How critical is placement for Vandy 2 ce Sig. ?

Hi,
I've owned a pair for 5 years or so. I have them against the wall and they sound wonderful. Soundstage is high and wide and detail galore. I've had them hooked up to a Pathos Classic One and now to two Decware SETs rigged up in mono blocks. Vynil and CDs no matter, they sound great!

I still own a pair of 2cis which are simial to the 2ces. Years ago they were my main speakers in a very large room and were out 4 ft. from the front wall and 5 ft. from the side walls. The sound stage was very broad and high and the bass clean and tight. Later I put them in an office about 2 ft. out from the front wall. I still found the sound stage large and engaging. I have also listened to these speakers as clost as 18" out without noticable loss. So, I would not be concerned about 2 ft. While it is commonly said that Vandy's need a large space and room to breath, my experience is they perform as well as any other speaker in and around walls.

Placement is critical for all speakers. However, the Vandersteen website contains a very detailed FAQ section which discusses placement issues. If a question isn't answered, you can submit one and it may even be answered by the man himself! If I recall, you don't need five feet of clearance. Your three feet may be okay, but it's hard to tell what might be apporpriate for your set-up because of all the variables involved.

Find a dealer.
Listen for yourself (3f from the wall).
Do not be pushed around.
If you can not find a dealer......:
36inches isn't a disaster.
Experiment with the toe-in.
How is the WAF(Wife Acceptance Factor)?
Are the room acoustic treatments like absorbers or diffusers possible to incorporate into the rooms' decor?
Not all treatments are butt ugly & can be
very, very helpful and sometimes crucial to achieve desire results.
Just my 2c.