My new VR4 SR MKIIs arrived yesterday..

es347 · « **on:** 23 Oct 2008, 12:52 pm »

Luckily my neighbor, much younger than me and in possession of a good back, helped my stove truck them down an outside stairway to our basement. The setup was pretty effortless with the exception of those small rubber pads that we couldn't find a place for (thanks Scott!). Oh my, the appearance....that gloss black...the speaker jacks...lustful to put it mildly.

I have been listening to Logans for 12 years now so that was my reference and must admit that right out of the box, the resolution and speed was pretty close. The one thing I noticed sonically was a very apparent imbalance between the bass and treble/midrange. The bass was dominant and somewhat bloated. But after some repositioning wrt to the front wall and 5 hours or so of burn-in, things started sounding decidedly different. The bass calmed down a few dbs and things became much more listenable...make that very listenable. The biggest difference between the VR4s and my MLs is the soundstage. It's huge with the VR4s and that was something I have longed for since the MLs were never capable of throwing what I would call a big soundstage. They were great in between the speakers but nowhere beyond. I've got that now and it's truly mesmerizing. This whole quest started with an audition of the watt puppy 8s and hearing that speakers are actually capable of a big soundstage. The Wilsons did that but I was under the impression that the size of the soundstage varied directly with the price. Enter VSA speakers, specifically the VR4 SR MKIIs. I'm not going to diss the Wilsons as they are very nice speakers but for nearly $30K, they should be. I truly feel sorry for those folks out there who pony up the big bucks for the puppies without having heard the VR4s, or for that matter, the folks who buy the Maxx without hearing the VR5s.

Bottom line is this: had you told me a couple of months ago that I would plunk this much money for a pair of speakers...speakers I had never even listened to, I would have laughed heartily. Well so far I think it was a very good decision. I realize they will do nothing but get better as they break in so the giddiness will continue. If you all don't mind indulging me, I will post the occasional progress report. BTW I am running all new MAC electronics (MCD500, C46, MC252) and they seem to match up well with the VSAs. Stay tuned.

I GIVE UP....H0W THE HELL DO YOU ADD LINKS TO GALLERY PIX. I DID EVERYTHING ACCORDING TO INSTRUCTION AND THE LINKS SHOW UP IN THE PREVIEW BUT NOT IN THE FINAL COPY....WHAT GIVES????

McTwins · « **Reply #1 on:** 23 Oct 2008, 01:48 pm »

Hi es347

Another Vspeakers with Mcintosh gear, thats great. Break in them good and they will sound better and better.

Thanks

WerTicus · « **Reply #2 on:** 23 Oct 2008, 01:51 pm »

pics or it didnt happen

I think you're very crazy for paying any amount of money for a speaker you've never heard.

mcullinan · « **Reply #3 on:** 23 Oct 2008, 01:53 pm »

Yes Pics plz!!!!
Mike

patrickperry · « **Reply #4 on:** 23 Oct 2008, 04:03 pm »

Quote from: es347 on 23 Oct 2008, 12:52 pm

I will post the occasional progress report.

Please do. I currently own the VR4 JR MKI and looking to upgrade to the 4 SR next year.

Have fun with the break-in process. It took me 3 weeks (playing 24/7) to fully break-in my 4 JR.

Big Red Machine · « **Reply #5 on:** 23 Oct 2008, 05:49 pm »

So is the upgrade to the 4 version that makes it equivalent to the 5? I thought the 4 was in the 6 to 7k dollar area, not 9k.

McTwins · « **Reply #6 on:** 23 Oct 2008, 06:54 pm »

Quote from: WerTicus on 23 Oct 2008, 01:51 pm

pics or it didnt happen

I think you're very crazy for paying any amount of money for a speaker you've never heard.

Crazy or not, I purchase mine without listen to them. No regrets at all, still have them.

patrickperry · « **Reply #7 on:** 23 Oct 2008, 07:38 pm »

Quote from: Big Red Machine on 23 Oct 2008, 05:49 pm

So is the upgrade to the 4 version that makes it equivalent to the 5? I thought the 4 was in the 6 to 7k dollar area, not 9k.

The 4 has 2 different models: VR4-JR and VR4-SR. The JR is around $6 and the SR is around $9.

More about 4-SR and 5
http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=59472.0

disco · « **Reply #8 on:** 23 Oct 2008, 08:31 pm »

Albert occasionally has a B stock pair of VR-4SR MkII's that he will sell factory direct for around $9000, but the retail price of a new pair of VR-4SR MKII is $12000 for Hazelwood and $14000 for Black Gloss. The VR-4 Anniversary had a retail price of $6000 and $7500 as of my last price sheet.

es347 · « **Reply #9 on:** 24 Oct 2008, 02:08 am »

Quote from: WerTicus on 23 Oct 2008, 01:51 pm

pics or it didnt happen

I think you're very crazy for paying any amount of money for a speaker you've never heard.

Thank you for the thoughtful feedback.

es347 · « **Reply #10 on:** 24 Oct 2008, 02:09 am »

Quote from: mcullinan on 23 Oct 2008, 01:53 pm

Yes Pics plz!!!!
Mike

OK time for a dumb question. How do you imbed photos in a post??

Big Red Machine · « **Reply #11 on:** 24 Oct 2008, 02:38 am »

The second box under the Italics symbol. Hit that, then insert the info from the photo after right clicking the photo and copying in the properties that has the link of the photo. If you post the photo into your gallery first, then you can link to it on here anytime you want. You can also link in a photo from Flickr, etc. So you need the photo property after right clicking it and you can past that between the brackets first mentioned here.

es347 · « **Reply #12 on:** 24 Oct 2008, 02:58 am »

Quote from: Big Red Machine on 24 Oct 2008, 02:38 am

The second box under the Italics symbol. Hit that, then insert the info from the photo after right clicking the photo and copying in the properties that has the link of the photo. If you post the photo into your gallery first, then you can link to it on here anytime you want. You can also link in a photo from Flickr, etc. So you need the photo property after right clicking it and you can past that between the brackets first mentioned here.

Thanks BRM. I tried adding pix to a new gallery I opened but the file sizes are way too big. How can you reduce the size of a pic file? Is that a setting on my camera? Nikon D60.

thx. and sorry for the dumb questions.

Big Red Machine · « **Reply #13 on:** 24 Oct 2008, 11:21 pm »

I do mine in PhotoImpact by Ulead. But you should be able to do that in the camera setup to take it at a certain resolution and once again at upload sometimes software for the camera will adjust them then.

es347 · « **Reply #14 on:** 31 Oct 2008, 12:47 pm »

For you who have asked for pix, I successfully uploaded pictures to an album in the GALLERY....search on my handle es347. I tried repeatedly to paste link here and got as far as being able to see the links in the message preview but when I posted the edited message the links didn't show up. Maybe someone could enlighten me on what I am doing wrong and....how do you post an actual picture in a message?

Big Red Machine · « **Reply #15 on:** 31 Oct 2008, 01:05 pm »

Just like that!

Insert Image button above in reply mode. Before you get there though, go to the photo, right click it after it is opened (not in the strip at the bottom), copy the properties, then inside the bracket-img-bracket bracket-slash-img-bracket figures, paste the properties you copied.

Go to reply on this post and you'll see how it is set into that space.

Big Red Machine · « **Reply #16 on:** 31 Oct 2008, 01:07 pm »

repeat

mcullinan · « **Reply #17 on:** 31 Oct 2008, 01:29 pm »

Quote from: es347 on 31 Oct 2008, 12:47 pm

For you who have asked for pix, I successfully uploaded pictures to an album in the GALLERY....search on my handle es347. I tried repeatedly to paste link here and got as far as being able to see the links in the message preview but when I posted the edited message the links didn't show up. Maybe someone could enlighten me on what I am doing wrong and....how do you post an actual picture in a message?

Go to the image, then click on the image open in new window or tab. Then take the web address and paste it between the image markers.
Mike
Im not a fan of finished basements, but youve done a real nice job.

I wonder If my SpTech Continuum 2.5s will sound as good as these puppies.

es347 · « **Reply #18 on:** 31 Oct 2008, 02:46 pm »

Im not a fan of finished basements, but youve done a real nice job.

Not sure if my pix show but this isn't your typical subterranean basement. It's a walkout onto a steep wooded hillside...lots of light, gravity drains...not a place where sightless insects go to hide. It's my hideaway for good reason, no?

mcullinan · « **Reply #19 on:** 31 Oct 2008, 02:50 pm »

NIce! Usually basements no matter how made up give me a feeling of dread. No light, a little damp, some kind of odor, and the artificial light... just a buzz killer.
Mike