Vandersteen question.

I have 1C's, and a friend a few blocks away has 2Ce's. They sound quite similar, with that special Vandersteen coherence, open-ness, and dispersion. The 2Ce's have a fuller lower bass and sound larger and a couple of shades darker, all things being equal.

Short answer: A NAD C340 would be adequate for a pair of Vandersteen 1C's at moderate volumes in a room of moderate size. I think that it would not be up to the task of driving adequately a pair of Vandersteen 2Ce's. Also I think that a 1C-subwoofer combination can be better overall than a 2Ce.

Longer answer: When I first got the 1C's, I ran them with an old NAD 60W/channel 3300 PE. I missed fullness in the lowest octave and general "slam" with about half the music I listen to; I enjoy mostly jazz, Afro-Caribbean, and some rock and "classical" (Eastern and Western). So I bought an ACI Titan II LE subwoofer and that did a superb job, better than a Vandersteen 2WQ in my room.

A few months later, I bought a 120W/channel NAD C370 (mostly for the remote), and I was surprised how much fuller, deeper, and more natural the music became. The subwoofer comes into play significantly less; my 1C's would now be more than adequate on their own most of the time.

My friend runs his Vandersteen 2Ce's rather well with 50W/channel Audio Research tube amplification in his moderately-sized room. I rarely miss a subwoofer with his eclectic mix of rock, jazz, and classical music. I suspect that an increase in power would improve the bass and ease of the overall presentation.

What I've heard in comparison of these speakers with no sub used is that 1C has more open and full midrange, has better dissapearance effect than 2Ce while 2Ce has its bass a-bit deeper but not enough to be a full range speaker.
Getting 1C with 2wq woofer will give better results than the same would be done with 2Ce.
On the other side I also noticed that somehow 1C benefit if you throw there some juice. I used to drive them with Creek 4330R rated at 40 W/ch and I fealt that it has enough power to swing the driver but not enough power to stop it i.e. the drum sounded longer than it's suppouse to sound. When I hooked them up with Bryston 3B-st they sounded much fuller and defined.
Adding a woofer will ease-up the task of a speaker and enhance its work on midrange and top end. Moreover it will more create a 3d and better stage.

Of course your room and desired listnening levels are important in your amp selection. I think the Creek could run the Vandersteen 2's but, just barely. I would recommend an amp upgrade to get the most out of these speakers. As for Marakanetz recommendation, lets just say we almost never agree on anything.

you're not the only one Unsound,
but i still do not understand what people find in 2Ce compared to 1C maybe spending more bucks??

Marakanetz, I could make a laundry list of why I prefer the 2's to the 1's and find the 2's to be a better value, but you have obviously made the same comparisons and come to a different conclusion. To each his own. Ulitmately, every buyer does the same.