SBlackman Posted September 30 Share Posted September 30 (edited) When I was in my late 20's I started getting quite serious about figuring out how to get the best sound I could afford. By that I mean I obsessively read TAS. I endlessly visited my local audio stores (in my case Audio Advice in Raleigh, NC) I learned a ton from that publication and those visits to Audio Advice. I lusted after things I knew I could NEVER afford, but I learned a lot along the way. How to listen. How to describe what I was hearing. How to care for my vinyl. And on and on. During that journey, the Vandersteen 2Cs were on my short list of loudspeakers whose sound quality, I read, far exceeded their cost. They seemed to be less finicky to set up and enjoy. Their equipment requirements were not in the stratosphere. But, alas, my $15,000 annual salary couldn't justify the $1200 (as I recall) that I'd need to own them. Newly married. Planning for kids. Trying to buy the first house. Priorities were duking it out with one another 🙂 Didn't feel like a sword I wanted to die on at the time. But they never really left my sphere of interest. Fast forward (slow forward?) to September 2024 and a gentleman about my age (I'll be 64 Thursday) was moving from Dallas to San Francisco and was purging his 'stuff' in order to make the move. He had put Vandersteen Model 2's on FB Marketplace for $350 - stands included. I thought, surely these have been through the wringer. Long story short, I went to look and listen. They were in great shape. Well cared for. Typical wear and tear but nothing out of the ordinary for (what I thought) was a 40+ year old set of loudspeakers. Turns out they were 2C's that he'd purchased in 1982-ish. Zelle'd my payment and loaded them into the Volvo. Set them up on Saturday and was thrilled to finally have these in my life. Mattered not one bit to me that they were nearly as old as my marriage. Still tweaking. Not convinced I necessarily have things locked in, but it's been fun so far. I've always compromised as best as I could on my equipment. Never really had anything much above mid-fi, but I've always enjoyed what I had and got great enjoyment from listening to my 2000+ vinyl LP's on what equipment I had and what I could afford. I've tended to shy away from sharing the details of what I own in the usual 'audiophile' communities because what I had was not audiophile. Maybe that's my Imposter Syndrome rearing its ugly head LOL. My current set up: Linn Axis Turntable with Benz Micro cart Pro-Ject Design Carbon Turntable with stock Ortofon cart 2x Schiit Mani Phone stages Denon AVR-3300 Receiver Oppo BDP-103 Blu-ray Disc player (primarily for use with SACD / DVD-A discs) Schiit Modi DAC Vandersteen 2C's Anthony Gallo TR-3 subwoofer Home Theater speakers consist of Sound Dynamic center and surrounds I listen to a pretty eclectic mix of vinyl that I've been collecting since 8th grade! I traveled in NC/SC in the early 90's when CD's were rising and Vinyl was 'dying' and I spent a LOT of time in the college towns of NC/SC visiting record stores and buying up vinyl for stupidly low prices. That was fun. Several years back I begin enjoying high-end digital audio. Bought my lifetime subscription to Roon and have very much enjoyed that platform and the discovery that it offers. Currently have roughly 70,000 FLAC files. On a specific side note, still trying to work through how or whether I should keep the Anthony Gallo TR-3 in the system. I say that because - to be honest - I'm not sure I know yet how best to include that in the mix. Certainly from a HT perspective it's a great addition. But is it necessary with the 2C's? And if they can compliment them, how do I ensure I have it setup correctly with the 2C's. Something I'll have to work through. Apologies for the long post. Letting my excitement get the best of me 🙂 Including a picture of my listening room/office/. PS...imagine my excitement when my very first post on this forum was promptly answered by Richard Vandersteen. Talk about bringing a smile to my face haha. ...Thanks for reading...happy to be here. Edited September 30 by SBlackman 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomicTime Posted September 30 Share Posted September 30 Great story n journey…. re the sub… the 2C are capable of pretty extraordinary bass… probably the first affordable audiophile speaker flat in room deep in to the lower 40 hz region… perfectly adequate for 90% of modern music… imo… For a relatively moderate investment you could purchase the analog Radio Shack SPL meter and run Vandertones ( a free down load on the Vandy website ) to better understand what is going on 120 hzand below in your room. I understand the allure of an HT sub for movies…. Jim 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomicTime Posted September 30 Share Posted September 30 BTW… Richard n Linda to the R and Buckingham Nicks to the L…. very nice Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted September 30 Author Share Posted September 30 Thanks for the sub comments @TomicTime I’ll definitely download Vandertones. Wasn’t aware of that. I’ve had RadioShack analog SPL meter for decades 🙂 Yes on the Richard and Linda and Buckingham / Nicks. Those covers are in regular rotation. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oregon Posted September 30 Share Posted September 30 How can Vandertones affect 2 Ce Sig. III's? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratocaster Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 @SBlackman thanks for sharing your journey. I have a pair of 25 year old Vandersteen’s that sound amazing and don’t show their age at all. Something to be said about the quality and engineering behind the products. Looking forward to seeing some more posts on your listening experience. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomicTime Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 Vandertones are essentially calibrated ( compensated is more accurate ) bass test tones designed to be used with the noted RS analog SPL meter.. So no by themselves using Vandertones in isolation will just tell you where you are from 20 hz to 120 hz. Knowing where you are can be helpful in guiding setup changes… of course, you don’t have the benefit of a sub 3…. but knowing current performance should allow you to make changes and better understand the impacts to low frequencies…. Of course, one can always wander in the wilderness …. what audiophile with golden ears below 120 hz… wouldn’t ? ….. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 Clearly going to need to educate myself a bit on how to use the Vandertones effectively. Going to bet there is plenty of dialog here in the forums that will help educate me. I’ll do that research before I start asking questions. Hopefully I can figure it all out on my own. I think it’s clear from my photograph that there is much about my current configuration that would benefit from some reworking. It’s tight with all the vinyl. Would probably make a difference for me to be able clear out that back wall so I could have more control over where and how I place the speakers. I realize there are many variables - physical and electronic - that need to be taken into consideration. One step at a time. Whatever adjustments I make will include a level of compromise - like everything else in my audio world. My goal is to make educated, reasonably well thought out compromises. 😀 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomicTime Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 Exactly….all of us, even those w dedicated rooms face constraints and different priorities….. key is if the system makes you happy…. reach out if you want help w vandertones. There are other experts here much more fluent on AVR settings to get better 2 channel sound. Again congrats 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GdnrBob Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 @SBlackman, We all start out a bit adrift, but with a little assistance from our members, it will all be much clearer to you. And, the knowledge you gain will guide you to even better sound, as well as knowing why it does. It did for me. Bob 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 (edited) I’m still tweeting for sure. Having some difficulty objectively ‘listening’. I know I need to really work on moving these subtly and carefully listening for changes based on position However, at the risk of severe embarrassment, can someone verify that I have the 2Cs bi-wired correctly? Probably should have been my first question on the forum given that these are my first speakers where bi-wiring is recommended. I think these are correct, but clearly want to rule out that as the first potential adjustment that needs made. Common sense initially told me I should match red to red and black to black but I don’t think that’s correct based on my review the manual. Edited October 1 by SBlackman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 To be clear, I never drove them with red to red and black to black for both treble/mid and bass. As much as my lizard brain said that’s what I should do, I carefully read before I settled on this configuration. Just looking to validate that my confidence was justified 😂 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomicTime Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 you had it correct w black to black and red to red 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 Thanks @TomicTime Assume you added an image. Not seeing it, however. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 If I try to open image in new tab I get: AccessDeniedAccess Denied8DMNY7S4XQ916CQHNTQ55QsU66/tQELf9B6h0k2j/Oj+NHCv2LmxyEYHq5OV2LrpXy7h2818v2PmYmOThDqUZqA7hIA= Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 I realize I keep responding to my own posts (which is weird to be sure), but here's my logic and why I still think I have these wired correctly. If I follow the bi-wire diagram, I'm interpreting that Tweeter & Midrange RED and Bass RED are wired together into the red (positive) side of the left (or right) channel. Tweeter & Midrange BLACK and Bass BLACK are wired together into the black (negative) side of the left (or right) channel. I'm using the adapters I have to each behave as BLACK and RED (i.e. red/black on one adapter both behave as BLACK and red/black on the other adapter both behave as RED). So in the image attached, my RED side (Tweeter & Midrange + Bass) are combine with an adapter where the black side of the adapter is behaving as RED. My BLACK side (Tweeter & Midrange + Bass) are combined with an adapter where the red side of the adapter is behaving as BLACK. Then (in the bottom portion of the image) I plug the Black/Negative side of the speaker cable into the BLACK side of the adapter and the Red/Positive side of the speaker cable into the RED side of the adapter Over explaining and probably over thinking. But am I still doing it wrong? I simply want to be sure I'm not 'crossing the steams' Apologies for what have been a few long-winded posts as I'm a) excited to have these and b) wanting to ensure I don't damage them 1 week in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Richard Vandersteen Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 44 minutes ago, SBlackman said: I realize I keep responding to my own posts (which is weird to be sure), but here's my logic and why I still think I have these wired correctly. If I follow the bi-wire diagram, I'm interpreting that Tweeter & Midrange RED and Bass RED are wired together into the red (positive) side of the left (or right) channel. Tweeter & Midrange BLACK and Bass BLACK are wired together into the black (negative) side of the left (or right) channel. I'm using the adapters I have to each behave as BLACK and RED (i.e. red/black on one adapter both behave as BLACK and red/black on the other adapter both behave as RED). So in the image attached, my RED side (Tweeter & Midrange + Bass) are combine with an adapter where the black side of the adapter is behaving as RED. My BLACK side (Tweeter & Midrange + Bass) are combined with an adapter where the red side of the adapter is behaving as BLACK. Then (in the bottom portion of the image) I plug the Black/Negative side of the speaker cable into the BLACK side of the adapter and the Red/Positive side of the speaker cable into the RED side of the adapter Over explaining and probably over thinking. But am I still doing it wrong? I simply want to be sure I'm not 'crossing the steams' Apologies for what have been a few long-winded posts as I'm a) excited to have these and b) wanting to ensure I don't damage them 1 week in. Connect Black wire to the Black terminals on the speaker and Red wire to the Red terminals on the speaker! How much simpler can it be? Red is the same as + and Black is the same as -. RV 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 Thanks RV. Agree it couldn't be clearer...and yet...at the risk of beating a dead horse...where I am now confused is that if I go red to red and black to black - as common sense says it should be - which of the female ends of the adapters is positive an which is negative? If you use the image here as my guide, if I take all four of these plugs and rotate them clockwise one turn, they will all line up; red to red and black to black - BUT - that means that the combined red end (where my red banana plug is currently plugged in) will occupy the Bass +/- jacks and the black end will occupy the Tweeter & Midrange +/- jacks. So does it matter if I have the tweeter & midrange going into the black (negative) side banana plug and the bass into the red (positive) side banana plug? I.E. which is - and which is + when it comes to the speaker wire that goes into the receiver speaker terminals? I swear, I've been using audio equipment for decades and I'm feeling quite stupid asking these questions. But simply put - I want to be sure I have the polarity correct. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stratocaster Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 Based on the picture above, you have it right. Ignore the red/black colors on the split wires. That's what is leading to this confusion. For practical purposes, wires coming out of the red plug should be considered red and the same goes for the black. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 Thank you @stratocaster!! So appreciate that. You hit the nail on the head. That would have the simpler way to describe it all. I should have just said 'can I ignore the colors' 🙂 Really appreciate you getting me off the crazy bus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomicTime Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TomicTime Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 As udit says… ignore ( at your future peril ) the shrink colors… those are really kludge splitters. IF it were me i would asap get some color shrink and get black n red correct. Next… about ten minutes later i would get some solid core Audioquest wire and make a shotgun biwire set. Normally i would lend you a set ( they literally have 50 k miles from loans to various Vandy owners…. but alas, they are in Seattle… and i’m not…. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boom Boom Posted October 1 Share Posted October 1 Congratulations on your new (used) Model 2Cs. I bought a pair back in 1983 and held on to them for decades. I gave them to a friend. They were in great original condition. I bought the lastest version the Signature 3s three years ago now. The 2Cs are revealing enough for you to hear differences between cables and electronics. It's fairly easy to find an affordable mix of these to work with the 2Cs and upgrade later if you want to. Welcome to the forum. 🙂 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SBlackman Posted October 1 Author Share Posted October 1 2 hours ago, TomicTime said: As udit says… ignore ( at your future peril ) the shrink colors… those are really kludge splitters. IF it were me i would asap get some color shrink and get black n red correct. Next… about ten minutes later i would get some solid core Audioquest wire and make a shotgun biwire set. Normally i would lend you a set ( they literally have 50 k miles from loans to various Vandy owners…. but alas, they are in Seattle… and i’m not…. Agree on all you said @TomicTime. Currently just using what they came with. Agree I need to swamp things out. Appreciate the Audioquest offer. Will most definitely upgrade to a proper bi-wire set. My ultimate objective with all of this ridiculous round and round on the splitters was wanting to rule out the way I had them plugged in as a possible cause of any audio anomalies. Not to suggest these don’t need replaced, but at an elementary level, I just wanted to rule that piece of the pie out of the picture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Holmz Posted October 2 Share Posted October 2 While it seems simple, if one is using an inverting preamp, or amp, then there are cases where black goes to red. You would likely know if you that sort of gear, and it is not all that common. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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