From the VS website.
Looks like Mike purchased a counterfeit pair of VR2s
WARNING!
Beware of buying Von Schweikert Audio speakers on the Internet from unauthorized dealers. It has come to our attention that cloners have been reselling unauthorized and inferior copies of several of our speaker models through unscrupulous dealers advertising on the Internet on various resale sites.
Please contact us for a list of authorized dealers in your area, since our sales are restricted to dealers in your local market to prevent gray-market products.
Due to the economic situation, it is understandable that our prospective customers will search for the lowest price available, but if the price is "too good to be true" it is very possible that you have been offered a cheap clone with no warranty. Sales of this nature are non-refundable, so buyer beware!
Due to the large numbers of cloned speakers which are defective "out of the box," Von Schweikert Audio has no recourse except to deny any warranty coverage on any used or new VSA speaker system sold on the Internet through unauthorized sources. In order to prevent fraud, we advise prospective customers to call us to verify that the VSA speakers you see advertised are genuine. There is no charge for this customer related service and is our way to help our prospective customers avoid the problems associated with a bad purchase. In addition, our 10-year warranty is no longer transferable and is only valid to the original buyer. A valid sales receipt from an authorized VSA dealer will be required for any service requested under our warranty.