Vandersteen

@tomic601 +1  

Jim is right on here.  I had 3A Sigs for about the same time as him.  I found keeping them out into the listening room to be critical.  If I had them too close to the wall behind them the sound was a bit congested and "rough".  They need breathing room and good electronics and cables.  Richard V. used Audioquest cables for many years at shows with his speakers and had fine results.  I followed his example...that is not to say that they are the only synergistic cables with Vandys.

Re-read what Jim said above and implement as many of his suggestions as possible.

If you want a second opinion, John Rutan at Audio Connection, Verona, NJ is it!

Hope you work it out!

I owned Vandy 5ACs and have had 2CEs Sigs as well. Problem with Vandys is that the "sweet spot" is about a quarter-inch wide and they are hugely over-priced. For about one-third the price Tyler Acoustics gives a vastly broader sound-stage and equivalent quality drivers.

I have to agree with what @tomic601 says, and follow setup exactly. Vandersteen gives very specific instructions on setup, and the stands are a necessity--they add that last bit of focus to the sound.

But I will say this--I have some 2CEs here and don't feel they "fall apart" on any type of music.  Especially large-scale classical.  And, I don't even have them properly set up yet. (Have not had time to fully tweak placement and to be honest, they would probably do even better in a slightly larger room.)  I can vouch for them being power hungry, though. The Threshold Stasis amp I'm running has no issues driving them--the Vandys really bloom when I turn the volume up.  Less powerful amps can't give them the juice they need.  Feed them well with plenty of power and good source components, and they'll treat you well.

I'm a planar speaker guy myself, so some qualities of the speaker aren't exactly my preference.  But still, what the Vandys do, they do nicely.  I probably will keep these for a second system.  

My Vandie 4As are excellent on symphonic works.  They don't 'fall apart' at all, but then they run separately amplified bass sections with a Vandersteen external crossover.

Wow!  4As?  Don't often hear about Model 4s.  How long have you had them?