Has anyone upgraded from Ascent to Vantage?

Not too long ago, I bought a pair of Ascents (pre-owned). To me, they are the best thing since sliced bread - never heard anything so detailed & fine. However, they are a bit large when put in place in my house. My wife would have preferred something that is smaller (more narrow) and does not invade the space of my family room. Now that I am happy with my Ascents, it seems unwise to go through the whole purchase process again for something that may not be as good as what I have.

While it is hard to imagine anything sounding better or at least equivalent to the Ascents, my question is: Has anyone had the experience of moving up from an Ascent to a Vantage model? If so, what did you think? Were you happy that you did this and why?

I would open up the floor to anyone who owns a set of Vantages to comment on the sound of their speaker - even though the ideal owner I am looking for has had Ascents before.

Thanks,

Andy

AZ-Dog said:

Not too long ago, I bought a pair of Ascents (pre-owned). To me, they are the best thing since sliced bread - never heard anything so detailed & fine. However, they are a bit large when put in place in my house. My wife would have preferred something that is smaller (more narrow) and does not invade the space of my family room. Now that I am happy with my Ascents, it seems unwise to go through the whole purchase process again for something that may not be as good as what I have.

While it is hard to imagine anything sounding better or at least equivalent to the Ascents, my question is: Has anyone had the experience of moving up from an Ascent to a Vantage model? If so, what did you think? Were you happy that you did this and why?

I would open up the floor to anyone who owns a set of Vantages to comment on the sound of their speaker - even though the ideal owner I am looking for has had Ascents before.

Thanks,

Andy

Click to expand...

The vantage is definitely better. the panel is better, cleaner, sharper, and more defined. The integration with the bass is the biggest payoff.

If you are doing this for the wife, do it. Money can be better spent on room treatments or a better amp/preamp/ source before upgrading the speakers.

Hi AZdog and welcome!

You mentioned making the wife happy and we all know how important that is!:bowdown: The Vantage is going to require you to pull them out into the room 3-5 feet from the front wall to sound their best. Is that going to be acceptable to the better half?

I went from box speakers (Paradigm S8 pushed into the wall/corner) to the Vantage and once I figured out the placement requirements my wife strongly asked me if those speakers were going to remain where they were! After some listening sessions by my wife, the position became acceptable.

If you can put them where they need to be, stick around here for abit and you'll be surprised at what a Vantage can do!

Gordon

Welcome AZDog!

I have made this exact transition and for similar reasons. I bought the Ascents when they were being closed out for the new ML line. I knew they would overwhelm my 11.5 x 19.5 x 8 room, but I couldn't pass up the deal. When I found a pair of new, under warranty Vantages at a discount, I jumped at them because they fit better in my space.

While I would have been content to keep the Ascents except for that one issue, the Vantages outperform them in every conceivable way. The biggest improvement in my setup is that they have a more seamless presentation. Gordon is right, though, in that you have to move the Vantages farther away from the back wall to account for the more robust bass. If your wife can deal with that, I think she will find the Vantages more pleasing to the eye. I think you will find them more pleasing to the ear!

AZ-Dog said:

Not too long ago, I bought a pair of Ascents (pre-owned). To me, they are the best thing since sliced bread - never heard anything so detailed & fine. However, they are a bit large when put in place in my house. My wife would have preferred something that is smaller (more narrow) and does not invade the space of my family room. Now that I am happy with my Ascents, it seems unwise to go through the whole purchase process again for something that may not be as good as what I have.

I would open up the floor to anyone who owns a set of Vantages to comment on the sound of their speaker - even though the ideal owner I am looking for has had Ascents before.

Thanks,

Andy

Click to expand...

Hi Andy and welcome!
Didn't own the Ascents but spent a lot of time with Aeons prior to deciding that I would choose their big brother, the Ascent. By the time I decided to purchase, ML phased out the Ascent and introduced it's replacement, the Vantage - so I bought these instead. Everything they say about the Vantage is true but in the right setup the older models are still exceptionally satisfying loudspeakers...

Not wishing to sway your opinion one way or the other, what you WILL definitely get with the Vantage are certain advantages such as efficiency. These units require a fraction of the electrical power needed to drive the old ones. This means a decent amplifier will sound like a veritable power-station while being less likely to overload/blow. The Vantages also have more greater more effective radiating area than the Ascent so will sound even bigger and louder. I've known diehards who didn't like MLs at all because of the poor bass integration but who loved the Vantages for this very reason (!!)

Hope this is helpful Andy,
Victor.

Victor said:

Hi Andy and welcome!
Didn't own the Ascents but spent a lot of time with Aeons prior to deciding that I would choose their big brother, the Ascent. By the time I decided to purchase, ML phased out the Ascent and introduced it's replacement, the Vantage - so I bought these instead. Everything they say about the Vantage is true but in the right setup the older models are still exceptionally satisfying loudspeakers...

Not wishing to sway your opinion one way or the other, what you WILL definitely get with the Vantage are certain advantages such as efficiency. These units require a fraction of the electrical power needed to drive the old ones. This means a decent amplifier will sound like a veritable power-station while being less likely to overload/blow. The Vantages also have more greater more effective radiating area than the Ascent so will sound even bigger and louder. I've known diehards who didn't like MLs at all because of the poor bass integration but who loved the Vantages for this very reason (!!)

Hope this is helpful Andy,
Victor.

Click to expand...

Thanks for your response. I know about the micro perf technology in the new stators - this gives the Vantage which is physically smaller than the Ascent a presence of a speaker with an ESL driver twice its size. Hard to wrap my head around this (although it is likely the case). I did hear the Vantages once. Maybe the volume was not up high enough, the room was too small, or something. They did sound clean but overall, I was not "blown away". Maybe I need to hook them up to my amp (Sherbourne - 300 watts at 4 ohms) to hear the real sound of the Vantages. Bass isn't that important because I have a sub. It might be worth it to take the sub out of the room since the Vanatges have their own powered units. What makes a difference for me is for example hearing the pluck of a guitar sring or the violinists fiddling away in the soundtrack of The Dark Knight. Clarity and realism of the mids to highs. Don't care for the lows as much. If the right deal comes along, based on your advice, and that of the other responses (thanks guys), I am ready to take the "Vantage Plunge".

Thanks,

Andy