First, let me preface this by saying I have never heard the 2ce's. That being said, there are LOTS of people who love those vandys... So my first thought would be: have you exhausted all opportunities?
Speaker positioning makes a MONSTROUS difference in the sound quality; so much that without proper speaker positioning, sometimes gear upgrades can't be heard much, if at all. What size room do you have them in? How far away from the walls are they (both the back and the side measurements)? What kind of "wiggle room" do you have in placement?
I have heard the Matrix 805, Matrix 801, Nautilus 805 (which I own now), N804, N803, N802, and N801's... I do not like what I have heard from the N804's. There is something just not right about that speaker... Something about the driver integration isn't great. I didn't hear the M804 version, so maybe it's better; but IMO the Nautilus tweeter is WELL worth springing for, as the N805 and N801 sound vastly better than their matrix counterpart (in many areas).
To be honest, I haven't liked anything lower than the 801's, other than the 805's. I am still fiddling with 802's, tho, as anecdotal evidence suggests they are truly excellent speakers; and that I just haven't heard them in a well-integrated system. But since I don't have the room for them right now, I'm either sticking with my N805's or buying the Siggy 805's for the time being.
That being said, B&W's are pinpoint imagers, by nature. So maybe they would work where the Vandy's won't?
Speaker placement and room matching is HUGE!! My bud has a pair of Martin Logan SL3's... And they sound decent in his room, but not great... he just can't pull them out far enough into the room (wife issues)...