New speakers? No thanks.


Last week while chilling with my wife, listening to music, she turns to me and says,” you haven’t bought any new speakers in years.  You should take our tax return and get some”.  Did the planets just line up?  Or was it the two bottles of wine?   Who cares!?!

Ive been totally satisfied with my speakers,Vandersteen Quatros, but wasn’t gonna waste this opportunity to shop. So I hit up a couple of shops in Seattle.  I listened to the new Tannoy Cheviots and DC10a.  I tried some Devore Gibbons.  Listened to Martin Logan’s, Sonus, Living Voice, and Usher.   

None of these sung to me like my old Vandies. As a matter of fact, it wasn’t close. While they all had their attributes, none checked all the boxes.   I know it’s system and room dependent, but you can get a decent idea in showrooms.   

I think I’ll just save my pennies, and try to get my wife wasted enough someday to get some new Quatro CTs.  
bigboltz
@headphonedreams... yes Vandyuncommon in Europe. Helmut Brinkmann has a pair of 7’s normally demonstrated at rhe Munich show. On my list to attend that one for sure...I think it is most probably the best HiFi show on planet..

anyway, yes the big MBL properly driven for sure is a world class speaker, apples and salmon to the Vandersteen sound/ approach but yes in a big big room pretty incredible...some but not all Vandersteen models have a rear firing tweeter, 100% distortion, but can give some of the same effect.....it is switchable....

have fun, music is the key!!!!!

You can NEVER have too much power, I don't know how many people are going to ask this question on this forum.

The only thing you can have too much of is stupidity, if you turn the juice up too much and hear that something is wrong and don't turn it down then you will blow your speakers.

However, if you have more than enough juice to run your speakers then you are running them with lower distortioned power.

Additionally, if you were to ever build better speakers (presumeably with better power handling) you will have the extra power on tap to drive those speakers harder.

Heres my advice, get the best, highest powered amplifier you can afford right now so you dont have to buy it later. I bought an integrated amp that put out 150wpc thinking it would be the end all solution, I was regreting it 2 months later, then I bought my two Bryston 4B's which are both bridged running +/-1000 watts per side.

Hopes this helps.
Yes to the above poster, since most speakers need more power. But one needs CLEAN power and that often comes at at price. What was that Nelson Pass rule, if the first Watt is not right, all the others that follow will be wrong? Someone correct my memory. There are a ton of crappy powerful amps at attractive prices and if you buy one you might end up with LOUD CRAPPY sound
Last week while chilling with my wife, listening to music, she turns to me and says,” you haven’t bought any new speakers in years.  You should take our tax return and get some”.  bigboltz  you've just experienced a temporary state of nirvana ! congratulations! Maybe you should buy a lottery ticket and cross your fingers.