[rwd]

Sorry for the long list but I sure am curious about some comparrisons. Ie: best image, bass, dynamics etc.
Also where in the tri state area is there a dealer that has Von (5's) on display to hear?

Thanks

Rick

[DRjam]

Gee I think you are on a Von Schweikert circle.  I will predict that the VR5 will be greatly favored.  I think that it (VR5)is a very good speaker based on reviews. I too am curious to comments since I know that many people are lusting over the new VR5 anniversary.  I hope people will be objective in their comparo.

[JackD201]

Oh boy it's gonna be hard to be objective  I'll try my best though.

First I haven't heard the new Aerial 20T or the Salon 2 and second my impressions are based on my memory of CES '08 and hearing the Parsifal Ovation in a system not my own.

If I were buying and obviously not affiliated with VSA the choices FOR ME would be between the VR 5 Anniversary and the Magico V3. I would have put them not within the same ballpark but rather within the same ping pong table in terms of tonal balance, authority and visceral musical connection. I couldn't make a proper assesment of sound staging qualities between the two since they were oriented in their respective suites very differently. One thing of note however was that the price of the equipment driving the Magicos (Boulder) were many times the price of the equipment driving the VSAs (Audio Space). Whatever it is it seems I'm not the only one that thought these belong in the same performance category since Jonathan Valin named both as part of his Best Loudspeaker list in his '08 show report. 

Wilsons are great if you like a more spotlit presentation with an emphasis on speed over body. I'm not. I've also found the 7s and 8s very difficult to coax soul out of being very dependent on associated components and accessories. Honestly I like the Parsifal Ovations but they just don't have the jump factor. The rear facing woofers warm out and fill out the bass at the expense of definition in that region in my opinion. On the plus side they are small and have aesthetics to die for but if performance is the measure I think the Unifield 3 can easily take it on in a small room and probably give it a spanking in terms of overall clarity and especially in soundstaging.

[rwd]

Great comparison and explanation.  Thanks!

Do you think I should post this in the speaker section here??

Rick

[htradtk]

All,

Believe me! As a owner of the VR-5 Anniversary's, they are the BEST and I mean BEST speaker that I ever owned. The soundstage is unbelievable! If any of you come to the Baltimore area, I'll be more than happy to give you a demo. 

Henry

[Delacroix]

Well, first, let me say there's lots of comparisons out there on the web so let me encourage you to do some research on what other owners say both here, and on Audiogon e.g.:

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?cspkr&1226995309&read&keyw&zzvon+schweikert

or http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?cspkr&1195948455&read&keyw&zzvon+schweikert

I have not heard all those you ask about but I did give careful audition to the Wilson Puppy's (and the B&W 800D and 802D, Eggleston Andra 2, a Sonus Faber model that escapes me, anything I could get to hear around here) before I bought the Vons. Frankly, all these speakers are very good  and I think anyone could be happy with one or other and would have more to worry about determining partnering gear than doubting their speaker choice. For me, while I realize the Wilsons are among the best reviewed speakers out there, I could not really ever relax with them, they certainly impressed but I ended up fatigued rather than relaxed from listening -- does this make sense? Hard to explain but that was what I felt after several listening sessions.

Of course, on this forum you're going to find people who like the musicality of the Vons, and to me they are a fine balance, full range, detailed, but musical. Moreover, they reveal to me subtle differences in upstream gear. Since an investment of this size likely means a commitment to long-term ownership, you need to make a decision on more than 'bass' or 'dynamics' and find a pair that makes music for you - not much help but I did long sessions on a variety of amps and front ends before making a decision. To give you some idea of how that works, not only did I leave the Wilson sessions (and it was sessions) with reservations, I also ended up thinking the B&W 802D with MAC amps were more musical sounding than a more expensive 800D/Classe set up. Price does not perfectly correlate with sonic quality and you need to think about your system, your room and ultimately your taste. The language of reviews tends to suggest there is an objective scale of sonic quality on which we can measure audio gear and be certain that X must be better than Y......it ain't so simple, but listening can make it simpler.