Are vandersteen 5

It's possible to put 5's much closer than 3' from the back wall with almost no compromise. You should also mind the size of these speakers that I guess is arround 3.5'deep and will take almost the half of your room space. Theoretically these speakers can perform in any room but I'm sure that there are far more convenient speakers with same or even better performance.

The 5A is 14"W x 20"D at the base and 10"W x 16"D at the top. Height is 45". Quite reasonable considering it includes the sub and amp, a woofer, midrange and tweeter. It is actually narrower and shorter than the 3A, although deeper.

I also have a rather small listening room, I purchased a pair of the Vandersteen Model Fives after a long dealer listening sessions and the idea that they will work in any room because of the adjustable subwoofers. After over a year of repeated measurements and adjustments I sold them. I never could get the bass right in my small room. My dealer did initially help but soon loss interest after he made the 10K sale. A call to Richard Vandersteen was little or no help(he said to go back to the dealer for help) They are wonderful speakers in the right room, it is my opinion and 12K mistake that they need a medium to large room for the best results. As far as the dealer, he lost a customer, I have purchased over 30K of audio since the Vandys and would of gone back to him. As far as the Vandersteens, if my listening room changes I would look at the Model Five or 5A again BUT USED ,no more retail for me.

desmond1,

What size was your room? Smaller than the 12x16 above? Very small rooms can have some acoustic issues, however, the 5A provides a great deal of control and adjustment to handle them.

Did you ever get another sub and were you able to get it to perform to your satisfaction in the same room?

My room size is 12.5 X 14 feet with a 8 foot ceiling. Went to electrostatics and gave up the deepest bass for the extended midrange and top end. Not looking back but very dissapointed in the Vandersteen dealer.