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Owners of Vandersteen 2CE & Ayre Ax7e...

I have Vandy 2CE signature speakers and I am contemplating picking up a preowned Ax7e integrated as I have heard good things with the pairing. I do have some questions though about room size, type of music and sound character of the Ax7e. My room is a second bedroom which is approximately 11x14. Types of music I primarily listen to is pop/rock (i.e. Pink Floyd, Rush, Bowie) and electronic (i.e. Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Jean Michel Jarre). How would you describe the sound character of the Ax7e when using the 2CE’s? Warm? Neutral? Is it laidback or more forward? Is it similar to anything from Krell, Musical Fidelity, Naim, Rega or Simaudio? How is the bass, midrange and highs? Associated equipment is: Arcam irDAC, Cambridge CXC transport. Cabling is Mogami speaker cable and interconnects from Jerry at 10 Audio. Thanks. 
jsbach1685
riley804
1,224 posts
 
@jsbach1685 

I asked about room size as I’ve also read that certain owners have reported the ax7e not having quite enough gusto to run the 2CE’s.
 
and how big were those rooms ?    your room is not all that big ( 11 x 14 ) and I am sure you are not going to be listening at high levels
jsbach1685 OP
145 posts
 
This is true. When I had my 2C’s, I ran them in the same 11x14 room with a creek 4330se and naim cd3.5 cd player. That was a dream pairing and sounded wonderful together. The 4330se was 50 wpc and it too had a passive pre stage. 
riley804
1,224 posts
 
@jsbach1685 

so, what seems to be the issue then ?


twoleftears's avatar
twoleftears
5,318 posts
 
So what happened to the Creek?

The Belles Aria integrated would be a good match.
beetlemania
834 posts
 
I ran an AX-7e into 2Ce Sig IIs for about 7 years. My room is about 18x19 with vaulted ceiling and two large openings on rear wall. I was super happy. I would describe the sound as neutral and detailed. One caution is that the AX-7 is not a good match with the inefficient 2Ces if you like to listen loudly (peaks >95 dB; https://www.audioasylum.com/mhtml/m.html?forum=speakers&n=255226&highlight=). Circa 2015, I used some inheritance money to move up to an AX-5 Twenty. This amp is more powerful with greater resolution, quieter noise floor, and better bass control. But it better be given the difference in price. Soon, I realized the Vandersteens were the weak link in my system and I moved on to something more fitting for the AX-5s strengths.


I guess I’m saying the AX-7e is a good sonic match for the 2Ce although you should look elsewhere if you listen to Rush at concert SPLs.


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