[chgolatin2]

Any owners of the VR2 speakers, how to you rate them and what components are you using with them, lastly, have you done any mods to to them to make them sound better?  Can you share your experience pro's and con's?  Are these speakers considered "audiophile" or just regular speakers  3k speakers are not your normal circuit city or best buy speakers 

Thanks!

[jimdgoulding]

Are you refering to Von Schweikert VR2's?  If so, the publisher/editor of an online audio publication from the west coast uses these.  The name of the publication is Audiophile Audition and he has done some mods on these including Bybee filters, diffractionbegone.com tweeter surrounds, and added some weight and custom blocks for stands I believe.

[WGH]

Part 1

I have owned a pair of VR2's for about a year and still enjoy them. I think I like them better than my previous speakers.

Now, I don't change speakers very often (a blatant understatement), the speakers they replaced are a pair of JBL L88's bought around 1972. I still use the 88's in my shop, but these classics have been heavily modified over the years with extensive internal bracing, the addition of the JBL L100 midrange unit, a rear facing silk dome Vifa tweeter, and new crossover components with Kimber wire. The magic of the 88's is the 12" woofer is run full range, and once the midrange and tweeter are balanced by the level controls so the sound is coming from directly between the two drivers, the total sound is more than the individual parts with a glorious coherent midrange that is rarely equaled. The bass is tuneful and punchy without the typical JBL mush of that period, though the highs are just average, the original tweeters are not that delicate sounding, but they never blow and these speakers will still play louder than I would ever care to listen. The L100's still have a big following, check out this months Tone Audio magazine (issue 11).

Now back to the VR2's. The highs are much better, the lows are lower (the JBL's rolled off steeply below 40Hz), and the midrange is just as nice. The JBL's are more of a studio monitor, a more in your face sound, the VR2's slightly more laid back and inviting. Though to tell the truth a friend came over and said she couldn't tell the difference.

The VR2's have a lower midrange hump, male radio announcers have a chesty resonant quality that should not be there. The JBL's, after cabinet bracing, did not have it, so sometime when I am not so busy I plan to tear into the VR2's and see what makes then tick. Any cabinet mods will have to be done carefully as to not ruin the tuning. I am leery of any stick on stuff like Black Hole, NoRez, or Sonic Barrier, it might just fall off in the AZ summer. No A/C here, just a good old fashioned swamp cooler. The hump disappears with music and probably gives the sound a nice warmth so I am in no hurry. All speakers I have heard have there own signature sound. I heard the B&W 805S at a dealer's showroom and also found them colored.

I think the VR2's may be a diamond in the rough. I have a small listening space and the VR-4 Jr's bass may over power my room. The separate head unit on the Jr's probably control the resonance I hear on the VR2's but a bit of bracing and I may be 99% there.

I also use the VR2's as the front 2 channels of a 4 channel home theater when I am not spinning vinyl, the speakers go down to 25Hz so I don't need a dedicated sub, which is a big plus in a small room.


Wayne

[Rafal]

I have had a pair of VR2 for about 2 months now. They had replaced my active Tannoy System 800 A's which I had been using for 5 years (I think). I also had played with Visaton B200 and FR125S in OB before I got the VR2s.
In my opinion, the VR2s are an improvement over my previous speakers. They have a nice smooth, lush sound which is very rythmic and non fatiguing. They also put out a lot of bass and I no longer need my sub. The "ambiance" tweether mounted on the back is a pretty cool feature and allows you to fine-tune the amount of high freq. you get out of them ( ex. I increased it when I went to tube amp). I used to drive them with a 45w/ch LM3875 gainclone, but now, they are driven by my new McAlister PP150 tube amp. The combination is very, very nice. it is detailed but musical and non fatiguing with a lot of headroom. Before I had bought these I had listened to a pair in a store and didn't notice that much of a difference in sound between VR2 and Von Schweikert VR4 JR Mk1. I also heard other speakers like B&W Nautilus 803 and some $3-5k floorstanders from Vienna Acoustics, Sonus Faber, JM Lab and I liked the VR2s better. The only system I remember liking significantly better was a top of the line Sonus Faber Stradivarius ($$$$$), a Linn active Ninka system and Tannoy Churchills driven by Linn Klout. All of them are MUCH more expensive.

Even though I like other speaker designs alike OB and properly designed stendmounts, I think the VR2s have a unique set of qualities that make them a real good fit for me. BTW, did I mention that they have stunning midrange? Some people compare it to that of Harbeths and Spendors. (I was originally hunting for Harbeths).