Vandersteen fans

[Humbuster]

Originally Posted by kfr01

Yeah, you need to stop asking her for permission. It is a great Audio Aficionado tradition to make system decisions happen THEN figure out how to deal with the boss.

Cheers

I appreciate this fine advice.

I've done this many times with guitars in the past, so she is pretty wise to my shenanigans. However, in the spirit of this fine community, I may just sell one of my acoustics to appease her and go for it.

[longbowbbs]

Originally Posted by Humbuster

I appreciate this fine advice.

I've done this many times with guitars in the past, so she is pretty wise to my shenanigans. However, in the spirit of this fine community, I may just sell one of my acoustics to appease her and go for it.

I sold a PRS to fund my Vandersteen's....Sometimes you have to compromise.

[Tomictime]

Just need to decide on a color for 7's....veneer not possible even tho that is what she wants...Rosewood 5a's go to the dealer....Richard is indeed one talented inventor!!!

[longbowbbs]

I love the Ferrari Red! Awesome looking.

[Tomictime]

More of a flat 6 guy...Garnet SC, Zanzibar Boxster S, Adventurine Green 993, Slate Grey 996 Turbo.....but none of those colors work INSIDE....looks like Mahogany Metallic a current color..might.....

[longbowbbs]

I saw the dark blue...(I don't know what "Designer" name they had for it) in November with Richard and it was nice.

[PlanarSpeakerFan]

I did a nice long audition of the Vandersteen 7 this weekend. The system was all ARC, Ref CD9, Ref 5se and Ref150. The system sounded great but definitely not as good as Aesthetix gear I've heard on the Vandy 7 in the same room, the Romulus, Calypso and Atlas monoblocks. The Aesthetix gear was better layered, controlled the bass better and produced a much more holographic image. I would say that I prefer the sound of my own system to the ARC and V7 combo but the Aesthetix and V7 combo is some of the best sound I've heard in any room.

[cma29]

Originally Posted by PlanarSpeakerFan

I did a nice long audition of the Vandersteen 7 this weekend. The system was all ARC, Ref CD9, Ref 5se and Ref150. The system sounded great but definitely not as good as Aesthetix gear I've heard on the Vandy 7 in the same room, the Romulus, Calypso and Atlas monoblocks. The Aesthetix gear was better layered, controlled the bass better and produced a much more holographic image. I would say that I prefer the sound of my own system to the ARC and V7 combo but the Aesthetix and V7 combo is some of the best sound I've heard in any room.

Nice report, Ken.

I've heard nice things about the V7, so it's good to hear impressions from someone whose ears I trust.

I doubt there are many systems out there that can sound better than yours, including the Vandy/ARC combo.

[PlanarSpeakerFan]

Originally Posted by cma29

Nice report, Ken.

I've heard nice things about the V7, so it's good to hear impressions from someone whose ears I trust.

I doubt there are many systems out there that can sound better than yours, including the Vandy/ARC combo.

Hi Carlos,

Thanks for those kind words.

The Vandersteen 7 is a true reference loudspeaker and if driven by the right components, the sound is state of the art. Driven by all Aesthetix components (most specifically the Atlas monoblocks), the V7 just disappear and produce the most smooth, seamless, transparent and holographic sound imaginable. I believe this is due in large part to the carbon/balsa sandwich cones that are employed in its dome tweeter, midrange and front bass speaker. If the V7 has any slight weakness, it might be that the powered subwoofer doesn't integrate quite as well as the other speakers in terms of speed and transparency. However, these subwoofers are no slouch and can produce enough bass to shake the walls and make my stomach quiver like jello. The V7 are not the most efficient speakers, so I feel they sound best if driven by a solid state amplifier. The Atlas monoblocks use 6SN7 tubes in its voltage gain stage and solid state in the output stage, so some warmth and smoothness are added to the equation.

Best,
Ken

[longbowbbs]

Ken, the new Vandersteen amps that Richard developed specifically for the 7's are 2 stage with a tube front end and SS after. 600 Watts too. You nailed it with what works best for them.Speakers and Amps run $104K Add a top end Pre like a ARC Ref 5 SE or Ref 10 and you have a phenomenal setup.

Eric