Dynamics AND subtle nuances

Imposing appearance

These speakers are wonderful. I bought this pair of Tower II SE's from an audiophile/cabinet maker who had upgraded them to all carbon fiber drivers and rebuilt the cabinets with better bracing and sound deadening. The speakers now weigh 190 lbs each.
After selling my Martin Logans I purchased these and have never looked back.
I will summarize my experience.
-very smooth highs with a much wider sweet spot than my old electrostats or the Mirage M1's I had previously. The Vandersteens, which were an excellent beginning into audiophilia, never got close to any of the three aforementioned products.
-thundering bass that continually rattles and loosens things around the home. This is not one-note bass relex bass. These cabinets are sealed and you get tight lows all the way down to around 20hz. It is amazing how much low-end detail and information those six 12" woofers can convey.
-a very liquid midrange that has presence and clarity. I have heard a pair of Dunlavy SC-IV's that had more palpable (or you are there) midrange. But that was with a $20,000 Levinson combo so I dont know how the VMPS would stack up. But in my system they are real close.
-power handling and dynamics you have to feel to believe.
FINALLY...I hope you have a big room...these are huge speakers that have zero (0) spousal acceptance factor. However, these speakers, properly positioned will disappear in your room. NO LIE you look at them and think about the bull in the china shop. Close your eyes and the bull is gone. You will be amazed. If you can find a pair buy them. I have dealt with VMPS several times and they are great.
ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT:
.Mccormack DNA .5 AMP
.Mccormack Micro Line Drive
.Parasound CD/P 1000 (heavily modified)
That's it and it smokes. ALL 5 STARS

Similar Products Used:

Martin Logan Sequel II, Vandersteen 2ce, Mirage M1

Bass response, imaging

Recessed midrange, poor midrange balance

These speakers have great flat, unexaggerated bass response. Furthermore, their imaging is excellent despite their size. However, their midrange presence and listenability is weak compared to my other speakers. The sound of the piano is much more listenable and realistic on my Cantons than on the VMPS. However, they serve as excellent home theater speakers.

Similar Products Used:

B7W 602, Canton Le900

bass power and authority, ability to play loud and clean, well balanced, full range floor standing speaker with no need for subwoofer, very efficient.

Does best with amps of 150 watts or more. Need an amp that can power a 4 ohm load easily for best results. Not the smoothest treble response compared to newer design speakers.

I directly compared the VMPS tower II se's to PSB stratus gold i speakers in house on my system for several months. I have to admit I liked the smoother more forgiving treble response of the PSB goldi's on some cd's playing classical symphony type music. They seemed to mask that cd harshness better and I ended up buying more classical music because of this. On well recorded cd's I prefer the sound of the VMPS. They seem to have the full frequency of sound covered best, especially when you turn up the volume. The PSB golds seem to smooth out the frequency extremes too much for me. When there were bass lines in the music they were much easier to follow and more involving with the VMPS. The VMPS were more dynamic of the two. I did not enjoy turning up the volume above medium levels with the PSB's, there signature sound did not sound real at all. They kept there warm midrange, but the upper frequencies became too subdued and did not have bass power or slam. I felt like I needed a much more powerful amp to drive them, but they sounded the same way at a dealers store using a very powerful McIntosh amp. I bought the psb gold i's for tighter, punchier bass and I thought there smoother treble response would help me enjoy some of the brighter sounding recordings I own as well as improve definition and control in some of the boomy sounding cd's. This however did not happen. Poor overly bright recordings of pop music as well as overly bloated bass remained and the music I enjoy most lost its appeal. The PSB goldi's are long time Stereophile Class B speakers and I believe the VMPS tower IIse's are even better in my book. Natalie Cole's voice in Unforgettable is too nasal and shouty when turned up on the PSB's. On the VMPS Tracy Chapman, Sinatra, Elvis, Lyle Lovett as well as country music singers voices come across rich and full, filling the room with more natural sound. I also prefered the wall of sound that comes from the VMPS as opposed to the PSB. The VMPS sound wave comes at you wider and with more energy. It reminds me more of the sound and energy heard at a live concert be it a small stage at the fair or a concert hall. They are both on the warm side of neutral but some how the PSB came across a little thin because they could not match the bass power and definition of the VMPS. Two 10inch woofers are no match for 4 active and 2 passive 12 inch woofers in the VMPS. As far as dissapearing acts go, they both were capable given a good recording. The VMPS gives a more forward and alive you are there presence. On grand piano the VMPS capture the power of the instrument much better especially lower key notes which seem to be in the living room. On rock music with electric guitar the sound could jump out unnaturally with the PSB's not even sounding as part of the band. With the VMPS it still sounded like a guitar, but part of the music. The VMPS may sound recessed to some not used to such bass power but I believe they are better balanced from top to bottom with a wider range of music and with SACD here smoothing out cd harshness and adding deeper more defined bass I have to say I'll upgrade my VMPS to the VMPS ribbon monitor II and sell the PSB's. Since the PSB are class B contenders and I felt I could not part with the VMPS I have to give the VMPS tower IIse's *****(five) stars. I bought the PSB's to replace my old and worn VMPS tower IIse's but did now hear improvement in the areas that are important to me. If the VMPS were auditioned by Stereophile they would be rated a great bargain and highly recommended as well (IMHO). Maybe even class A with there new design ribbon mids and tweets. Stereophile will probally never audition them though because they do not audition mail order companies. For lovers of deep, powerful bass in a well balanced speaker with the ability to play at live listening levels this has got to be one of "the best" speakers out there for the sound and the value. Also the owner and designer is so accessible and helpful it makes buying them from a smaller lesser known company so much fun! VMPS ribbon technology is considered to be a new state of the art by several popular reviewers. Contact VMPS audio for info. at www.VMPSaudio.com
My equipment:Amp=Muse model 150 monoblocks
Preamp=MFA Magus C all tube
Cardas speaker cable
Nad 5000 cd player as transport
Ead DSP 7000 as processor
Power Wedge II conditioner

Similar Products Used:

JBL's, Wharfedales, Cerwin Vegas, Altec Lansing, ESS heils, PSB stratus gold I's and silvers, Paradigm 9semkII, VMPS mini towers and various Infinity, Martin Logan, Wilson, Klipsh, Polk Audio, Bose, Meridian.