Speaker help under $2,500

Excuse me while I go check my record collection. I think Johnny may have walked off with it. *lol*

Eddy, just because someone else loves a speaker doesn't mean you will. The Sonus Fabre may be the best for you in your system. Ctsooner would be the first to agree. Listen to the speakers you have and learn their strengths and weakness before thinking of buying the Vandy's. 

Yes, your wife is awesome! Don't let your lust for another speaker steal your enjoyment of the one you have.

Now if I could just follow my own advice.

I sure wouldn’t get depressed about SF Venere 2.5s. They are *really* good. Although my previous post was a bit cautionary, the 2.5s are so musically communicative I felt like I had some transcendental experiences when I was auditioning them even when the source was CD and the power was an A/V receiver. One was a CD of solo Vihuela music. Vihuela sounds like a lute but is shaped like a guitar. Those speakers totally drew me into the moment and mesmerized me. In fact, the sales person and I sat in the sweet spot transfixed. Ditto when I put on some Chet Baker singing and playing his seductive, smokey trumpet. The sorted out solo, small ensemble, vocals, and orchestras equally well.

The primary factor in why I didn’t buy them is because I had a rigid budget and couldn’t quite swing the Veneres. After having omnidirectional speakers for 5 years, I was surprised at how well this front-baffle design could totally energize a room, scaling soundstages up and down depending on the material, while maintaining realistic and specific imaging.

I know it’s subjective and setup and electronics make a big difference, but I’ve never heard Vandersteens move me like those Veneres, and a mass market A/V receiver was hardly an ideal setup either.

Embrace the experience. They’re voluptuous, subtle, dynamic, involving, and--as a bonus--beautiful to look at as well.

And don’t judge them right out of the box. From Fremer’s review in Sound & Vision:

Big Sound (After Long Break-In)!
Those who don’t believe in break-in, and there are many, will not be happy with what they first hear, and because they don’t believe, they will be done. Cold out of the box, the system was bright. Any dealer putting this system on display before a thorough break-in is making a big mistake. Normally, Sumiko breaks in review speakers, but deadlines prevented it this time. To speed up the break-in, I let the system percolate for a week whenever I wasn’t using it for pleasure (even cold, it brought plenty!).

Read the whole review at http://www.soundandvision.com/content/sonus-faber-venere-25-speaker-system#WIZCbJhoxiiLjOay.99

TAS review: http://www.theabsolutesound.com/articles/sonus-faber-venere-model-25-loudspeaker/

S’phile review: http://www.stereophile.com/content/sonus-faber-venere-25-loudspeaker#2mZE3OW1TBMImumb.97

Goodsound (SoundStage Access): http://www.goodsound.com/index.php/equipment-reviews/453-sonus-faber-venere-2-5-loudspeakers

Canada Hi-Fi: http://canadahifi.com/sonus-faber-venere-2-5-speakers/

Thank you very much everyone for your posted.  Learned a lot from your guys.  Happy new year everyone.  
By the way, been breaking in Venere 2.5 about 10 hrs now.  First listening sound so bright and hope the brightness will come down.  

I heard the Venere 2.5s, both straight out of the box and after several hours of break-in. You would have never known they were the same speaker model. Give'em time. They are pretty amazing after break-in.