Any Vandersteen 7 Owners in SFO Bay Area ?

I have Audio research ref 250SE and I believe it is more than enough to run these speakers. I have ARC 5SE as pre amp. 

the ref250se are amazing with 7
I borrowed a Ref75se when my Ayre was getting the Twenty upgrade and the sound was sublime....

to clarify my comments new build 7 not available.

sounds like Randy at Optimal is going to have the most similar system for you to listen to. 

i got your PM and i have emailed you some photos..the finish is outstanding quality....better paint than our GL 550 for sure ! ha

V, I"m soo happy for you. Yes the mk 2 are so good and I'm glad you appreciated them.  I know some who have run them on the AX5 Twenty for a spell and they worked great.  Remember that from 100hz down, they are run off their special amp.  You AR is one of three amps that they are most often demo'd with.  It's an awesome amp to use.  If you can ever get Richard's amp, THAT is the amp to use.  Nothing I've heard has come close to that.  I love it with the Ayre KX-R for speed, clarity and timbre.  You can't go wrong as you are using well engineered gear and they pair so nicely together.  Remember that Richard LOVES AR gear and often does rooms with them at shows.  

As for color, go for it.  I love the Audi Havanna Black also as it has metal flecks of copper in it, but you can't really see it unless you are close.  I'm about to get a pair of Quatro's and was thinking about asking if I can get mine painted too.....on the ropes there, lol.  

I am more than willing to take your old model 7s off you hands at a steep discount!! LOL.  I need to upgrade from my old 5s!  Happy Listening.  I build my own DAC and preamp an use a SA-100 old Counterpoint hybrid amp (highly modified by me) and it drives the 5s very well.  Have not tried the Counterpoint SA-220 probably should get around to that though.