Scoring on Used Thiels here

One local dealer does still have a pair of used black matte  cs1.6s for under $1k I believe.  This would work aesthetically but I'm thinking more of a lateral move from the Triangle monitors in that the bass extension is limited.   Of course I do have the sub....

Another local shop has a used pair of cs2s (listed on ebay) just a tad beat up (pushed in dust caps, etc, for $600.   Might work aesthetically with a little clean up.   Would have to take a look.

Vandy’s are more forgiving of amplification.

I think that's probably true for the lower end Vandys because the Thiels are more resolved and transparent. Ie, upstream problems are more readily revealed. That probably changes for the carbon diaphragm Vandys. But if you're dropping $30-60K on those Vandys you are probably also getting ARC, Ayre or equivalent amplification.

@prof I would love to hear your 2.7s, My only audition with 3.7 was in the Rowland room at RMAF a few years back. Really good stuff. I would like to hear them with Ayre or ARC.

One thing I didn't write is that I think the Sig IIs soundstage pretty much as well as anything I've heard including the TAD Ref One, Vandersteen Seven, etc. So, it's hardly a problem if I don't think the CS2.4 SE is quite as good!

I'm not giving up on trying to get better image density. I have short interconnects which makes it difficult to change speaker locations but I will continue to try new placements. So far, I've tried listening distances 8-10' with the speakers 7-8.5' apart. So far, "best" results are with listening position 8-9' and speakers ~7.5' apart. Usually image density is improved with closer placement but at the expense of soundstage size.

@mapman Hi-fi shark shows CS2.3 available on audiogon for $1500 or on US Audiomart for $1000. If this is your budget, I would get one of these and see about a "hot-rod" kit from Rob Gillum.

Mapman, in the present marketplace CS 2’s Should be in mint shape to command $600. FYI, the CS 2’s have been Thiel’s most durable and reliable model. The impedance is one of the smoothest I’ve ever seen, 6 Ohms nominal, 5 Ohms minimal with a reasonable 87 dB sensitivity. Minimum suggested power was 40 Watts. Though technically easy to drive, sonically there’s a bit more to consider: the ported bass can be a bit soft if not driven with an amp with good damping, and the treble needs to be treated delicately. I haven’t heard your integrated, and I don’t typically like to over generalize like this, but Class D’s often are tight in the bass,so long as the impedance doesn’t drop too low ( no problem w/ CS 2’s) and the Class D’s often roll off the high’s a bit. Again way over generalizing Class D’s, but if it holds true, just might work very nicely indeed. FWIW, Jim Thiel thought Class D’s sonics should be limited to subwoofers. But a lot of time has transpired since then, and who knows perhaps he might have changed his mind, if he had the opportunity to hear the more recent offerings.