Home Speaker Asylum

General speaker questions for audio and home theater.

Summer-of-2015 update--they're back :-)

These Avanti IIIs were replaced a few years ago with Vandersteen 5As, after I realized that, after my fooling around with removing x-overs and actively amping the bass drivers, the quality of the Avantis' bass wasn't as good as I wanted. The 5As lasted a couple years and were replaced last year by the excellent Serenity Acoustics Super-7s and a pair of First Watt J2, 30WPC-into-8, all-JFET, class-A-biased poweramps. BUT...since I'm now, at 71 years old, starting to downsize, this week I moved those S7s out and the Avantis into place, connected them to my J2s (to which I added an input cap creating a nominal-190Hz HP filter), borrowed a friend's pair of plate amps, and they're running...after about 4 years of literally gathering dust. I also reinstalled the (parts-improved) Vandersteen VCC centerchannel speaker. (I had been using the open-baffle, mag-planar Eminent Technology RFT-12 with the open-baffle S7s.)
 photo 2015Jul22_A-IIIs amp VCC_1200w_zpsdkgvwyid.jpg

With the channels of the J2s paralleled (with the blessing of Mr. Pass), each now-monoamp is rated at 30 into 8 and 60 into 4; the Avantis are rated at 4 Ohms. The sound overall is very good, verging on excellent, and I believe that'll improve slightly with break-in. With no padding of the B-G Neo3PDR tweeters, the system is again a dB or 2 too bright, but probably I'll fix that with a 1- or 2-Ohm resistor. Time will tell if the 60W.-into-4 J2 monoamps have enough power driving the MR and treble; right now the combination sounds quite good.

My goodbuddy had a pair of inexpensive 250-Watt plateamps that I borrowed, and the bass already sounds better (I think) than it did years ago. At least it now sounds very good--well integrated with the lower-MR--and it didn't years ago--and that's what triggered the Avantis' dismissal from my system. I had an inexpensive, mono, third-octave equalizer in the CC system; took that out and am using that in the right bass channel, to good effect, in that the bass on that side of the room is less 'lumpy'.
 photo 2015Jul22_plateamp amp eq_1200w_zpsxhoulzzc.jpg

Have purchased another 31-band mono eq. and will install that in the left channel. More later, probably in a new thread.


This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:
  VH Audio  


Follow Ups Full Thread
Follow Ups
  • Summer-of-2015 update--they're back :-) - jeffreybehr 07/22/1516:37:51 07/22/15 (0)

FAQ

Post a Message!

Forgot Password?
Moniker (Username):
Password (Optional):
  Remember my Moniker & Password  (What's this?)    Eat Me
E-Mail (Optional):
Subject:
Message:   (Posts are subject to Content Rules)
Optional Link URL:
Optional Link Title:
Optional Image URL:
Upload Image:
E-mail Replies:  Automagically notify you when someone responds.