Box speakers that sound like Electrostats?

Jaytoy, Apogees have for the most part gone underground, both literally, and figurative. There are still thousands of mint Apogees out there, but they are almost all locked up in people's dedicated listening rooms. There is also a thriving Apogee forum where one finds Apogees, learns to care for them, and what ancillary equipment works with them. The Perigee creater, Graz, produces replacement ribbons for all models, and there is a long time Apogee builder, Robert Dragunas, who has all ribbons, and will rebuild Apogees for a reasonable cost. I have bought three near mint Apogees off of eBay and Audiogon.

Whoa!! Where are all the Vandersteen fans today? The whole idea of the Vandersteen "baffleless" design is to eliminate the "boxy" sound of a box speaker. Whether you like them or not, for whatever reason, the Vandersteens are absolutely transparent. Have a new listener over and the first comment (after Wow) is how transparent the sound is (and where is it coming from).

Give the 2CEs a listen Dennis, or if you have a little more room, the 3As. Sigs of course in either case.

I do like Vandies...and they are very open sounding...however...they do lack the speed of ELSs and even other conventional designs in their price range...but this is highly subjective...it comes down to what music you enjoy and what trade-offs u can live with....if I ever graduate to a bigger room..the Vandies will be on my short list...

You should listen to the Von Schweikert VR-1. Their top end is precise and crisp without sounding tinny and the base is full and lively. It also has a great and deep soundstage. To me they sound like the best electrostatics without having to get a sub.

I took my Spica TC-50s to my "local" Quad dealer and listened to the Quad 12L, the Spicas and the 988 (all thru Quad electronics, with a sub). To me the 12Ls were very impressive and in some ways better (e.g. smoother) than the Spicas, but the Spicas were closer in personality to the 988.