Heard the 40's and I am going to get them

zybar · « **on:** 28 Nov 2003, 01:35 pm »

Well, I was lucky enough to hear the 40's with TRT caps at Horsehead's place the other day (I will have a separate post describing his very nice sounding system) and the 40's are every bit as good as people say

Compared to my Silverline Sonata II's they are incredibly more transparent and open. The vocals were the most natural and realsitic sounding I have had the pleasure of hearing. The bass goes deep and is tight and articulate (although not quite as impactful as I would like). Overall, I think it will be a very nice upgrade over the Sonata II's.

Just wanted to thank everybody on this forum who gave me info on the speakers and especially to Horshead for his generousity.

I will of course post once I get the speakers.

I am getting a piano black pair with TRT caps.

GW

meilankev · « **Reply #1 on:** 28 Nov 2003, 03:43 pm »

Hello George.

I'm glad that you got to hear the RM40s. Since you didn't respond back to my e-mail, I was afraid you had lost interest in VMPS. Did you carry the KORAs over to Horsehead's home? Are you still planning on running the Cosmos monoblocks full-range?

Well, anyway - congratulations on your decision. Based upon what I hear in my system, I think you will enjoy the synergy of these components. If you need anything, let me know.

Kevin

zybar · « **Reply #2 on:** 28 Nov 2003, 04:09 pm »

Kevin,

I didn't bring my amps over to Horsehead's house.

I am confident that they will be able to run the speakers full range.

If I do find them lacking in the bottom, I can always bi-amp down the road. I can't imagine going full SS for amplification...

I'll call you in a bit to discuss.

Thanks,

GW

Horsehead · « **Reply #3 on:** 28 Nov 2003, 04:31 pm »

It was great having George over and he brought some fantastic music with him. He is a very knowledgable and critical listener so I'm glad my system and RM40s passed the test. He is correct to mention the bass, while articluate and tight, could be more impactful. I'm not sure if it is the limitations of my room or amp. Kevin's Solar Hifi Fusion amps are supposed to be SOTA in the bass, so when I receive those I'll see if they provide that last bit of impact.

I guess George's best comment for me was that he said he had some preliminary reservations about my all "solid state" system (not a tube in sight!) and walked away feeling it was one of the better systems he listened to in a long while.

Frank

warnerwh · « **Reply #4 on:** 28 Nov 2003, 11:58 pm »

Interesting that the audio press has praised the Silverline speakers ad nauseum and never mention the newer VMPS speakers. And I know they are aware of them but have made no effort to try to get a pair that I'm aware of. I'm referring to the two main mags, Absolute Sound and Stereophile. Maybe they don't like people getting good deals contrary to what they want us to believe. Glad you liked the speakers and congratulations. Welcome to one of the best deals in high end speakers. You don't have to hear all the speakers available to know this, just one,... ok two.

zybar · « **Reply #5 on:** 29 Nov 2003, 12:00 am »

Had a long talk with my wife and Christmas just came early!!

I placed an order for a pair of 40's in Cherry with the upgraded tweeter, Analysis wire, and TRT caps.

At the end of the day, I am taking the view that these will be my speakers for a long time and a little more now is the smart move.

A special thanks goes to John Cassler who put up with me changing my mind a million times once I decided to buy a new pair of 40's (which only happened after talking to Brian and hearing how good the tweeter upgrade is).

GW

zybar · « **Reply #6 on:** 29 Nov 2003, 12:06 am »

Warnerwh,

I have been in this audio game for around 9 years and heard dozens of speakers...the 40's actually amazed me! Only once before did this happen (a few years ago with Vandy 5's).

I think the Silverline Sonata II's are an excellent speaker. Are they worth their list price? Probably not. Did I pay list? Not even close

I agree that the 40's are an incedible value.

Let's get 'em here and hear the magic...

BTW, I think I am going to be one of a very few people running the 40's full range with tubes. I think my Kora Cosmos References will absolutely sing when mated to that ribbon midrange.

GW

meilankev · « **Reply #7 on:** 29 Nov 2003, 12:08 am »

George,

Congratulations!!!

Welcome to the club. I see you were able to be persuasive with your wife. No small feat...

Thanks for the information you gave me today. If you don't mind, maybe you can post info on your tube supplier, Kevin Deal??? I'm sure I would like to at least get in touch with him.

Thanks,
Kevin

zybar · « **Reply #8 on:** 29 Nov 2003, 12:11 am »

Kevin,

It was great talking to you as well.

Kevin runs Upscale Audio (www.upscaleaudio.com) and is very well known for his tube selling and knowledge.

I'll let you know how things go with the amps when I put in the new output tubes.

GW

Enrico · « **Reply #9 on:** 29 Nov 2003, 05:27 am »

Quote from: warnerwh

Interesting that the audio press has praised the Silverline speakers ad nauseum and never mention the newer VMPS speakers. And I know they are aware of them but have made no effort to try to get a pair that I'm aware of. I'm referring to the two main mags, Absolute Sound and Stereophile. Maybe they don't like people getting good deals contrary to what they want us to believe. Glad you liked the speakers and congratulations. Welcome to one of the best deals in high end speakers. You don't have to hear all the speakers available to know this, just one,... ok two.

Sorry to report this warnerwh, but you are wrong. The Absolute Sound reviewed the VMPS FF3 and gave it a very positive report. See http://www.avguide.com/product/Main_Speakers/Speakers/VMPS_Audio/FF3_Special_Ribbon_Edition/573.jsp (I've read the full review).

warnerwh · « **Reply #10 on:** 29 Nov 2003, 06:40 am »

Enrico: I stand corrected as I forgot about that review. It was with the older ferrite panels though that are no longer used. As good as the speakers sound and as much talk as there is on the internet about VMPS speakers especially after winning the CES it seems they'd want to get their hands on them. Then again Brian doesn't take out full page color ads. I know that Audio magazine reviewed the FF1 with cones and the FF3 with the Dynaribbons in the nineties also. Both Absolute Sound and Stereophile had reviews in the eighties. Nothing with newest designs that are becoming common knowledge on the internet has been touched upon. Not even in passing when reporting what they saw at the CES on the CES. What does that tell you?

Enrico · « **Reply #11 on:** 30 Nov 2003, 12:33 am »

warnerwh, I also would really like to see a review of the newer VMPS speakers in one of the 'big 2' magazines.

Another great review I remember reading was of the Super Tower 3 SRE, by Anthony Cordesman. It was this review more than any other that convinced me to buy VMPS, since Cordesman is a reviewer on my wavelength.

ekovalsky · « **Reply #12 on:** 30 Nov 2003, 12:54 am »

I doubt TAS or Stereophile will ever review the RM-40's or RM/X or the latest versions of the FF-1/3 or ST3. Not only will they not be reviewed, they will continue to be completely ignored at CES. You're more likely to see a show report describing the latest Aiwa boombox before the RM-40, RM-30, or RM-X. Why:

1. VMPS doesn't advertise in those rags. Ever wonder why so many Musical Fidelity and PS Audio products get great reviews ???

2. An honest review would make the $5-30k recommended loudspeakers irrelevant, and they don't want to lose advertising revenue from long time customers like B&W, Joseph Audio, Wilson, Magnepan, etc. They would either have to knock most of their Class A "Recommended Components" down a letter, or create a Class A+ for loudspeakers.

Peter Moncrieff and Martin de Wulf reviews were nice to read and neither is significantly biased by advertising. Moncrieff's favorite amps, from McCormack Audio and Clayton Audio, will also probably never see the light of day from Stereophile or TAS.

I'd like to see a review of the one of the higher end VMPS models by Steve Rochlin's site (Enjoy the Music / Superior Audio), 6 Moons (guaranteed great review if B buys a little sponsor ad!), Stereo Times, etc. I trust all of them far more than the "big two".

warnerwh · « **Reply #13 on:** 30 Nov 2003, 06:37 pm »

Ekovalsky has a great point. The big advertisers wouldn't like to have speakers that squashed theirs for a fraction of the price. Absolute sound did give the FF3 SRE a great review a few years ago though but it's a speaker well out of the budget of most people. The fact that they ignore VMPS even in their CES reports though reveals the truth about these people. The more I learn the less respect I have for them. They do a good service in some ways but it seems it's becoming of less value as time goes on.

Enrico · « **Reply #14 on:** 1 Dec 2003, 02:52 am »

Quote from: ekovalsky

I doubt TAS or Stereophile will ever review the RM-40's or RM/X or the latest versions of the FF-1/3 or ST3. Not only will they not be reviewed, they will continue to be completely ignored at CES. You're more likely to see a show report describing the latest Aiwa boombox before the RM-40, RM-30, or RM-X. Why:

1. VMPS doesn't advertise in those rags. Ever wonder why so many Musical Fidelity and PS Audio products get great reviews ???

2. An honest review would make the $5-30k recommended loudspeak ...

ekovalsky,

If this is all true, then why did TAS review the FF3 4 years ago? Have things suddenly changed--did VMPS once advertise in that magazine? Did the $30k speakers' manufacturers suddenly get together and decide VMPS is a threat, 3 years ago? It seems quite strange....

warnerwh · « **Reply #15 on:** 1 Dec 2003, 04:08 am »

Enrico: Don't you think it odd that Vmps is all over the internet forums and the rags obviously have heard about the latest designs yet there's no mention of it even in their CES reports? You'd think a winner of the CES would be worth finding space for a couple of sentences. If you were reporting on the CES wouldn't you mention anything about the High End awards in your high end audio magazine? Just my .02 cents but it seems odd to me.

Enrico · « **Reply #16 on:** 2 Dec 2003, 05:56 am »

Quote from: warnerwh

If you were reporting on the CES wouldn't you mention anything about the High End awards in your high end audio magazine? Just my .02 cents but it seems odd to me.

Yes, I read the Stereophile CES report carefully looking for the mention of VMPS, and there was nothing. Disappointing.

However I will not go so far as to state that this is prima facie evidence of ads = reviews and bigtime speaker manufacturer conspiracy. This could be true too (stranger things are true) but this is just not enough evidence. Let's hear something more.

ekovalsky · « **Reply #17 on:** 2 Dec 2003, 06:12 am »

I remember reading in Stereophile or TAS about VMPS in CES reports from several years back. Comments were very positive, I think they were describing an all out home theater setup with multiple FF3's. Probably around the time TAS reviewed the FF3. Since then nada.

Maybe we can drag a few ladies from the Adult Entertainment convention to the VMPS room. Bet the audio reviewers would be lining up to get in and write about the great sights and sounds !

Brian Cheney · « **Reply #18 on:** 2 Dec 2003, 03:50 pm »

No Adult Entertainment reps in our Show booth, but superfit John Casler (in shorts and tanktop) will be strutting his stuff.

The CES award is worth many times more than a good magazine review, welcome as those are. Our sales tripled after the 2002 win, whereas the TAS review sold us exactly three pair of FF3 SRE.

azryan · « **Reply #19 on:** 3 Dec 2003, 12:19 am »

No offence to this great line of speakers but I keep seeing this 'Won the CES' mentioned and seems like warnerwh is talking like there's a conspiracy to hide VMPS and not give them credit for winning the show.

It was a TechTV award for technical acheivment. Not a sound/audio award (just the audio divi. of many other TechTV awards).

I've seen other speakers that have won awards I believe from the CES and from mags who went to the CES.

Are you sure S'Phile or TAS or any of these mags had people who even heard VMPS's room?

If I'm not mistaken VMPS is in a hotel room and not on the main CES area? Any not like the CES is a great place to judge audio anyway w/ crowds of loud people.

I know people will probably get totally pissed I posted this, but it's not an insult to VMPS. I wish they would get reviewed but I think people might have it wrong about them getting reviewed and being plotted against by the 'big boys'.

Brian... have you ever tried to get any of your recent RM line of speakers reviewed by S'Phile or TAS? Emailed them? Wrote letters saying you deserve it for reason A, B, C, etc...?

If you say 'yes' you tried and they told you 'forget it' I'd post that on your web site and say these mags were too scared to review your designs and that you have an open challenge to them to put up or shut up.

That'd look a lot better than spotlighting a non-audio award from the CES.
That's show what warnerwh seems to believe is happening.