2. speakers
  3. 128756-95461

Add a Subwoofer to my Vandersteen 1ce s or replace with Revel Concerta2 F36

Hey Audiogon community,
    Perhaps you guy can help here. I have a VPI Scout with Sound Smith Zephyr III Cartridge running into a Musical Fidelity v-LPS that runs into a NAD VISO 5 Receiver and back out to a pair of Vandersteen 1ce's. Since I recently bought the Zephyr III, it revealed some inadequacies, and I am in upgrade mode. My audio advisor from Brooks Berdan suggested I start with the speakers. Mind you, I Love my Vandersteens but wish there was deeper bass realism. I have been listening to the Revel concerta2 F36  recently with a Cronus Magnus powering them via some entry level Oracle turntable. I like the F36 a lot, and feel like they would give me more full range dynamics especially on the low end. I am looking at upgrading to the Rogue Cronus Magnus soon as well. And am hoping that upgrading to the F36 is the smarter choice than adding a sub that would seamlessly integrate. Any thought would be appreciated. Thank you.
voodooman13
bondmanp
1,805 posts
 
I totally concure with ctsooner's opinions of the 2Wq sub.  Also, I never feel as if I have sacrificed extension or output for accuracy (of course, that's with two of them and the MHP5 crossovers).  I am sure mr_m will be pleased.  I would recommend you mass load them on top (I use boxes of ceramic tiles and ammo).
gdnrbob
4,442 posts
 
I have ctsooner's Treo's mated with a pair of 2w subs (not q's).
It is a superlative combination. I don't think I'll be changing them for a while.
Bob
hifiman5's avatar
hifiman5
1,832 posts
 
@bondmanp You are so right about mass loading the 2wqs.  I have a 45 pound weight lifters steel disc on top of each of mine with Herbie's Big Fat Dots between the weights and the top of the subs so there would be no rattling under intense sub output. Your weight choice is more interesting in mine though.  Also agree about the MHP5 Crossovers.  If you want to maintain the transparency of the system you need the best crossovers.

bondmanp
1,805 posts
 
hifiman5:  HA!  My weight "choices" were determined by a shortage of storage space for several boxes of ceramic tile and a lot of ammo.  Sometimes, stuff just kind of falls into place.  LOL!  
mr_m
1,900 posts
 
Hifiman5 and bondmanp. Goes to show ya you don't need the expensive audiophile weights or bricks to mass load a subwoofer. I did this trick to my nephew's cheap large box speakers. He looked so amazed at what he had heard you would have thought I just gave him a $15k pair of speakers! I guess it doesn't need to be said that you can use dozens if not hundreds of free to very inexpensive tweaks in this hobby to improve sound.
More to discover