Are my speakers now the "weak link"?

I recently auditioned the Wilsons with the Ayre reg AX5 which I purchased and it will be in the que to be upgraded. I liked the mk 3 version and thought it was much more musical and detailed than previous versions, however I'm going with new Vandersteen Quatro's. For me Richards use of carbon just makes these things sing as well as being detailed and flat. I can listen all day and once you listen for a few weeks you realize it just sounds right. That's to my ear, but you owe it to yourself to check them out if you possibly can. There are a few others in your price range that will give you most of what you are looking for. I needed the Vandy's for their adjustable bass too...

Thanks Ctsooner. Sounds like Ayre works better with Vandersteens than with Wilsons. I appreciate your insights.

I don't think Ctsooner said that, as he thought the Ayres sounded musical and detailed with the Sophias. He just said he prefers the Vandersteen sound over the Wilson sound. I'd suggest that you listen to Vandersteens and see if you like them more than Wilsons yourself, as you do like the Wilson house sound. Both are excellent speakers, but definitely different sounding.

Yes Rcprince said it correctly. I have Ayre over all the others as I love the sound. Neither tube, nor SS. Just musical and detailed. The local Wilson dealer LOVES the ref Ayre gear with their Wilsons or anything else in the store.

My Vandy dealer where I got mine (Audio Connection) uses Ayre, AR and Aesthetix gear to audition their Vandy's. All are pretty darn awesome. There are many good lines out there and synergy is most important. I've yet to hear the Ayre gear not sound great and I have taken my integrated into dealers with me to audition speakers when I was looking. Even dealers who didn't sell the Ayre gear were amazed. To me that said a lot. It also made me take notice as to HOW BIG a deal it is to no just get a high powered amp and to get one that sounds right. I often felt that pre amp and then amp are not taken as seriously when putting a system together. Way too often people just buy a big name they know or a high powered amp when they could change their whole system with the right pre/amp. All components are huge when putting together a system. Not just speakers and source. Everything matters in between.

That said, look at your system to figure out WHAT you feel you are missing. The newer components available allow designers to get much more detail etc. out of their products than they could just ten years ago. That's why new components usually are better than vintage. (at least for companies who know what they are doing).

Like I said, Sasha 1. Not sure why you ignored my earlier comment. I like musical fidelity and I think they make good gear.