Ever wonder what a pair of speakers selling for $45,000 might sound like?
A lucky few Clevelanders will have the pleasure of auditioning the new Vandersteen Audio Model Seven Loudspeakers on Mon 10/8, courtesy of Cleveland’s Don Better Audio, when Vandersteen Audio principal & founder Richard Vandersteen visits Cleveland as part of his “Fall Tour 2012.”
Better is a member of the Cleveland Institute of Music faculty since 1989 and has performed as a classical guitarist in Southern California and Cleveland. His company represents a number of high-end 2-channel audio manufacturers, including brands such as Auditorium 23, DeVore Fidelity, Keith Monks, Musical Fidelity, Rega Research and Well Tempered Lab as well as Vandersteen Audio. They specialize in high-end turntables, CD/SACD transports, DA converters, amps, cables and loudspeakers. Much of the equipment they sell is pricey. But the Model Sevens are something else again.
Over the past 22 years, Vandersteen has sold over 250,000 of his earlier, smaller (and much less expensive) Model 2 loudspeaker, probably the best-selling audiophile-quality loudspeaker of all time, and relatively affordable at $2195. But the 170-pound Model Seven is another animal, featuring unique balsa-wood core speaker drivers clad with carbon fiber, a 400-watt integrated amplifier, an 11-band room-compensation equalizer, a four-way design, and available in any high-gloss automotive lacquer color you wish.
It’s almost as if Vandersteen set out to break every rule of audio, even his own. But reviews for the Model Seven have been over the top: “This is a world-class product that invites comparison with any other loudspeaker, regardless of price or technology,” says The Absolute Sound magazine. Stereophile’s Michael Fremer exclaimed, “few speakers in my experience have provided so much listening excitement and involvement with so little listening fatigue—actually, none has.”
To gain an invitation to this exclusive event, contact Don Better at 216-375-1393. And prepare to be blown away.