some new amps. Honestly, that alone may give you much much better sound. The 2's are in a different league than what you have and what the ADS are and it's not close to most ears I'm sure. |
|
