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Vandersteen Sub woofers v Rythmik Subs

I really love the idea of the Vandersteen Subs where they are connected with the mains via extra speaker cable off right and left channels off the main amplifier, which is supposed to provide better bass transition from the mains while keeping the signature from the main amplifier. My question is with Vandersteen coming out with the SUB THREE and the price going significantly higher, I was wondering if there are other subs for less that you could integrate in the same way. (Most subs seem to rely on the line level input which is just a sub-woofer RCA going from the pre-amp to the amp on the sub). Can this same Vandersteen set-up be achieved with other subs?
I picked Rythmik since they are known (in the home theater community anyway) for being one of the best bang for the buck subs and the most "musical" of the bunch. (between Hsu, SVS, PSA).
And could I possibly achieve even greater sub-woofer nirvana since I could get an 18" for around $1500? Vandies only have 3 eight inchers.

I am a Vandersteen fanboy and I would like to support RV whenever I can, but don’t know much about my other sub-woofer options so looking for some feedback. Doesn’t even have to be related to Rythmik necessarily. If you know of other subs that can integrate the same way I want to know about it!

Thanks
bstatmeister
bondmanp
1,818 posts
 

@gdnrbob -
A sordid, unhappy, long story, some of which can be found here:

https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/vandersteen-2wq-subwoofers-with-m5-hp-crossovers-help-needed

I think you posted on that thread, btw. I am still working on resolving this. I suspect the amp is the problem, but I am far from certain. The new amp internals are surely burned in by now, and I am less than thrilled with it when run full range into my Ohm Walsh 2000s, which I know can produce pretty good, deep bass in my room without a subwoofer. I may have a 64 lb. paperweight on my hands. Worse, I don’t really have the money for a new amp (at least not one I would want to own long term). I have tried another amp, but it was vintage, and I could not find the input impedance. I am working with Johnny Rutan at Audio Connection to figure all this out. He has offered to stop by my house with an amplifier and see what happens, so I am waiting for him to have an evening when he has some free time. But it has been a very frustrating 6 months. I miss my rig. :-(


schubert
7,386 posts
 
KLH 17 is a very good speaker !
invictus005
597 posts
 
Vandersteen sub will annihilate anything from Rythmik. It's musical and tuneful and integrates well with many speakers and rooms. It's as good as the best out there. It's not even fair to compare the two.
bondmanp
1,818 posts
 
@invictus005 - I am not disputing what you say, but I am curious as to how you arrived at your conclusion.  I love my 2Wqs, but the Rythmik clearly has some fans here.  Have you compared the two?
jackd
1,071 posts
 
I happen to own them both and neither one obliterates the other.  They are different paths to the same goal. 
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