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VAF Signature i25 any opinions?


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Hi All, been tossing up getting some new bookshelf speakers and wonder if anyone has got or listened to the newish VAF Signature i25.  

 

Friend of mine did the have i91s a while back and I did like the sound of these, but with the new driver and build of the i25s, I don't think that is a fair comparison.  

 

I have had heaps of VAF speakers in the past but nothing in the signature range either.  I do know VAF offer a 30 day money back guarantee but I was wondering what people thoughts were of this speaker?

Edited by Syrot
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G'day Syrot,

yeh I've heard the i25 for about 5 minutes.  It's a natural sounding speaker and I liked it.  It's a model that is still developing, the baffle has changed since original release.

 

I've also got a pair of vaf evo1's which are cool too.  +1 for Vaf.

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I heard them at length a few months back but my impressions and opinion on these is probably not helpful.

 

Let's just say I was ready to buy a stand mount speaker and these were quickly eliminated from my  list.

 

 

I have great respect and a very high opinion of VAF as a company, but these just didn't beguile me in any way.

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3 hours ago, rantan said:

I heard them at length a few months back but my impressions and opinion on these is probably not helpful.

 

Let's just say I was ready to buy a stand mount speaker and these were quickly eliminated from my  list.

 

 

I have great respect and a very high opinion of VAF as a company, but these just didn't beguile me in any way.

 

Thanks Rantan, All opinions matter good or bad.  It is always hard in many cases to get a good feel for speakers unless they are in you own environment and hooked up to your gear.  

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  • 1 month later...

I’m in the same position as the OP and am keen to hear the opinions of people who have purchased the i25s. I’m sure someone out there has purchased these speakers and can provide their thoughts?? Cheers

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I bought a pair late last year and arrived before Christmas after 10 weeks.  I got the stands and specified upgraded caps qnd additonal insulation.

 

First thing is the stands are not great. Save your money there.  Mine were delivered with missing floor screws and some of the alan key drill holes were missing steel liners. I complained and they sent out the missing bits. Have subsequently discovered that the drill holes in one set of stands are not sized to accept the liners. Sigh 

 

Anyway, the speakers. I absolutely move them. For comparison, I have a pair of Vienna Accoustics baby grands, a pair of neat Mystiques and in  different systems quad audio s2s and Harbeth p3.  AMPs I've tested them on, march Audio purifi monoblocks, Onkyo M506r, Sansui au gx-99.  Preamp is a RME ADI2.  Yes, I have an audio addiction problem.  

 

The i25s have a fast and deep bass that goes down to 40hz.  It is punchy and i can't see anyone needing a sub with these.  I prefer their lower end to the larger baby grands, which are great but lack the speed and clarity at the bottom end these have, which skund exeptional to me.   They have a very crisp mid and upper range without being fatiguing. They are clear and dynamic but not bright.  Some days I prefer listening to the neat mystiques i bought on SNA. Hidden classics these things. They have a clarity and transparency that suits jazz and classical.

 

The thing that really astonished me with the i25s is their soundstage.   Vastly better to anything I had heard before.  You can place instruments and the soundstage is wide and airy.  

 

To be fair, they are big stand mounts.  Much bigger than my two alternative bookshelf speakers.  The Harbeths are wonderful but not the same type of product.  If (when) i end up thinning the herd, the i25s will be retained.

 

They partner well with all of my amps and sources.  My goal is to end up with the purifi monoblocks and supratek chardonay tube pre being built.  I particularly think they partner well with the Onkyo which is a very dynamic and musical amp.

 

In summary, I'm a huge fan and won't be selling mine.  One more thing, front ports rear are better than rear ports imo. Coupled with the concentric SEAS drivers, it is what makes these speakers so good.

20201125_143510.jpg

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Thanks very much Garreth for your post. It’s been difficult to find much info on these speakers so thoughts and impressions from someone who obviously loves high quality audio are much appreciated. 
Your decscription of how the speakers sound is something that I look for in a speaker and has further peaked my interest in the i25s. 
I was initially looking at the i91s but may pony up the extra money for the i25s.

My current speakers are the Vaf DC-X Gen 1 which I bought 12 years ago. I’ve been very happy with the DC-Xs but in April I have one of those ‘significant birthdays that end in a zero’ so I thought I would treat myself and I’m pretty confident the i25s will be a big improvement!! Unfortunately, I won’t have the funds to get any of the upgrades. 

I have a Rotel RB-1080 power amp which will be powering them. 

Thanks also for the intel on the stands. I already have some stands so that’s all good. 
Cheers
 

 

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I can't specifically comment on the i25 signatures, but until recently I was using the driver they picked (Seas C18) in some DIY speakers.

 

It's a very expensive ($600+ AUD each) but very good coax driver.

 

You need to be clever with the crossover, but I assume VAF are.

 

I'm not sure I'd push it as low as they do. IMHO it is better in a 3 way like the i45 or, if you are handy, like the KingRo4Y.

 

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/seas-kingro4y-mk3-kit.16240/

 

But I'm sure VAF know what they are doing.

 

But in the right range the speakers I built using it were as good as the top of the range KEF References using similar drivers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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On 09/01/2021 at 5:49 PM, sfdoddsy said:

I can't specifically comment on the i25 signatures, but until recently I was using the driver they picked (Seas C18) in some DIY speakers.

 

It's a very expensive ($600+ AUD each) but very good coax driver.

 

You need to be clever with the crossover, but I assume VAF are.

 

I'm not sure I'd push it as low as they do. IMHO it is better in a 3 way like the i45 or, if you are handy, like the KingRo4Y.

 

https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/seas-kingro4y-mk3-kit.16240/

 

But I'm sure VAF know what they are doing.

 

But in the right range the speakers I built using it were as good as the top of the range KEF References using similar drivers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although looking very similar I was told by Vaf that the driver was made to Vaf's specifications and is quite different than the one available commercially.

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Thanks for the feedback, now my interest in these has spiked again.  I have always actually preferred larger stand mounts  from a visual appeal (and ease of positioning and mobility compared to decent floor standers). 

 

I wonder how they would compare to my Dynaudio Special 40s?

 

 

Edited by Syrot
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On 06/01/2021 at 1:26 PM, Garchan said:

I bought a pair late last year and arrived before Christmas after 10 weeks.  I got the stands and specified upgraded caps qnd additonal insulation.

 

First thing is the stands are not great. Save your money there.  Mine were delivered with missing floor screws and some of the alan key drill holes were missing steel liners. I complained and they sent out the missing bits. Have subsequently discovered that the drill holes in one set of stands are not sized to accept the liners. Sigh 

 

Anyway, the speakers. I absolutely move them. For comparison, I have a pair of Vienna Accoustics baby grands, a pair of neat Mystiques and in  different systems quad audio s2s and Harbeth p3.  AMPs I've tested them on, march Audio purifi monoblocks, Onkyo M506r, Sansui au gx-99.  Preamp is a RME ADI2.  Yes, I have an audio addiction problem.  

 

The i25s have a fast and deep bass that goes down to 40hz.  It is punchy and i can't see anyone needing a sub with these.  I prefer their lower end to the larger baby grands, which are great but lack the speed and clarity at the bottom end these have, which skund exeptional to me.   They have a very crisp mid and upper range without being fatiguing. They are clear and dynamic but not bright.  Some days I prefer listening to the neat mystiques i bought on SNA. Hidden classics these things. They have a clarity and transparency that suits jazz and classical.

 

The thing that really astonished me with the i25s is their soundstage.   Vastly better to anything I had heard before.  You can place instruments and the soundstage is wide and airy.  

 

To be fair, they are big stand mounts.  Much bigger than my two alternative bookshelf speakers.  The Harbeths are wonderful but not the same type of product.  If (when) i end up thinning the herd, the i25s will be retained.

 

They partner well with all of my amps and sources.  My goal is to end up with the purifi monoblocks and supratek chardonay tube pre being built.  I particularly think they partner well with the Onkyo which is a very dynamic and musical amp.

 

In summary, I'm a huge fan and won't be selling mine.  One more thing, front ports rear are better than rear ports imo. Coupled with the concentric SEAS drivers, it is what makes these speakers so good.

20201125_143510.jpg

 

What vintage are yours  @Garchan the images on the VAF website have a different front baffle ?

 

 

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  • 1 month later...

Ah well that makes sense. Am I the only one ever so slightly disappointed that Vaf have deleted the front floating baffle look? ?


I was curious as to where it had gone, when I saw the assembly of some i25's on their FB photos. Hopefully the current i91 mk2's still have it. They're on my shortlist for the study setup @home atm.

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