First post here....

[Oregon]

Been playing audio enthusiast for over 50 years though my first post here. My room for the last 30 years is "less than ideal", a 13.5' x 13.5' x 7.5' square, an upstairs dormer. For the past 5 years a  pair of 2Ce Sig II's placed 3 1/2' from the corners of the room have been fine, recently supplemented by SVS Micro 3000's sub-woofers which are only audible when the main stereo is set to 0. The 2Ce's feed from a VTL pre and power tube front end, Manley Chinook, Kiseki Purple Heart, Clearaudio Performance DC/Tracer. Other than the Monster power conditioner (15yrs old) the older VTL stuff is for back up. The McIntosh and Audio Research equipment is for display. "Classical" music is mostly listened-to until King Crimson, Tool or Eloy enter the room.

Cody🙂

 

[ctsooner]

Welcome.  What a great looking set up.  I bet those 2's sound GREAT with all that top gear driving them.  

[GdnrBob]

Why don't you use the Mac and AR equipment?

Bob

[TomicTime]

supercool !,, welcome to the forum 

Jim

[bkeske]

Nice, and welcome! Always great to see those using 2CE's in their systems. Still a soft spot for me, still own mine, and wonderful speakers for the money.

[ctsooner]

I often feel guilty or like a shill when posting about how great a value the 2's are (as well as all the rest hitting over their heads).  The newest 2's are mind numbing at 3300.  You know a product is great when they keep scaling the better the equipment you feed it.  

[Holmz]

3 hours ago, ctsooner said:

I often feel guilty or like a shill when posting about how great a value the 2's are (as well as all the rest hitting over their heads).  The newest 2's are mind numbing at 3300.  You know a product is great when they keep scaling the better the equipment you feed it.  

I thought they were north of 5k?
(or was I thinking Au dollars?)

[GdnrBob]

2 hours ago, Holmz said:

thought they were north of 5k?

 

At the rate prices are inflating, it might just come to pass.

Two slices of pizza and a coke is near $10 bucks here. When I grew up in Brooklyn, I got a slice and coke for 30 cents....

Bob

[Oregon]

On the Vandersteen website the price of the 2's varies from $3,600 to $5,650 depending on what day of time of day you look. Obviously an ove

On 4/4/2022 at 1:29 PM, GdnrBob said:

Why don't you use the Mac and AR equipment?

Bob

...the Mac is ancient SS while the AR needs to visit the AR factory for a check up as it will stop working from time to time though a simple tap on top brings it back into line. The Mac is a beautiful piece of audio history, the NY Museum of Art kept one in their Industrial Art section at one time. It sounds wonderful for an old SS amp, I just like the sound of tubes.

 

Thanks for looking,

Cody

[TomicTime]

yes, they are still fantastic sounding and a superb value…

 

[Brad O]

7 minutes ago, TomicTime said:

yes, they are still fantastic sounding and a superb value…

 

Please note that the prices shown on the USA website do not include duty, taxes, or freight.  The international website shows an approximate price, including duties and taxes and freight.  If you are in an international market, please consult your local dealer or distributor for correct local pricing.

 

[Brad O]

One item of value interest is this: 

$900 in 1977 equals $4,311.37 in 2022.

 

Vandersteen Model 2's are actually cheaper than when they were introduced when you account for inflation and consumer price indexes.   This is a result of Richard and families relentless pursit of keeping costs inline over 45 years.

 

 

[GdnrBob]

That is pretty amazing, especially considering that much of the tech in the newer models trickles down to the 1,2, and 3's.

Bob

[Oregon]

On 4/4/2022 at 5:34 AM, ctsooner said:

.....What a great looking set up.  I bet those 2's sound GREAT with all that top gear driving them.  

Well, I think my rig sounds pretty good. :^)

Thanks,

Cody

[Oregon]

Posted this elsewhere within the Forum, thought to include same here;

"What attracted me to the 2Ce's was an experience from the middle 80's when I lived in Southern California. At the time I belonged to an informal audio "club" which typically met at the members homes within the greater Southern California region. The membership was quite eclectic, including an audio engineer from Disney Studios, also, a certain amateur speaker designer by the name of Albert Von Scheikert. He would drag his garage-built enclosure-less rig around with him from venue to venue. His home made rig sounded so much better than anything I had heard in any of the SoCal high-end stores at the time. The absence of that smearing front baffle was remarkable. I mused about building my own minimum front baffle speakers for decades...

Fast forward 35yrs; discover Vandersteen 2Ce's, bought 'em without ever hearing the things. They have delighted from Day One. Highly recommended."

[GdnrBob]

@Oregon,

My Vandersteen memory was listening to them at a dealer on Lexington and 64th street in Manhattan. (I can't remember the name of the store). They really 'got me.'

 

Unfortunately, other things got in the way, but fast forward 30 or so years, I still remembered how great those 2's sounded. And, I was surprised Vandersteen was still making them!

I ended up buying some 3a sigs, but got lucky and bought @ctsooner's pair of Treo's.

I started with some McCormack equipment, but found a pair of Ayre MX-R's and later a KX-R for sale used. No going back now as I am in audio heaven. (I also got some Atmasphere amps and pre to satiate my desire to compare SS to tubes).

I kinda feel like I am blessed. 

Both speaker owners were very open and accommodating and let me listen to them before I bought them. I sold the 3a sigs to @dsisssup, who eventually got the Quatro's. And, I got to meet with John Rutan at Audioconnection, who dispelled my long term dislike for dealers.

It has been a long/strange journey, but, I have to say that the folks who own/buy/sell Vandersteen speakers are really very special, and I am glad to be a part of it.

Bob

[ctsooner]

Well put Bob. I agree on the dealer network. Most are great guys who want to help as they try to make a living. 
 

[Oregon]

Well, the HiFi learning journey continues as I have replaced my old vintage VTL line with current Manley product, i.e., a pair of Snapper mono block power amps plus a Jumbo Shrimp preamp. The sound has improved considerably, notably in the dynamics and a greater sense of black between the notes. Probably more importantly I have been able to further experiment with speaker positioning. I have been greatly surprised to discover a minor shift of just a few inches in placement can affect sound stage, timbre, and even, resolution. That resolution bit might have also been affected by a rearrangement and removal of furniture as my room is small (13'x14') and had been stuffed with an extensive militaria collection, an audio collection plus my HiFi. The room now sounds so much less cluttered and in-the-way, it can breathe, if you will.

Anyway, I have been greatly pleased with the performance of my Vandersteen 2Ce Sig II-based system. Still workin' out the feng shui of the space. ;^)

Cody

[stratocaster]

@Oregon I ran the 2CE Sig II’s with a complete Manley setup ((Chinook, Shrimp and Snapper) and the difference in sonic signature was instantly perceptible. I did fret and fuss with the placement quite a bit and in my case 1/4-1/2 inch movement would cause a significant effect on the bass (despite 2 WQ’s). I found the speakers to be less forgiving to tilt accuracy than the Quatro’s or the 1’s. I got the best sound when the speakers were pulled out into the room which presented a different set of problems.  Looking at your room and the acoustic treatment you should not have that much trouble finding the optimal setup.

[Oregon]

The spealer placement is getting there as I am finding the general density of the sound stage is affected by 1" adjustments. This set up thing is getting really interesting, ultimately, gratifying.

:^)

[SAGNI]

Beautiful ! Congrats — enjoy!