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Well, the upgrade research (and $$$) starts. I have been happy with Vandersteen Model 2's driven by Adcom GFA-555 and a Adcom GTP-500. I want to keep with Vandersteen (I love 'em) and have been looking at adding their wall-mounted rears and center. What is really a concern is Amp/Preprocessor selection. I have been reading reviews and talking with medium-to-high-end dealers. Does anyone have comparison experience with the following driving Vandersteen or comparably efficient speakers? ...or have a recommendation in this price range? I'd like to put together a short list before running out for weeks of listening.I've had someone state that I do not need 200-watts, but I've had the GFA-555 up quite a ways in the past.
Amp (THX-certified):
Parasound HCA-2205a, (220-watt)
Parasound HCA-1205a, (140-watt)
Sunfire Cinema Grand, (200-watt)
Sherwood Newcastle AVP-9080r, (120-watt)
Adcom GFA-7500, (150-watt)Pre-pro (THX-certified):
Parasound AVC-2500
Sunfire Theater Grand
Sherwood Newcastle AVP9080R
Adcom GTP-750
i had a 555 driving my 2c's and when i upgraded to surround sound i started with a 125w/ch carver 5 ch amp and was unable to produce the spl's i wanted w\o clipping the amp- i since upgraded to the parasound 2205 and have had no problems.even with the "power-steering" cap of the carver in 2-channel mode it was way underpowered (i have a fairly large room)
i too have the vandy center and rears- the center sounds great; i don't have my rears wall mounted yet- they sit on a high shelf behing the listening position which works ok.
i also have the v2w sub which integrates well with the 2c's- i'm hearing low bass that i didn't know existed on cd's before.
by the way i use a b& ref20 for a processor- it does have true analog bypass although i don't use it- i use a cd transport and the dacs in the ref20
any more ?'s feel free to e-mail me
Thanks for your input David. I thought the original 200-watt Adcom was a good match with the Vandersteen model 2 - it only clipped when I was playing far louder than I normally listen to - it is fun to experiment. The Carver 125wpc input is valuable - people have said "you do not need 200-watts - high end Amps with 150-watts are fine and can handle the load", but I have been sceptical.I too have a large room with a vaulted ceiling which also makes speaker placement critical. I hope, in the end, I can accomodate my sound desires with my wife's decorating ones.
How do you like the parasound Amp?
Thanks again for the input you provided. It's nice to hear from another Vandie fan.
the parasound amp works great- very good bass extension, good soundstage- when using only 2 channels i think it puts out much more than the rated 220 w/ch- very heavy unit with huge transformer and heat sinksi believe it is the largest thx cert amp w/o a fan
the dc trigger is a nice feature if you like to turn off the amp when not in use- i leave mine on all the time.
the amp does run in class a up to 25 or 35 watts, so it sounds really good at lower volumes.
i did have some tx with hum but at the recommendation of a tech at parasound, a cheater plug eliminated it.
i was able to get one locally for $1950
good luck!
I drive a Vandie surround system with an ATI 1505. Have a look at that if it isn't out of the price range.
Thanks for the advice. Have you ever wanted a little more power? David comments are interesting as I too have a large room. When I (seldom) get the house to myself, other might want ear plugs - it doesn't matter what I'm listening to, I like to feel like I front-chair, first violins.
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