[Brax]

Hello,

My system is pretty much Mid-Fi and used mostly for as a HT system. Here is my present system:

Pioneer Elite receiver running as a Pre-Pro (will be replaced by a HDMI 1.3 pre-pro)
PS3 run as a BluRay player
Infinty SM150's Front / Carver TFM 35
Infinty Beta 350 Center / Carver TFM 15 in mono
No name rears (3 way w/12" woofers) / Carver TFM 35
DIY Sono sub with 15" Blue Print driver / Crown in mono (flat down to 16hz)
All in a 16' x 24' room, power has never seemed to be a problem

I first heard about VMPS around the time the SuperTower III's came out and have been interested ever since. But they were pretty much out of my price range, until now (buying used). I will be picking up a set of RM40s later this month. They are a 2003 vintage and are a basic set with no upgrades. After reading about what most present owners feed their RM40s, I am a little concerned I am bitting off more than I can chew in my system. I really don't plan of revamping my whole system as I built it piece by piece over the years and really can't afford to spend thousands on amps. The one advantage is that the Carvers handle a 4 ohn load well. I guess my question is what can I expect when I upgrade to the RM40s? With my Mid-Fi system, will it make an impact or am I just in a pipe dream? Truth be told, I feel my system does a pretty good job as an HT.

[woodsyi]

Hello Brax,

For 2 Channel music there may be better matching amps out there but I don't think you will have any problem with the RM40s driven by your  Carver amp for HT.  You many have to match the center with the LR for clear panning though.  I think there is a Jr solution (matching tweeter to your original RM40s) that a dealer would be quite happy to solve for you.   Welcome to AC.

[John Casler]

Hello,

My system is pretty much Mid-Fi and used mostly for as a HT system. Here is my present system:

Pioneer Elite receiver running as a Pre-Pro (will be replaced by a HDMI 1.3 pre-pro)
PS3 run as a BluRay player
Infinty SM150's Front / Carver TFM 35
Infinty Beta 350 Center / Carver TFM 15 in mono
No name rears (3 way w/12" woofers) / Carver TFM 35
DIY Sono sub with 15" Blue Print driver / Crown in mono (flat down to 16hz)
All in a 16' x 24' room, power has never seemed to be a problem

I first heard about VMPS around the time the SuperTower III's came out and have been interested ever since. But they were pretty much out of my price range, until now (buying used). I will be picking up a set of RM40s later this month. They are a 2003 vintage and are a basic set with no upgrades. After reading about what most present owners feed their RM40s, I am a little concerned I am bitting off more than I can chew in my system. I really don't plan of revamping my whole system as I built it piece by piece over the years and really can't afford to spend thousands on amps. The one advantage is that the Carvers handle a 4 ohn load well. I guess my question is what can I expect when I upgrade to the RM40s? With my Mid-Fi system, will it make an impact or am I just in a pipe dream? Truth be told, I feel my system does a pretty good job as an HT.

Brax,

Yes, welcome to the VMPS club. 

Your CARVER amps (400wpc @ 4 ohms) should be just fine as long as they are in good shape.  In fact, one would be hard pressed to think of a better vintage amp (the Phase Linear 400 would also be good)

But while your goal was not "revamping my whole system", you might find that you have done just that.  If your future RM40's are in good shape, you will be entering a new dimension sonically.

Biggest weak link would be in the preamp area, and even that will still allow you to hear a pretty incredible improvement.  Be prepared for greater detail, and less 'sonic fog", especially during 2 channel listening.

They should sound great from the moment you fire them up, but they do have two methods of adjusting the sound;

1) the L-pad shafts in the rear to adjust the levels of the tweeters and the MR Neopanels

2) the putty mass damping of the Passive radiators

Word of caution on the L-pads.  Use a small screwdriver placed in the slotted shaft, and GENTLY adjust.  If you push too hard or turn to hard, you can damage the shaft.

[Brax]

Thanks for the replies.

The Carvers are all in great shape, the one 35 I have had since it was new, as with the SM150s. I do realize the Pre/Pro needs the next upgrade but I would like to wait until a few more 1.3 HDMI units hit the shelves. I think the Integra 9.8 would be a good unit for my needs but I would like to see what the new offerings from Emovita and Outlaw have coming out. As you can see, I am tring to stay in the $1,500 range. I really don't need video switching but I am after the new Dolby and DTS formats.

Depending on how the RM40s work out, I will keep my eyes out for a couple of RM2s for the back surrounds. A pair of RM2s with a RM LRC just sold for $1,200 on ebay (they were pickup only in CA). This would have been perfect to fill out my system out with VMPS's.

[Brax]

Looking at the specifications on the LRC, I think I have a problem.

I only have room for a 9-1/2” high speaker in my setup. The TV stand is brand new and is made for this model TV, so replacing it is not really an option I want to consider. I think I have two choices, the first is to just keep my existing center, an Infinity Beta 350. The second (not sure if it’s possible or practical) would be to custom build a cabinet to 9-1/2” high and load it with all the hardware from an LRC. It would take some design work on my end to keep the same inside volume as the existing LRC, but I do have extra room to go wider and deeper from the present cabinet size. It looks like the drivers would fit in a 1” shorter cabinet, but it maybe a little tight on the ribbon. The ribbon might have to be turned 90 degrees for this to work. I would copy the design and building spec’s from the original with these slight modifications. I would epoxy two sheets of HDF to use as my base material and veneer the outside with oak.

Can you think of any problems I may run into? Any advice?

[Brax]

Well, I picked up my RM40's today. the first impression is they are very solid and HEAVY. Moved them in and set them up. They are standard RM40’s but they do have the TRT caps.

"Be prepared for greater detail, and less 'sonic fog", especially during 2 channel listening." as John mentioned is an understatement.

Since my wife wanted to hear them also, the first cd I put in was Whitney Houston (thought I could impress her). I must say, I have never heard anything so clear and detailed, it’s like the music was in high definition. You could hear ever inflection in her voice and every instrument had detail I never heard before. At first the speakers didn't seem to have much bass, so after a few songs I put Santana in. The bass was there, I just wasn't used to clean, tight bass. The couch would vibrate with every deep note, the boom was gone but so was some of the ”punch”. This is going to take awhile to get used to, but it's a good thing. I pushed the speaker hard, the whole house was filled with music, but the sound never lost it's clarity. I only listened for a few hours and really didn't tune them to my tastes, but I can say for sure those ribbon panels are great. I will be playing with the putty to see what effect it has to put a little more kick into the bass.

I did check each driver to make sure it was working. The strange thing is was hard to hear if anything was coming out of the tweeters. The panels have so much output it's difficult to hear if the sound is coming from the panel or from the tweeter, but the speakers didn't lack on the high end.

I plan to run them as-is for awhile before diving into any upgrades. I really need to upgrade my processor first. The Carver drives the 40’s pretty good, but you can tell the speakers aren’t as efficient as my old Infinities but I knew that going in. Bi-amping may be the ticket there. It sounds like the easiest way to bi-amp is to get a 5 channel amp. Run the 40s bi-amped off 4 of the channels and have one left over to drive the center channel. I may try this with two Carvers to see what effect the extra power has on the speakers.

Thanks to opnly bafld (Lin) for selling me his speakers. He’s a great guy and easy to deal with.

[warnerwh]

I'm glad you're happy with your speakers.  Moving the speakers an inch or two one way or another and various angles you'll notice a significant difference in sound.  It's a free tweak and makes a very audible improvement.  Have fun.

[John Casler]

Well, I picked up my RM40's today. the first impression is they are very solid and HEAVY. Moved them in and set them up. They are standard RM40’s but they do have the TRT caps.

"Be prepared for greater detail, and less 'sonic fog", especially during 2 channel listening." as John mentioned is an understatement.

Since my wife wanted to hear them also, the first cd I put in was Whitney Houston (thought I could impress her). I must say, I have never heard anything so clear and detailed, it’s like the music was in high definition. You could hear ever inflection in her voice and every instrument had detail I never heard before. At first the speakers didn't seem to have much bass, so after a few songs I put Santana in. The bass was there, I just wasn't used to clean, tight bass. The couch would vibrate with every deep note, the boom was gone but so was some of the ”punch”. This is going to take awhile to get used to, but it's a good thing. I pushed the speaker hard, the whole house was filled with music, but the sound never lost it's clarity. I only listened for a few hours and really didn't tune them to my tastes, but I can say for sure those ribbon panels are great. I will be playing with the putty to see what effect it has to put a little more kick into the bass.

I did check each driver to make sure it was working. The strange thing is was hard to hear if anything was coming out of the tweeters. The panels have so much output it's difficult to hear if the sound is coming from the panel or from the tweeter, but the speakers didn't lack on the high end.

I plan to run them as-is for awhile before diving into any upgrades. I really need to upgrade my processor first. The Carver drives the 40’s pretty good, but you can tell the speakers aren’t as efficient as my old Infinities but I knew that going in. Bi-amping may be the ticket there. It sounds like the easiest way to bi-amp is to get a 5 channel amp. Run the 40s bi-amped off 4 of the channels and have one left over to drive the center channel. I may try this with two Carvers to see what effect the extra power has on the speakers.

Thanks to opnly bafld (Lin) for selling me his speakers. He’s a great guy and easy to deal with.

And so begins the "journey".

Those are "special" speakers having the history of having belonged to Marty DeWulf before he went to the newer BCSE RM40s some time ago.

And as good as they sound now, you can certainly tune them to your preferences and any and all things you do to your room and system, have the potential to make the sound just that much better.

Your pair is very similar to the ones that won the Best of Show Award in 2002.

A quick and easy bass upgrade, is to remove the Passive Radiators and "vitrify" them by painting them with the ELMER's Glue.  (for instructions do a search for "vitrified passive radiators")  You paint both sides with a thin coat and let it dry COMPLETELY.

Then when you fire them back up, the BASS will be again at a higher level.

Don't remove any putty since most likely yours have arrived "underdamped" anyhow.

Glad to hear you are enjoying them.  I know Lin had reservations about letting them go.

[John Casler]

Looking at the specifications on the LRC, I think I have a problem.

I only have room for a 9-1/2” high speaker in my setup. The TV stand is brand new and is made for this model TV, so replacing it is not really an option I want to consider. I think I have two choices, the first is to just keep my existing center, an Infinity Beta 350. The second (not sure if it’s possible or practical) would be to custom build a cabinet to 9-1/2” high and load it with all the hardware from an LRC. It would take some design work on my end to keep the same inside volume as the existing LRC, but I do have extra room to go wider and deeper from the present cabinet size. It looks like the drivers would fit in a 1” shorter cabinet, but it maybe a little tight on the ribbon. The ribbon might have to be turned 90 degrees for this to work. I would copy the design and building spec’s from the original with these slight modifications. I would epoxy two sheets of HDF to use as my base material and veneer the outside with oak.

Can you think of any problems I may run into? Any advice?

Check your stand/cabinet closely.  Many times, they have adjustable shelf height.

Fingers are crossed for you.

[dfree325]

John,  please consider adding the instructions for vitrifying the passive radiators to one of the "stickies".  I have searched AC for these instructions to no avail.  Numerous recommendations for doing it, but no details.

[Brax]

John,

Thanks for the tip on the radiators, I will do this when I add a larger plate to the base. I will also finish the base in high gloss as I saw in another post, that made it look great.

I did buy an Earthquake amp from a guy in Audiogon, but FedEx damaged it in shipping so now I'm in the claim/repair process with that. At least I still have my Carvers to carry me through.

I racked my brain on how to fit a LRC in my stand, and I think I have an idea but this will have to wait. The Pre/pro needs to be upgraded first. BUT, I will get one, that's why I am replacing the Carvers. I wanted the Earthquake so I could drive a whole system of VMPS speakers. It's going to take 2-3 years to complete (slowly get pieces by the wife) but here's the upgrade path I am planning:

Pre/pro (HDMI capable)
VMPS LRC
VMPS surrounds (not sure which model yet)
VMPS Larger Sub

If it sounds like I drank the VMPS Kool-Aid, I did. This VMPS system will be my final upgrade, finally the system I have always dreamed of is actually happening.

[John Casler]

John,  please consider adding the instructions for vitrifying the passive radiators to one of the "stickies".  I have searched AC for these instructions to no avail.  Numerous recommendations for doing it, but no details.

Sorry it took so long

Look here:

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=47927.new#new

[dfree325]

Thanks for the link.  Just what I was looking for!

[John Casler]

Thanks for the link.  Just what I was looking for!

Here are a couple pics I found that a customer posted

JUST GLUED




DRIED