bertdw wrote:

  The current price of the 2ce Signature II is $2395, or $2545 with the recommended bases.  This makes the Treo about a thousand dollars more than twice the price of the 2.  Does this affect JA's assessment of its value?

No, the Treo is still highly recommended. Merely a slip of the pen.

John Atkinson

Editor, Stereophile

I have had the Vandersteen 3A speakers for many years and recently bought a pair of the Treos.

I thought i would be getting a significant upgrade.

Instead, I find I have a pair of speakers that have transported me to audio Nirvana.

As good as the Model 2 and 3 are, they shouldn't even be compared to the Treo (but see note below).

They are well worth their price, but this speaker is in a totally different performance class. It blows away anything that I have ever heard for under $10,000.

Instead of doing math, I challenge you to find a speaker that is even CLOSE to this speaker's dynamic capability and sonic purity for under $10,000.

I have looked for 20 years at dealer after dealer and at the CES and have never heard one that can come close.

This speaker can make a Steinway concert grand appear in my living room with 0 distortion and the full dynamic range of a live performance.

I have heard 3 speakers before that can do it, and they all cost WAY over $10,000.

This speaker, in my opinion, has redefined the performance available at anything near its price.

I feel I got a STEAL for only $6000 (and my dealer even gave me a trade-in on my 3As to boot...lol).

P.S.-I should point out that my 3A speakers were originally Model 3, and were updated to 3A at least 10 years ago.

According to Richard Vandersteen, the latest 3A Signature model has recently been upgraded by putting in the same tweeter and midrange drivers as the Quattro and Treo. That is part of the reason the price was increased to $4500.

So, the difference between the current 3A Signature and Treo is probably not as dramatic as the improvement that I experienced.