if you've got the cash , go for the 390. It's a beast! I love mine

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1140/1427454147_31138913a9_b.jpg
thats a 27inch tv btw

That 390's just cool. It seems to me that King Kong is above the TV rather than on it!

I'm just a big fan of dialog.. I intend on eventually moving the atoms to be surrounds and picking up either monitor 7s or monitor 9s for the front. Do you think the 290 is still enough?

Personally, I would not get the 7's. I find that they are too small to be floor standing units and their sensitivity is way too low. The 9's and 11's do way better in that regard not to mention sheer output. If you go for the 9's (I guess that's what I am recommending), go for it! get the 390! If you however stay with Titans or Minis, stay with the 290.

Hope it helps.

BR

I think I can, but I got confused by direction. If I mount them on their own bracket - they will look toward 100's. Manual show them like I have to mount them on wall with tilt for my room, take a look here (image from manual):

Thanks

that would be ideal but judging from the picture the other side of the room
looks to be open and bookcase occupies the side so moving them higher
will give you a much better sound than that close to your seating posistion.

I really dont have a answer but i was wondering how the rears sounded at that height.

I saw those stands yesterday and the dealer showed me that they have holes in the plate so that you can put set screws thru them to hold the speaker in place.

They sounds pretty good for HT on this height, but to compare them with the higher position I have to get them higher first. So, my problem is: their position is not correct per manual vs. my room.
And as I said I use my old stands from Mini Monitors and there is no hole in the bottom of the speaker you can attach it to the stand. Besides body of the speaker is plastic, so I woudn't drill it. Speakers just sitting on supplied rubber puds.

They sounds pretty good for HT on this height, but to compare them with the higher position I have to get them higher first. So, my problem is: their position is not correct per manual vs. my room.
And as I said I use my old stands from Mini Monitors and there is no hole in the bottom of the speaker you can attach it to the stand. Besides body of the speaker is plastic, so I woudn't drill it. Speakers just sitting on supplied rubber puds.

Do you have 2 six foot ladders that you can place them on just to see if its
better.

Looking forward to your mini review/feedback.


Thanks

I've had these brand new Paradigm's in the family room 3+ weeks now, in 7.1 set-up, so here is my mini review non-professional feedback:

They sound great!
I hear "more" music/sound than with my 10 year old Atlantic Technology 350's (http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showpost.php?p=13006905&postcount=95).
The Monitor 9's totally fill that big/open family room with good/clean sound, even LOUD when the kids are gone.
That center channel CC-390, what a beast.
And the ADP-390 rear and back surrounds fill our seating area.
Ping, zing, zap, follow that sound around the whole room, fantastic experience.
I have to get back surrounds for my Onkyo787/AT350's now, can't go back to 5.1, I'm spoiled with 7.1.

Set-up:
I swapped out my 8 year old Onkyo 787 and put in the new Denon 4308CI.
I used that for a few days with the AT 350's, then swapped those out for the Paradigm's. Used the AudessyEQ set-up, mic was on tripod at ear level, took 6 readings along both couches, the "sweet spot"/1st seat area is the rear couch RH side seat, center for viewing and speakers.

I wish I could articulate the sound experience better, I don't have a good grasp for all the words I see people using, "soundstage", "colorization", etc.
Would be nice to have a Audio101 terms/definition sticky in the main audio area, so we could all be speaking from some same baseline reference, as much as that is possible.
>>Point me to that link/FAQ/sticky if it exists, I'll read it and bookmark it.
[edit] I found the link, here it is http://www.audioholics.com/education/frequently-asked-questions/glossary-of-electronics-terms

Some picts of them in action:
http://lh3.google.com/mtbdudex/R6by3d8r7rI/AAAAAAAABJA/EK0Mdy4aE2o/s800/IMG_6125.JPG


You can see the rear and back surrounds for 7.1 set-up in below pict, also on the beam I have the AT 350's in "storage" until the Paradigm's go into the basement HT in 4-6 more weeks.

Anybody got a spare 5 channel amp I could "borrow" for "12.1 surround sound" :rolleyes::rolleyes:
http://lh4.google.com/mtbdudex/R6bvWt8r7qI/AAAAAAAABI4/h_rbGjaLm1I/s800/ParadigmFamilyRoomBreakIn.jpg


So, in summary;
Another very satisfied and proud Paradigm Monitor series owner.
Great value for the $$$$.

I am looking to pick up some Cinema 330's. Any suggestions on where/who to get them from? I'm new to the audio game so I need some help =). Thanks!

I am looking to pick up some Cinema 330's. Any suggestions on where/who to get them from? I'm new to the audio game so I need some help =). Thanks!


You're local dealer...


http://paradigm.com/en/dealer_locator/paradigm.php


Or check audiogon/eBay for used one's...




-Nick :)

Quote from mtbdudex:

"I've had these brand new Paradigm's in the family room 3+ weeks now, in 7.1 set-up, so here is my mini review non-professional feedback:"

Thanks mtbdudex for the mini review. Keep us updated when you move your speakers to your basement theatre set up.

Thanks

They sounds pretty good for HT on this height, but to compare them with the higher position I have to get them higher first. So, my problem is: their position is not correct per manual vs. my room.
And as I said I use my old stands from Mini Monitors and there is no hole in the bottom of the speaker you can attach it to the stand. Besides body of the speaker is plastic, so I woudn't drill it. Speakers just sitting on supplied rubber puds.


you could always put a small patch of velcro down.

This is my part-time theater/part-time living room.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n248/tledoux/LedouxHT800.jpg

Mains: Paradigm Studio 100 v.4
Center: Paradigm CC-590
Surrounds: Polk TC615i
Sub: SVS PB12-Plus/2
Receiver: Integra DTC-9.8
Amplifier: Outlaw 7500
DVD/CD: Sony DVP-CX995V
HDTV: Sony KP-51HW40
RC: Philips TSU-6000


I'm looking to replace the Polks with some Paradigm SA-30's and then replace the old RPTV with an LCD flat panel, possibly the Sharp LC-65SE94U.

Quick question:

Do the Mini's accept a spade connection? I'm considering upgrading speaker cable for my birthday this year.

And what are some of the better brands of spade connectors out there?







Thanks,


-Nick :)

This is my part-time theater/part-time living room.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n248/tledoux/LedouxHT800.jpg

Mains: Paradigm Studio 100 v.4
Center: Paradigm CC-590
Surrounds: Polk TC615i
Sub: SVS PB12-Plus/2
Receiver: Integra DTC-9.8
Amplifier: Outlaw 7500
DVD/CD: Sony DVP-CX995V
HDTV: Sony KP-51HW40
RC: Philips TSU-6000




I'm looking to replace the Polks with some Paradigm SA-30's and then replace the old RPTV with an LCD flat panel, possibly the Sharp LC-65SE94U.

Hey tledoux!

I have the same rptv and just like you I am getting ready to upgrade to a larger LCD. I'm hoping Sony will come out with a 60" LCD very soon!

Question> How are you balancing that CC-590 on top of your Sony RPTV?
There's barely 4 inches of flat surface up there!:eek:

I'm using the OmniMount CCH1. Its a little shelf that is built to hold components on top of RPTV's. It works pretty well, it just took about 30 minutes to get everything at the right level. Sorry, I can't post a link to it yet since I'm fairly new here. But it's pretty easy to find, I think I got it at Best Buy.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n248/tledoux/CCH1.jpg


Tom

I'm using the OmniMount CCH1. Its a little shelf that is built to hold components on top of RPTV's. It works pretty well, it just took about 30 minutes to get everything at the right level. Sorry, I can't post a link to it yet since I'm fairly new here. But it's pretty easy to find, I think I got it at Best Buy.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n248/tledoux/CCH1.jpg


Tom

Yeah, I used one of those on my Sony XBR1 60" SXRD RP, and it worked great. You can also get at Radio Shack. Was pretty cheap - like $30 if I recall.

Just bought two pairs of Sa30's inwall for the front and center speakers. I was wondering if you can use two center channels speakers? As I have an extra SA 30.
My rears are ADP 390's.
Thanks for your help.

I drove to Hi-Fi today, to see some new stuff, and found they were out of business. Anybody heard of anyone picking up Paradigm now that Hi-Fi is gone? Don't really feel like driving down to Tuscon, if I go with Paradigm again.

I'm using the OmniMount CCH1. Its a little shelf that is built to hold components on top of RPTV's. It works pretty well, it just took about 30 minutes to get everything at the right level. Sorry, I can't post a link to it yet since I'm fairly new here. But it's pretty easy to find, I think I got it at Best Buy.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n248/tledoux/CCH1.jpg


Tom

Thanks!
I just picked up a B&W LCR6-S2 on Ebay thats way too big to balance on top of my Sony RPTV.
I will Definitely look to get one of these OmniMounts...even if its just for the next 6 months or so until I upgrade my RPTV to a bigger LCD.

Pete

I wish I could balance a speaker on top of my Samsung 61" DLP. I'd have to build some kind of mount that comes up from the floor.

Do you have 2 six foot ladders that you can place them on just to see if its
better.

Yes, I have ladders, just need to find time for experiment.
Thanks

Main = Studio 20 v.2
center = Studio CC590 V.4
SL/SR = Studio ADP-590 V.4
SB@1 = Cinema 110 (former center channel)
Sub = PDR 10 & Velodyne CT12
Receiver = Denon 985/2805
TV = Mitsubishi 55 Gold HD
Cable = Dish Network HD
DVD = Old P.O.C. Sony
Game = Xbox 360


Running 6.1 setup.

.

Update! to prior post!

I just purchased a new set of Studio ADP-590's today, and loving them.

My Denon supports 7.1 but I am just running a 6.1 setup. I am trying to figure out what to put in the backs.
I read that Dipoles are not good for S.B. Also I will have to ceiling mount the S.B's due to 6 kids running around, what speakers would be good for backs?
I had thought about upgrading my 20's and moving then to the back, but I would have to have them so far from the back wall(rear firing ports) that they would get knocked over, would anyone suggest destroying the value and using a ceiling/wall bracket mount on my 20's????

or would a small set of Titan's(or other) be good enough for the back channel? how important is it to match up with the rest of my Studio speakers?
.
/slowly getting what I want.
//the C110 I currently have running as a SB is suppose to go upstairs, so I have to replace it.

Man that 390 is massive. I think the 290 will do just as well. Especially for those who do not want to spend even more time trying to fit this big sucker into a normal setup.

In fact, the 290 looks like a tweaked version of the previous model CC370. At that time, even the 370 was a great match for the Mon 9's (8 inch woofers) So I would hazard a guess that the 290 will work with the new 9's (6.5 inch woofers) or 11's (8 inch woofers). Anyone else think the same?

i am trying to find a pair of studio 20's in black ash v.3 to use for rear surrounds in my 7.1 setup. I am having a hard time finding the v.3's since the v.4's have come out. I would buy v.4's but the only dealer in my area charges full list price and I have read that most people are not paying full list for paradigm. if I could find a dealer that is willing to discount, even a little, I would be interested, but i would prefer to find v.3's since the rest of my setup are v.3's.

thanks for any leads on this!

i am trying to find a pair of studio 20's in black ash v.3 to use for rear surrounds in my 7.1 setup. I am having a hard time finding the v.3's since the v.4's have come out. I would buy v.4's but the only dealer in my area charges full list price and I have read that most people are not paying full list for paradigm. if I could find a dealer that is willing to discount, even a little, I would be interested, but i would prefer to find v.3's since the rest of my setup are v.3's.

thanks for any leads on this!

May I offer this contact:

murady7599@yahoo.com or tel # 973-725-4801

They appear to be reputable and provide the latest versions of the Paradigm line.

Other members of this forum are quite pleased with the prices and delivery.

PM me and I will provide other details.

i would move up to the Minis.. the Titans are just too large to wall mount if you plan on using the MB-60 Premier wall mount plates. The Titans are front ported and can be shelf mounted, however , its a different case with the Mini's and AToms which are rear ported and need about 4" or more to breath.

Man that 390 is massive. I think the 290 will do just as well. Especially for those who do not want to spend even more time trying to fit this big sucker into a normal setup.

In fact, the 290 looks like a tweaked version of the previous model CC370. At that time, even the 370 was a great match for the Mon 9's (8 inch woofers) So I would hazard a guess that the 290 will work with the new 9's (6.5 inch woofers) or 11's (8 inch woofers). Anyone else think the same?

I am using the CC290 in a 2 different rooms , one with Atoms front & rear and the 2nd with titans front and Mini's rear... It is more than good... Should you move up... go for the cc590. that cover all the sins.

I have a question I think you guys can help me with.

I went to my local dealer and he's got closeout deal on Monitor 11's V4. Roughly half price and about what I can get the Monitor 7 V5. However, I read on this forum that both of these models really don't shine when compared to other models from their generation (Monitor 7 V4 and 9 V5).

This was my first time listening to Paradigms and thought the 11 V4 sounded OK but a bit soft or muddy. Maybe it was comparing with the Klipsh's in store though, I'm really not an expert here. I prefer a softer sound and I was almost sold on a pair of Energy RC-70 but the Paradigm I can get a much better price. The problem is my dealer does not have the Monitor 9 V5 in stock and I'd need to drive out of town to listen to them. Are the Monitor 9 V5 much better than the 11 V4? Also, my dealer has a good deal on the 370 V4 center, would it timbre match well with a V5 or should I spend the extra on a 390 V5?

Thanks

Hi, I'm not to sure what is the better set-up to go with. My listening ratio is about 60% movies and 40% music. I do love to listen to concert Blu-Rays. The set-ups are the Studio 100s with the CC-590 center or the Studio 60s with the CC-690 center. They are close to the same in price. My room is around 15'x17'x8'. Thanks

My system is in need of a speaker upgrade. I currently have a Paradigm set (CC-170, Titan fronts, Micro surrounds, PS-1000 sub). I'm interested in the Studio series. I've listened to the 40's with a CC-590 at a dealer and liked the combo. My receiver is a Yammy RX-V2400. Is that a good match for the Studio series? I've also listened to the B&O 600 series and liked those. I will replace the sub, too, and I am considering an SVS or Velodyne model. Any advice/recommendations would be much appreciated.

Oops,
Almost forgot: room is rectangular 25x12 with the system kitty corner at the end of a long wall. System is used 60% HT and 40% music.

Update:
I went to my local Paradigm dealer yesterday, but found out they do not carry the Studio line. Seems they don't sell enough of them. I did audition a set of B&W 705's. The B&W's performed well. I listened in 2-channel mode without a sub using a variety of music (classical, jazz-vocal, rock). The matching B&W center scares me because of the height (12 in.). This would not work in my current setup as I have the center speaker in front of the display. I now need to find another dealer that carries the Studio line which probably means at least a 60 mile drive in order to listen in person again as the first time I heard the 40's was while I was on vacation.

Man that 390 is massive. I think the 290 will do just as well. Especially for those who do not want to spend even more time trying to fit this big sucker into a normal setup.

In fact, the 290 looks like a tweaked version of the previous model CC370. At that time, even the 370 was a great match for the Mon 9's (8 inch woofers) So I would hazard a guess that the 290 will work with the new 9's (6.5 inch woofers) or 11's (8 inch woofers). Anyone else think the same?

The 290 will do well with the M9's but obviously the the 390 was made for the M9's and M11's...

The 390 is well, um, big! That said, I love mine and would have a hard time going back to a smaller one. I use mine with M11's.

Hi all -

Envision my listening room ... 15' wide, 23' deep. Fronts (Studio 100's) along one short side, about 7 1/2 ' apart, 3' from back wall. Primary listening position just forward/closer to mains of center (about 10' from fronts' wall, 13' from rears' wall). Side surrounds on long walls (obviously), about 1' behind primary listening position.

CC-590 for center, BTW ... about 2' off the floor b/w mains, and also about 3' out from wall ...

Listening position is either standard couch height (29") for primary position or some beanbags (maybe 18" high - kids), scattered all around the room (usually aside or in front of primary position) ...

Question: how high for surrounds - more specifically, how high for their tweeters for best imaging, soundfield in movies?

I've heard 'ear height when standing' as a general rule ... given that the 'average' listening position is a little lower than usual, should I still follow that rule ... and do it for tweeter level? That would put the Studio 20's/rears a little bit low on the wall (am probably going to use shelf brackets to hold the 20's and 590's, BTW).

Thanks in advance for your advice -

- Ian

Hey Ian.... generally the side and rear surrounds
have been preferred to be place about 1 to 2 ft above the Listening Position.

I use Studio 20's for my side surrounds (really wide room) and angle down towards the LP but just above my head, which works great... There are members galleries on AVS and you can search out some wicked HT views, but thats pretty much how they work out very well...

I don't care for directly at ear level... It just seems to hit to hard instead of being ambient if you will...

... preferred to be place about 1 to 2 ft above the Listening Position ...

Hi Warpdrv -

Thanks ... would this be height of speaker center (relative to listening position), or tweeter?

- Ian

Any where in that general vacinity will be fine... don't stress out about it...

It will work just fine, + or - 6" won't make a difference either way...

Just put it where it looks best to you... :)

Can somebody help me?
I need to see ports location on the back.

Here ya go.......hope this helps...

Thank You, BigNunz!

signature w5 c
has anyone heard news of a new center speaker for the signature line? it's suppose to be equivalent to the c5 (17 1/2" depth) except the depth is dramatically less, which would fit on a fireplace mantle for example. i do not know the exact depth, has anyone heard? the number of drivers appears to be the same.

Is $2200 CAD. a fair price on the Studio 100s?

Ive been trying to figure out a way to work a c-290 in as well. I cant think of a way w/o wall mounting my new flat screen. cant they make them a little thinner?

slow ride - you may want to check with paradigm about a new monitor center speaker. the (new) signature center speaker became available approx. two weeks ago (according to a paradigm dealer). paradigm has not updated their web site as yet. the dealer did print some info for me, but again, it is for the signature line.

slow ride - you may want to check with paradigm about a new monitor center speaker. the (new) signature center speaker became available approx. two weeks ago (according to a paradigm dealer). paradigm has not updated their web site as yet. the dealer did print some info for me, but again, it is for the signature line.

do you have any dimensions? Height is whats most important to me? thanks

Ive been trying to figure out a way to work a c-290 in as well. I cant think of a way w/o wall mounting my new flat screen. cant they make them a little thinner?

The smaller cabinets are a compromise to the mid/bass drivers already
further downsizing will affect sound (not in a good way).

The new Studio Esprit models have a L, R and C to wrap around a Plasma, also avail in the Sig lineup, but yet to be published on the site.

As for what oztech states, Im not sure I would put the cart before the horse here, they look to be sealed, and if crossovered and controlled properly they could be a pretty competent lineup. But I, as well as oztech like a properly designed cabinet, which most if not all drivers are complemented by...

Hey all, I have a question that you probably have answered before, but I'm not wading through nearly 6,500 posts to find it.

I have a local dealer whom I know (I work at the BB about a block away and the owner of this shop and I chat quite often). I also have a former coworker at this little shop as well. I'm wonder of the main differences between the Monitor 11s and the Studio 60 (current versions of each). I listened to the Monitor 9s and was not impressed. The highs were a little brighter than I liked for music, the mids were also a little lackluster. I listened to the Studio 60s and was immediately impressed with their clarity and depth of the sound. The only way I could afford them is with the dealer giving me an great deal (since I do send people his way often).

Are the Studio 60s a huge improvement over the Monitor 11s? I'm concerned about the lack of drivers in the 60s for bass since I will be running a 2.0 setup for a little while while I build the system.

Hey Codes... No need to worry about the lack of drivers in the 60's, they will walk all over the 11's in SQ and performance... Don't get me wrong I really loved the 11's but the Studio's over the Monitors is a vast improvement. You couldn't possibly go wrong with the upgrade to the Studio lineup, they are far superior.

The Monitor line is made extremely efficient, and will be fantastic with a receiver, but the Studio line really comes to life with an external amp.... not totally necessary, but they definitely come to life with the extra power...

Go back and spend more time with them Side by Side, and make the call yourself.
It worth your time and money invested....

Hey Codes... No need to worry about the lack of drivers in the 60's, they will walk all over the 11's in SQ and performance... Don't get me wrong I really loved the 11's but the Studio's over the Monitors is a vast improvement. You couldn't possibly go wrong with the upgrade to the Studio lineup, they are far superior.

The Monitor line is made extremely efficient, and will be fantastic with a receiver, but the Studio line really comes to life with an external amp.... not totally necessary, but they definitely come to life with the extra power...

Go back and spend more time with them Side by Side, and make the call yourself.
It worth your time and money invested....

I agree whole heartedly... the 60's are a sweet spot in that line.. the 11's are a very good item at the price point for a floor stander, but no 60. Studio mid range models as the monitor midrange units are truly the sweet spots in the Paradigm lines. The Ref series IMHO are terribly overrrated and over priced. In my shop I would play one against the other for buyers, this way the money they save would go towards better electronics... most times it worked out. Other times those insecure dunces ran out of my store. only to to get screwed because they wanted to.

slowride - the dimensions are not given, only driver info. as i said, it seems close to the c5 so it may be around 9 1/2" ht.

oztech - generally speaking, i agree with you that a reduced speaker size won't benefit the sound, but, it may be your only alternative with certain room limitations.

Hey Codes... No need to worry about the lack of drivers in the 60's, they will walk all over the 11's in SQ and performance... Don't get me wrong I really loved the 11's but the Studio's over the Monitors is a vast improvement. You couldn't possibly go wrong with the upgrade to the Studio lineup, they are far superior.

The Monitor line is made extremely efficient, and will be fantastic with a receiver, but the Studio line really comes to life with an external amp.... not totally necessary, but they definitely come to life with the extra power...

Go back and spend more time with them Side by Side, and make the call yourself.
It worth your time and money invested....


A little OT, but I couldn't hesitate to ask.

Even though I recently purchased a pair of Mini's, I'm considering trading them in, and getting the Studio 20's, and a small 8" sub. I have been tossing around the idea of either M.9's or Studio 20's and a small/cheap ($200) sub.

My situation is 90/10 (music/movies), and 2.1 is all I want.



For a 2.0/.1 setup, would it be best to go with the M.9's or S.20's + small sub? I really like the "house sound" of the Paradigm brand, and I will remain loyal to them. My 14x10 room is treated as well.




TIA,

-Nick :)

Just purchased a new set of Paradigm speakers:

Front: Titan Monitors, Center: CC-190, Surround: ADP-190s, Sub: DSP-3100.

I'm replacing an old set of Polk RM3000 (I think that was the model number - it was a cheap HTIB setup) and am really excited about my new system. I'll be running it through an Onkyo 705. Should I set the speakers in the receiver as small or large?

Just purchased a new set of Paradigm speakers:

Front: Titan Monitors, Center: CC-190, Surround: ADP-190s, Sub: DSP-3100.

I'm replacing an old set of Polk RM3000 (I think that was the model number - it was a cheap HTIB setup) and am really excited about my new system. I'll be running it through an Onkyo 705. Should I set the speakers in the receiver as small or large?

Small

slow ride - you may want to check with paradigm about a new monitor center speaker. the (new) signature center speaker became available approx. two weeks ago (according to a paradigm dealer). paradigm has not updated their web site as yet. the dealer did print some info for me, but again, it is for the signature line.

thanks, I called paradigm today . i talked to gary at customer service. He told me that he was unaware of any new releases. I asked about all series. go figure!:confused:

A little OT, but I couldn't hesitate to ask.

Even though I recently purchased a pair of Mini's, I'm considering trading them in, and getting the Studio 20's, and a small 8" sub. I have been tossing around the idea of either M.9's or Studio 20's and a small/cheap ($200) sub.

My situation is 90/10 (music/movies), and 2.1 is all I want.



For a 2.0/.1 setup, would it be best to go with the M.9's or S.20's + small sub? I really like the "house sound" of the Paradigm brand, and I will remain loyal to them. My 14x10 room is treated as well.




TIA,

-Nick :)

Studio 20's and a small sub are a fantastic choice for a treated room your size. You should hear a big improvement over Mini's (or M 9's for that matter) and no sub.

If you are handy, you could DIY a really good sub for around $200. There is lots of info in this forum on the subject.

Mounting center channel above TV set:
Hey guys, I found the biggest (most load carrying) TV arm I could find, this one is rated at 75 lbs.
It holds my CC390 just slightly above the HDTV, this way I can move the HDTV for rear access w/o worrying about the center channel speaker.
If your room layout allows, this is easy/robust solution.
Make sure you mount it to your studs.
http://lh3.google.com/mtbdudex/R8RNaxCPi8I/AAAAAAAABeE/gtCg2AnANos/s800/CC390CenterChannelMount.jpg


Thanks!
I just picked up a B&W LCR6-S2 on Ebay thats way too big to balance on top of my Sony RPTV.
I will Definitely look to get one of these OmniMounts...even if its just for the next 6 months or so until I upgrade my RPTV to a bigger LCD.

Pete

I'm using the OmniMount CCH1. Its a little shelf that is built to hold components on top of RPTV's. It works pretty well, it just took about 30 minutes to get everything at the right level. Sorry, I can't post a link to it yet since I'm fairly new here. But it's pretty easy to find, I think I got it at Best Buy.

http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n248/tledoux/CCH1.jpg


Tom

Small
Thanks for the help!

I'm looking to get a new centre channel. I just purchased an Onkyo 805 (still waiting for delivery) and have picked up the cc190 from my local store to demo. I would prefer the CC-290 but I have a Plasma TV and my stand will only allow for a center speaker that is 22" wide.
Any suggestions?
Thanks!!

Getting ready to pull trigger on some speakers. But want to ask people who have them is it worth the $800 extra to go to the Studio 100s from the Studio 60s. My listening room is 15x17.5 ...

Getting ready to pull trigger on some speakers. But want to ask people who have them is it worth the $800 extra to go to the Studio 100s from the Studio 60s. My listening room is 15x17.5 ...

Definitely, but do yourself a favor and go to the dealer with the material
that you listen to and have them switch between them.

Thanks for the reply OZ. I'll be sure to do that.

Hey Codes... No need to worry about the lack of drivers in the 60's, they will walk all over the 11's in SQ and performance... Don't get me wrong I really loved the 11's but the Studio's over the Monitors is a vast improvement. You couldn't possibly go wrong with the upgrade to the Studio lineup, they are far superior.

The Monitor line is made extremely efficient, and will be fantastic with a receiver, but the Studio line really comes to life with an external amp.... not totally necessary, but they definitely come to life with the extra power...

Go back and spend more time with them Side by Side, and make the call yourself.
It worth your time and money invested....

I figured as much. Thanks. I just wanted an general opinion because of the fact I could not demo the 11s in comparison to the Studio 60s. I'm also looking at PSB speakers (Image T65) which seem to compare to the Paradigms. Many have said they have similar sound.

Slowride - Here is the info I was given (in print):
Signature W5 C On-Wall Center Channel
Two 7" Bass Drivers
Two 7" Bass/Mid Drivers
4 1/2" Midrange Driver
1" Tweeter
Adj. TV/Shelf Supports Incl.
On-Wall Brackets Incl.
$2,900

I just ordered my center channel - Icc-690 to go with the studio 100s that I received last week.

Does the above price look like I came out okay?

I currently am trying to power it all with a 110w Yamaha receiver until I can afford a decent amp. I'm just wondering how much more this center speaker is going to bog it all down?

With my Klipsch speakers, -20db was extremely loud and seemed to start distorting. At the same level, the 100s seem to just be warming up.

How big of hurry should I be in to get a real amp? Warp has the big Rotel, is that best for these? How do the high power Parasounds go with this line of speaker? I'm wanting to keep my cost down, but still take full advantage of these speakers. I'm open to buying off of e-bay or avdiogon if it's a big advantage.

Thanks

I just ordered my center channel - Icc-690 to go with the studio 100s that I received last week.

Does the above price look like I came out okay?

I currently am trying to power it all with a 110w Yamaha receiver until I can afford a decent amp. I'm just wondering how much more this center speaker is going to bog it all down?

With my Klipsch speakers, -20db was extremely loud and seemed to start distorting. At the same level, the 100s seem to just be warming up.

How big of hurry should I be in to get a real amp? Warp has the big Rotel, is that best for these? How do the 220w Parasounds go with this line of speaker? I'm wanting to keep my cost down, but still take full advantage of these speakers. I'm open to buying off of e-bay or avdiogon if it's a big advantage.

Thanks
If its in a large room being played loud i would make it soon before any
speaker damage could occur.

mounting the studio20;s???

I made the studio60's purchase, wow what a great speaker. I have the cc690 for center , ADP590's for L/R surround.
So now I would like to go 7.1 has anyone here mounted the 20's at all and if so do you have any pictures and info on how you did this?
I have stands but prefere to move them up off the floor

Also another question, maybe the wrong place but I'll give it a try.
I'm running the speakers off THE Anthem D2 with the P5 amp.
sould I run the P2 for the reads or save some cash and go with the MCA2? to run the rears or grab the P2 and use it to run the front L/R and then run the other 5 speakers off the P5? I think thats how I should do it but any thoughts?

Trev

Slowride - Here is the info I was given (in print):
Signature W5 C On-Wall Center Channel
Two 7" Bass Drivers
Two 7" Bass/Mid Drivers
4 1/2" Midrange Driver
1" Tweeter
Adj. TV/Shelf Supports Incl.
On-Wall Brackets Incl.
$2,900

ok Thanks.

Wall mount of the Studio 20's is the B-Tech BT77
http://www.btech-usa.com/bt77.html

Don't even think about using something else... they don't work. I found out the hard way... ;)

Wall mount of the Studio 20's is the B-Tech BT77
http://www.btech-usa.com/bt77.html

Don't even think about using something else... they don't work. I found out the hard way... ;)

Will those work for the S1's too do you think?

I agree whole heartedly... the 60's are a sweet spot in that line.. the 11's are a very good item at the price point for a floor stander, but no 60. Studio mid range models as the monitor midrange units are truly the sweet spots in the Paradigm lines. The Ref series IMHO are terribly overrrated and over priced. In my shop I would play one against the other for buyers, this way the money they save would go towards better electronics... most times it worked out. Other times those insecure dunces ran out of my store. only to to get screwed because they wanted to.
GINO I LIVE ON LONG ISLAND. I AM LOOKING FOR A PAIR OF FLOOR SPEAKERS FOR AN OLD SANSUI 9090DB. I PLAN TO SOMEDAY BUY A AV RECIEVER AND ADD ON TO THE SPEAKERS MATCHING UP A SET. I WAS LOOKING INTO POLK RTI 12 BUT I HAVE HEARD A LOT OF GOOD THINGS ABOUT PARADIGM.LISTENED TO MONITOR 9 AND THEY SOUNDED GREAT. CAN YOU RECOMEND A STORE ON LI FOR PARADIGM SPEAKERS THANKS CRAIG

GINO I LIVE ON LONG ISLAND. I AM LOOKING FOR A PAIR OF FLOOR SPEAKERS FOR AN OLD SANSUI 9090DB. I PLAN TO SOMEDAY BUY A AV RECIEVER AND ADD ON TO THE SPEAKERS MATCHING UP A SET. I WAS LOOKING INTO POLK RTI 12 BUT I HAVE HEARD A LOT OF GOOD THINGS ABOUT PARADIGM.LISTENED TO MONITOR 9 AND THEY SOUNDED GREAT. CAN YOU RECOMEND A STORE ON LI FOR PARADIGM SPEAKERS THANKS CRAIG

6th ave Electronics is about the largest so far locally... but you have go in there prepared and knowledgeable what the dealer prices are (40% off list) and willing to strike a hard deal and be firm and prepared to walk away from any crap or excuses from the sales folks.

Be careful with them, they try to push Definitive Technology a lot.

Heres a authorized mail order dealer to give a shot to who is located right over the bridge in New Jersey 973-725-4801. A Few AVS members bought from them and got close to 25% off current versions.

Remember for the Monitor series V5, Studios V4, REF V3, hope that helps.

I'm looking into the Monitor series, specifically the Monitor 9s and 7s. I going to my local dealer this weekend to audition them but they only have the 9s in the shop. Is there a lot of difference between these 2? Are they that much better or will the 7s suffice if paired with a sub. This is for 70/30 HT-music.

My plan is for a setup like this:
Fronts: Monitor 9/7
Center: CC-290
Surrounds: ADP-190
Sub: still in research

I'm looking into the Monitor series, specifically the Monitor 9s and 7s. I going to my local dealer this weekend to audition them but they only have the 9s in the shop. Is there a lot of difference between these 2? Are they that much better or will the 7s suffice if paired with a sub. This is for 70/30 HT-music.

My plan is for a setup like this:
Fronts: Monitor 9/7
Center: CC-290
Surrounds: ADP-190
Sub: still in research

In reverse order look at the AV123 mfw-15 for $599+ $100 shipping... the last of the real deals! I have one wowowowow!

forget the 7's go with the 9 or 11's, CC290 is very nice sounding unit and can produce real bass down to the 40's, ADP-190 a little small, move up to the 290 for about $50-70 more retail. The list price is only $100 more a pair.
My thoughts!:D

Hi Guys!
I just both Paradigm Signature S6 mains and C3 centre and S1 for surrounds and looking at getting an AV receiver plus Power amp later on and have narrowed my choice down to the following:
Marantz SR8002 or Denon 3808
Really interested in people’s opinions, your feedback would be great

Tnx George

Will those work for the S1's too do you think?

I would imagine they will work, but it looks like the front bezel is all metal, and wraps around, which leaves a gap on the side...

The Sig 2's or the Studio 20's are smooth along the entire side which allows the clamp to connect evenly all along the entire side.

I would think if you put something on the side to take up the space of the front bezel it would work just great... I would say get the speaker and make a decision after you look at it... are there mounting holes on the back..?

Hi Guys!
I just both Paradigm Signature S6 mains and C3 centre and S1 for surrounds and looking at getting an AV receiver plus Power amp later on and have narrowed my choice down to the following:
Marantz SR8002 or Denon 3808
Really interested in people’s opinions, your feedback would be great

Tnx George

Sigs are screamin for power... also they dip low on some material, sometimes into the 4 ohm region... a receiver will not provide that power, period...

I just bought S4's and C3, and my Pioneer started straining, and the Sigs started freakin out at full volume.. definitely started to break up, they just lost control... not good...

Tons of external amps available... look at Audiogon for used stuff, plenty of good deals there. Heres a link for all the multichannel amps. http://buy0.audiogon.com/cgia/fsb.pl?ampsmult&1&ctg&st1

A good 200wpc should be a good start... Go look for threads in the amp section, lots of good reading there... I just pulled the trigger on a D-Sonic (http://d-sonic.net/) 2000-5 Ice Powered Amp, huge power, seem to growing quite a following.

I just ordered my center channel - Icc-690 to go with the studio 100s that I received last week.

Does the above price look like I came out okay?

I currently am trying to power it all with a 110w Yamaha receiver until I can afford a decent amp. I'm just wondering how much more this center speaker is going to bog it all down?

With my Klipsch speakers, -20db was extremely loud and seemed to start distorting. At the same level, the 100s seem to just be warming up.

How big of hurry should I be in to get a real amp? Warp has the big Rotel, is that best for these? How do the high power Parasounds go with this line of speaker? I'm wanting to keep my cost down, but still take full advantage of these speakers. I'm open to buying off of e-bay or avdiogon if it's a big advantage.

Thanks
Check out this thread for big, clean power and awesome sounding speakers. I replaced my Rotel with these and could not be happier. I have 100's, 590 with in-ceiling surrounds.
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=418666

I know this is a question out of the blue, but I'm curious about discounting.

Is it fair to say that when you go higher up in the Paradigm speaker lines, (Monitor to Studio to Signature) that a dealer would be more likely to give a larger discount as you go from the less expensive models to the most expensive?

I've been somewhat surprised when a dealer keeps prompting you to make a decision and make a purchase, but then get "stingy" as you're contemplating a multi-thousand dollar purchase from them. For instance, the MSRP on the Studio 100's is $2700 whereas the Signature 8 MSRP is $6700.

I just think that with a recession looming at our doorstep that audio/video dealers would be rolling out the red carpet to do what it takes to make the deal, within reason, and get the customer to make the purchase and not haggle over percentages. Just seems to me that the customer has alot more leverage these days than the dealer?

When I was considering the Def Tech Mythos ST speakers, I had numerous dealers more than willing to give me a very nice discount to make a sale (and yes I know that dealer cost is more for Paradigm than Def Tech).

Would like to know your thoughts on this.

I think I've decided on Paradigm Cinema 330's for a small bedroom system however I have read about tabletop stands for them but have never seen them and no dealer near me has them. Does anyone know where I can find a pair and how much they are?

I have some Cinema 330's for LCR and am now looking for some rears. I noticed in the Paradigm owners manual for the 330's it states that the rears should be "ADP rears" firing side to side, and the surrounds should be "ADP surrounds", firing front to back. Are there two different Cinema ADP models? Or do they mean you should be using the Cinema ADP's firing side to side for rears and the same model firing front to back for surrounds? I'm confused.

I don't think there are two different models of Cinema ADP's. I think that's a recommendation to use the same speakers for the surrounds and surround back if you're using a 7.1 setup.

I have some Cinema 330's for LCR and am now looking for some rears. I noticed in the Paradigm owners manual for the 330's it states that the rears should be "ADP rears" firing side to side, and the surrounds should be "ADP surrounds", firing front to back. Are there two different Cinema ADP models? Or do they mean you should be using the Cinema ADP's firing side to side for rears and the same model firing front to back for surrounds? I'm confused.

When they're on the side walls of your room, they are firing front and back. When they are on the back walls of your room, they are firing side-to-side.

It's the same speaker, they are just positioned based on the wall they are on.

So whats the deal AbMagFab.... did you pull the trigger on those Sigs ??

Warpdrv,
Have you hooked your new SIGS up ?
How do they sound?
After all this talk about the SIG's I went and checked them out. I must say they sounded good.
I'm now considering a trade in on my Studio's for a pair of 4's or 6's and C5 maybe C3 if I go for the 4's. The dealer is bring in a pair of 4's so I can check them out before I decide.
I also want to get an amp, but have to decide which way to stretch the funds.
Rolling like a snowball down that slippery slope. :)

I picked up the rest of my Monitor speakers last weekend. Someone on here told me that the ADP190's would come with wall mounts but the only thing in the box was some sort of bracket and not a wall mount strong enough to hold those speakers on the wall. Those things have some weight with them! So I will ask again, what is a good mount that will work best with those speakers. I am either going to use a mount or just build a sturdy shelf for them.

So whats the deal AbMagFab.... did you pull the trigger on those Sigs ??

Not yet, still on schedule for mid-March. And of course it's the Sigs and P5 now. I'll be calling next week to start the "what's the best price you can do for me" conversation.

I'm building the stage this weekend, and I already pulled the new 4x12AWG wire (and tested the wire pulls - all is good).

I also ordered some LED rope light for under the front of the stage, and I'll probably run it around the top of the room behind crown/cove molding if I like it.

I can't wait!

dleto: What color do you think you'll go with if you get the Sigs? Did you happen to check out the S8 during your audition and if so, what did you think of their sound, size, etc?

Abmagfab: Do you know which models and finish you're going with on the Sigs? (wasn't sure if you meant "C5" when you said "P5". I've been doing the "what's your best price and what do I have to do to get it" routine for the past week or so (that's the reason for the earlier post regarding discounting). Plus my decision on whether or not to go with the S8's or the S6's.

If I go with the S8's, I'd probably get the C5 and then wait a little bit before getting the ADP1 for surrounds and possibly the S2's for rear surrounds. I think if I had the S8's and C5, I'd feel less rushed to pick out the rest of the speakers right away and it would give me time to recover financially somewhat. I'm sure I'd be quite happy with what I had to start with.

I'd probably go with the Cherry finish mainly because I think it looks very nice and it's cheaper than the black or maple. When I was looking at the Studio Reference, I was going to go for all black. (Black is the basic color for the Studios and Cherry is the standard color for the Sigs)

Two questions for anyone. For those who are chosing the Signature speakers, were you originally going with the Studio Reference until you heard the Signatures? Did anyone audition the S8 or consider them. If so, what was your reason for not going for those? The S8's are the ones I'm leaning towards. I love the way they look and for the first few weeks, they'd be "anchoring" my HT setup with the C5 until I recover financially.

Also, would still like to get a feel regarding discounting from others. My perspective is that it's ok to possibly ask for a little more of a discount for very expensive speakers versus a standard discount for lesser priced ones? Any thoughts? Thanks!

dleto: What color do you think you'll go with if you get the Sigs? Did you happen to check out the S8 during your audition and if so, what did you think of their sound, size, etc?

Abmagfab: Do you know which models and finish you're going with on the Sigs? (wasn't sure if you meant "C5" when you said "P5". I've been doing the "what's your best price and what do I have to do to get it" routine for the past week or so (that's the reason for the earlier post regarding discounting). Plus my decision on whether or not to go with the S8's or the S6's.

If I go with the S8's, I'd probably get the C5 and then wait a little bit before getting the ADP1 for surrounds and possibly the S2's for rear surrounds. I think if I had the S8's and C5, I'd feel less rushed to pick out the rest of the speakers right away and it would give me time to recover financially somewhat. I'm sure I'd be quite happy with what I had to start with.

I'd probably go with the Cherry finish mainly because I think it looks very nice and it's cheaper than the black or maple. When I was looking at the Studio Reference, I was going to go for all black. (Black is the basic color for the Studios and Cherry is the standard color for the Sigs)

Two questions for anyone. For those who are chosing the Signature speakers, were you originally going with the Studio Reference until you heard the Signatures? Did anyone audition the S8 or consider them. If so, what was your reason for not going for those? The S8's are the ones I'm leaning towards. I love the way they look and for the first few weeks, they'd be "anchoring" my HT setup with the C5 until I recover financially.

Also, would still like to get a feel regarding discounting from others. My perspective is that it's ok to possibly ask for a little more of a discount for very expensive speakers versus a standard discount for lesser priced ones? Any thoughts? Thanks!
They usually give the best deal when you purchase all five.

Abmagfab: Do you know which models and finish you're going with on the Sigs? (wasn't sure if you meant "C5" when you said "P5". I've been doing the "what's your best price and what do I have to do to get it" routine for the past week or so (that's the reason for the earlier post regarding discounting). Plus my decision on whether or not to go with the S8's or the S6's.

If I go with the S8's, I'd probably get the C5 and then wait a little bit before getting the ADP1 for surrounds and possibly the S2's for rear surrounds. I think if I had the S8's and C5, I'd feel less rushed to pick out the rest of the speakers right away and it would give me time to recover financially somewhat. I'm sure I'd be quite happy with what I had to start with.

I'd probably go with the Cherry finish mainly because I think it looks very nice and it's cheaper than the black or maple. When I was looking at the Studio Reference, I was going to go for all black. (Black is the basic color for the Studios and Cherry is the standard color for the Sigs)

Two questions for anyone. For those who are chosing the Signature speakers, were you originally going with the Studio Reference until you heard the Signatures? Did anyone audition the S8 or consider them. If so, what was your reason for not going for those? The S8's are the ones I'm leaning towards. I love the way they look and for the first few weeks, they'd be "anchoring" my HT setup with the C5 until I recover financially.

Also, would still like to get a feel regarding discounting from others. My perspective is that it's ok to possibly ask for a little more of a discount for very expensive speakers versus a standard discount for lesser priced ones? Any thoughts? Thanks!

I going with the S6's for FR/FL, C5 for C, ADP1 for SS, and S1's for RS.

The P5 is the Anthem 5x325 amp, which I decided to also get.

I listened to the Studio's first, and planned to get them, until I A/B's the Sigs. It was a no-brainer for me to go with the Sigs.

I'm not considering the S8's for a few reasons:
1) I'm mostly HT, so the S8 + sub is overkill for me
2) The S8's are rear ported, where the S6's are front-ported, and I have a little bit of a placement issue where they will be near-ish to the front wall/corners
3) The S8's are massive, even though dimensions are only slightly larger than the S6's, they appear much larger, and are really too big for my room.

Hope this helps!
-Mark

Are the Sig S8's really that much better than the Studio 100's? Could someone, to the best of their ability, describe the differences. I really want to get the Studio series and be sure I'm getting great speakers. Basically, I don't want to have any buyers remorse down the road....wishing I had put myself in debt to get the Sigs:) Perhaps I should just avoid listening to them.

On a side note, is it okay to run the Studio 100's, CC690, and Studio 20's (surrounds) with a 130 or 140 watt middle to high end receiver? An example would be the Yamaha V3800.

Are the Sig S8's really that much better than the Studio 100's? Could someone, to the best of their ability, describe the differences. I really want to get the Studio series and be sure I'm getting great speakers. Basically, I don't want to have any buyers remorse down the road....wishing I had put myself in debt to get the Sigs:) Perhaps I should just avoid listening to them.

On a side note, is it okay to run the Studio 100's, CC690, and Studio 20's (surrounds) with a 130 or 140 watt middle to high end receiver? An example would be the Yamaha V3800.

They are significantly better, but whether it's worth the price difference is an individual opinion. You really need to listen to both to make up your own mind, as at this level of speaker, it's a very subjective opinion.

The Studio's are great speakers, and amazing speakers for the price. You'll be very happy with them.

The Studio's should be okay with a 140W amp, but they might strain a little under higher volume. You should try it out and if it's not enough, you can always upgrade your amp later.

I picked up the rest of my Monitor speakers last weekend. Someone on here told me that the ADP190's would come with wall mounts but the only thing in the box was some sort of bracket and not a wall mount strong enough to hold those speakers on the wall. Those things have some weight with them! So I will ask again, what is a good mount that will work best with those speakers. I am either going to use a mount or just build a sturdy shelf for them.

That little bracket IS the Paradigm mount. I had the same experience, even talked to tech support. My local dealer actually removes the front driver and screws the speaker to the wall. I used a piece of oak (a drawer front) that sticks out slighlty on the top and bottom. I used the Paridigm mount and then three drywall screws into the back of the speaker. I then used 4 drywall plugs and screwed the oak to the wall. I honestly think removing the driver and screwing the speaker to the wall is the best.

Are the Sig S8's really that much better than the Studio 100's? Could someone, to the best of their ability, describe the differences.

I auditioned the Studio 60's, 100's last month. Liked them alot...but not enough to scrap my current B&W 6 series line up.
As an aside the Sales guy said I should listen to some Sig 2's.

My jaw dropped!

Listening to the Studio series I thought to myself..."Nice sounding speakers...good bass and nice highs..."
When listening to the Sig 2's I thought to myself..."Wow, this sounds like I'm sitting in the front row listening to Norah Jones live...where did the speakers go?"

I also listened to the Sig8's...similar impression to the Sig2's.
Believe it or not I actually preferred the Sig2's for 2 channel audio.
I love the way a well designed monitor disappears.

Note: I only auditioned in 2 Channel audio.
All material played thru a Rotel CD player, Proc & Amp.

Hope that explains my personal experience of Studios vs Sigs.
Of course YMMV.

Swguist:

Do you have pic of your speaker the way you hung it on the wall. The weird thing is that in my Paradigm manual it says that there are no mounting brackets in the box and I would need to purchase them seperately. That little bracket thing feels like plastic and I didn't feel comfortable hanging those ADP190's on the wall with that little plastic bracket.

Hi - I finally got through the last 60 pages in this thread... I'm a noob, and so before I go for an audition, I'd really appreciate some advice.

I am looking for a 2-channel setup for music/movies with music being the absolute priority. My listening volume is about 12'x12'x10'. The problem is that my budget is only about $1,000-$1,200, including the AVR. I have selected the Cambridge Audio 540R V2 ($400 refurbished), which tells you right away what my priorities are: no frills, but excellent quality in whatever the device is supposed to be doing.

I'm trying to decide between Atoms, Titans, Minis, Monitor 7, or Studio 20 (pushing it).

I listen mostly to Classical music and Jazz, so I am looking for full-range speakers that can ideally reproduce pianississimos to full orchestral tutti fortississimos. I don't want to blow my ears off; the system does not have to do more, in terms of loudness, than what one would encounter in a symphony hall, and I'd be happy if it was somewhat less than that.

I realize that's a tall order and that I may not find a decent speaker set at the moment. However, I'd be perfectly happy to upgrade these fronts later and move them to the rear.

Which ones do you think would best fit the bill? Would you recommend something else altogether? Do you think I'm nuts?

Thanks a million! Best - MM

Hello
Im new to the forum (and to HT)and could use some advice .Ive just recently purchase 3 milinnea 20's for my LRC. I am currently using my old klipsch booksehelf speakers as the rears but that is only temporary (low WAF) . Im looking for a resonable priced set of in-ceiling speakers to use as the rear surrounds - seems the paradigms are a bit more than I want to spend on in-ceiling speakers. Can anyone offer some ideas from there experience?.
Im also over on Craigsubs looking for sub advice - must be small to meet WAF. what are the pardigms subs like ?- they dont seem to get much respect on craigsub.
My room is fairly large but a very odd layout - about 12 x 15 (deep) with ceilings that go from 8 - 13 ft. but one side of the room is open to the kitchen of the same size. WAF wanted everything to be wall/ceiling mount but I got the 20's for the fronts. I love the paradigms so far - Ive had different klipsch speaker for many years . Last note - music is more important to me than HT but Id like a good comprimise if at all possible

thanks !

dleto: What color do you think you'll go with if you get the Sigs? Did you happen to check out the S8 during your audition and if so, what did you think of their sound, size, etc?

Abmagfab: Do you know which models and finish you're going with on the Sigs? (wasn't sure if you meant "C5" when you said "P5". I've been doing the "what's your best price and what do I have to do to get it" routine for the past week or so (that's the reason for the earlier post regarding discounting). Plus my decision on whether or not to go with the S8's or the S6's.

If I go with the S8's, I'd probably get the C5 and then wait a little bit before getting the ADP1 for surrounds and possibly the S2's for rear surrounds. I think if I had the S8's and C5, I'd feel less rushed to pick out the rest of the speakers right away and it would give me time to recover financially somewhat. I'm sure I'd be quite happy with what I had to start with.

I'd probably go with the Cherry finish mainly because I think it looks very nice and it's cheaper than the black or maple. When I was looking at the Studio Reference, I was going to go for all black. (Black is the basic color for the Studios and Cherry is the standard color for the Sigs)

Two questions for anyone. For those who are chosing the Signature speakers, were you originally going with the Studio Reference until you heard the Signatures? Did anyone audition the S8 or consider them. If so, what was your reason for not going for those? The S8's are the ones I'm leaning towards. I love the way they look and for the first few weeks, they'd be "anchoring" my HT setup with the C5 until I recover financially.

Also, would still like to get a feel regarding discounting from others. My perspective is that it's ok to possibly ask for a little more of a discount for very expensive speakers versus a standard discount for lesser priced ones? Any thoughts? Thanks!

Jimmy,
I'm no expert at this so take what I say at your own risk.;)
I have to blame Abmagfab :D for starting me down this road to the Sig's.
I have the 100'sv4 & 690 center and was happy. After reading his take on the Sig's I had to go and check them out.
I listened to the 100's, 40's, S6's & S8's in 2 channel. Demo music Nora Jones.
The S6's I thought were more laid back, not as forward sounding and much smoother, but missing some low end punch.
The S8's, outstanding more forward punch the the S6's, filled the room with clean crisp sound, If I closed my eyes I felt like I was in the front row of a Nora Jones concert. Seams to be the demo music of choice.
The 100's sounded good but not as detailed as the Sig's.
Now on to the movie.
We used the 690 center for the Studio's and C3 for the Sig's no C5 in house yet.
The only real difference between the S8's & Studio 100's was in the higher range, the Sig's were cleaner sounding more detail, it must be that tweeter.
The S6's once again were more laid back, like the volume was turned down some. They were still very clear and clean sounding. I liked them more with music then with the movie.
I'll bring my demo movie next time
They are bring in the S4's next week, when they come in I'll be doing some more demoing.
I'm looking at getting the Piano Black in the S4's or 6's can't swing the 8's cost and size just to much.
My only concern is that the S6's sounded much more laid back from the rest of them I wonder if there's something wrong with them. It's almost like the volume was turned down whenever we switch to them I could tell right away which ones I was listening to. At first we thought it was not enough power by the S8's sound so much better. I had my wife and daughter with me and they like the S8's then the 100's followed by the S6's.
They have a 2 channel amp waiting to be hooked up, so I asked if he could get it setup before I come back next week. :D
By the way it was an Integra 7.8 as the AVR.

Warpdrv,
Have you hooked your new SIGS up ?
How do they sound?
After all this talk about the SIG's I went and checked them out. I must say they sounded good.
I'm now considering a trade in on my Studio's for a pair of 4's or 6's and C5 maybe C3 if I go for the 4's. The dealer is bring in a pair of 4's so I can check them out before I decide.
I also want to get an amp, but have to decide which way to stretch the funds.
Rolling like a snowball down that slippery slope. :)


I have them all hooked up, and have been running them, but haven't had any critical listening time, but so far, I am very happy with the way they sound, A huge leap above the SVS- MTS's IMO... Crossed over to a sub the S4's sound fantastic... Although running them off the receiver is just way to little amount of power, I have my amp on order, hopefully will be here next week. Ice Power....

My Studio ADP 590's just showed up yesterday, but haven't taken them out of the box, I wish I could just have some time to myself.. :o
Couldn't justify the price for Sig ADP's...

After I get my amp, I will run them hard and let you know...

I'm in the market for new speakers, and was looking at the Paradigm studio or signature line (S4/C3/ADP1). I'd only get the signature series if I could find them used in good condition, or steep discount. New studio series is in budget.

Room: 10x12x8 (yes cozy)
Denon 3808CI Receiver (might do separate D-Class amp later this year)
Extensive acoustical treatments (super chunk bass traps, FRPs, etc.)
95% Home theater usage (utilizing HBR audio)
SVS PB-12Plus Subwoofer

Studio 60, CC-590 and ADP-590 retail for about $4.5K. In a room of this size and for HT usage, would this combination be the best bang for the buck? I'm not an audiophile but I do want good sound that won't break the bank.

The subwoofer is very powerful, so I thought I could maybe even do the Studio 40 series. But I think with the stand they wouldn't be much less than the 60 so why not go with the 60?

Are there any other brands in the $4500 list range or under for five speakers that would be a better match to my room and content choices?

I think you would be just fine with the studio line, but if you could swing the Sig's they are pretty nice... I haven't put the S4's up against the 100's yet, but I will soon, and report back... both Nuance and I are going to do a comparison. A room that small the 40's would be overkill... My S4's 1700 cu ft room is overkill...

I just got a set of ADP-590s off ebay from "Home Theater Advantage" store...

search ebay for seller emma7559
Shipped fast, arrived completely brand new, unopened box... email them about 40's and 590 center... I would buy from them again in a heartbeat.

You could get all this for a really good deal... or patience on Audiogon... Thats where I got my Sigs, perfect condition. good luck, I love the Studio's, if your not an Audiophile, they should suit you well.
Studio 40's http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrmoni&1208412106
ADP's ebay item 160214152340
CC590 ebay item 160214152345

theres a complete system for about $2500...

I think you would be just fine with the studio line, but if you could swing the Sig's they are pretty nice... I haven't put the S4's up against the 100's yet, but I will soon, and report back... both Nuance and I are going to do a comparison. A room that small the 40's would be overkill... My S4's 1700 cu ft room is overkill...

I just got a set of ADP-590s off ebay from "Home Theater Advantage" store...

search ebay for seller emma7559
Shipped fast, arrived completely brand new, unopened box... email them about 40's and 590 center... I would buy from them again in a heartbeat.

You could get all this for a really good deal... or patience on Audiogon... Thats where I got my Sigs, perfect condition. good luck, I love the Studio's, if your not an Audiophile, they should suit you well.

Thanks for the input. I did see that E-Bay seller and sent the person an e-mail inquiring about other models not listed. It's good to hear you had a good experience with them, as they have the side and surrounds that I want in the studio line.

I did Audiogon searches and no sig line came up. A few weeks ago I did see a Cherry C3 on E-bay, but it's long gone.

Thanks for the input. I did see that E-Bay seller and sent the person an e-mail inquiring about other models not listed. It's good to hear you had a good experience with them, as they have the side and surrounds that I want in the studio line.

I did Audiogon searches and no sig line came up. A few weeks ago I did see a Cherry C3 on E-bay, but it's long gone.

Audiogon is definitely a patience game... just check it every day.

Its worth the wait in the money savings... I'm not sure I would ever buy new again. obviously YMMV....

I was at my local Paradigm dealer today and auditioned a pair of Studio 60's V3 with a CC570 center. I was going there to audition the Monitor Audio RS6 because I was suggested by some folks here (and friends) to go listen to this (RS6) before I commit to buy my fronts and center.

I certainly wasn't disappointed by either speaker although the Studio 60 had more detail IMHO. I can get the Studio set for roughly 300$ more than the Monitor Audio set (1500 vs 1800 Canadian) but I think than even though Paradigm came out with a new revision the Studio are a better deal. I can't audition the V4 anywhere near me alas. Should I really make a detour to go and listen to the V4 before I decide?

I was at my local Paradigm dealer today and auditioned a pair of Studio 60's V3 with a CC570 center. I was going there to audition the Monitor Audio RS6 because I was suggested by some folks here (and friends) to go listen to this (RS6) before I commit to buy my fronts and center.

I certainly wasn't disappointed by either speaker although the Studio 60 had more detail IMHO. I can get the Studio set for roughly 300$ more than the Monitor Audio set (1500 vs 1800 Canadian) but I think than even though Paradigm came out with a new revision the Studio are a better deal. I can't audition the V4 anywhere near me alas. Should I really make a detour to go and listen to the V4 before I decide?

Always listen to as many as you can,

Mark: That P5 sounds like a great amp to power the Signatures you're getting. What color/finish are you going with? I'm leaning towards getting the S8 because I don't have room restrictions and I am going "subless" for a while. Also, I may get the Studio ADP590 over the ADP1 as surrounds.

ptlurking & dleto: When you auditioned the Studio 100's and the Signature 8's, how did the bass compare? I've read many places where the S8's sound great with better detail and more realistic over the 100's, but I don't see anything about how the bass compares between the two.

Like many of you, I originally was going with the Studio Reference speakers (100's, cc690, adp590), but after reading the great reviews on the new Signature v2 series, I didn't want to have "buyer's remorse" and am now leaning towards the S8, C5, adp1 or adp590 and S1 or S2 as rear surrounds.

The S8 and C5 would be definite, but I'm having problems justifying the cost of ADP1 and S1 or S2 as surrounds. My use is going to be mostly home theater and not 5 channel music. I'm looking to substitute the cc590 for the ADP1 and not sure about the rear surrounds, but I do think the best wisdom for those is to get direct radiating speakers. Any thoughts on substituting the surround speakers?

Thanks for all your advice!

Mark: That P5 sounds like a great amp to power the Signatures you're getting. What color/finish are you going with? I'm leaning towards getting the S8 because I don't have room restrictions and I am going "subless" for a while. Also, I may get the Studio ADP590 over the ADP1 as surrounds.

ptlurking & dleto: When you auditioned the Studio 100's and the Signature 8's, how did the bass compare? I've read many places where the S8's sound great with better detail and more realistic over the 100's, but I don't see anything about how the bass compares between the two.

Like many of you, I originally was going with the Studio Reference speakers (100's, cc690, adp590), but after reading the great reviews on the new Signature v2 series, I didn't want to have "buyer's remorse" and am now leaning towards the S8, C5, adp1 or adp590 and S1 or S2 as rear surrounds.

The S8 and C5 would be definite, but I'm having problems justifying the cost of ADP1 and S1 or S2 as surrounds. My use is going to be mostly home theater and not 5 channel music. I'm looking to substitute the cc590 for the ADP1 and not sure about the rear surrounds, but I do think the best wisdom for those is to get direct radiating speakers. Any thoughts on substituting the surround speakers?

Thanks for all your advice!

I'm getting the standard finish (Cherry?). My room walls are slightly red, and the finish actually complements it. I normally would get black, but the high-gloss would actually be a distraction due to the reflections and the close proximity to my screen.

The S8 has tons of bass, so much so you don't need a sub (ever if you don't want). The S6's actually have a fair amount of bass, not enough to bypass a sub for HT use, but actually adequate for 2-channel music (IMO).

But the S8's are great speakers. If my space could handle them, I probably would have bought them instead (although since I'm mostly HT and have a good sub, it might just be overkill). The rear-port just makes it impossible for me.

In the grand scheme of your HT speaker purchase, the ADP1 vs. ADP590 aren't really that much of a price difference, and if funds allow I'd go for the matching Sigs. For the rears, unless your seating is literally on the back wall, I'd go with directs, either the S1 or S2 should be fine.

If you choose the Studios for the surrounds though, you'll be happy. Unless you're doing a lot of multi-channel music, it's not like a ton of sound is coming from them.

Thx WARPDRV, I tried to order them but alas no shipping to Canada.. :(
I did try 7.1 over the weekend using stands and to be honest. I really thought the 5.1 sounded alot better. some parts of movies where fuller. but overall 5.1 was better as a whole. hard to explain but looks like I'm just going to end up selling my studio 20's and ofcourse my Sony DA5ES is up for grabs.
Thx though for your help WARP.

Wall mount of the Studio 20's is the B-Tech BT77
http://www.btech-usa.com/bt77.html

Don't even think about using something else... they don't work. I found out the hard way... ;)

I'm looking into the Monitor series, specifically the Monitor 9s and 7s. I going to my local dealer this weekend to audition them but they only have the 9s in the shop. Is there a lot of difference between these 2? Are they that much better or will the 7s suffice if paired with a sub. This is for 70/30 HT-music.

My plan is for a setup like this:
Fronts: Monitor 9/7
Center: CC-290
Surrounds: ADP-190
Sub: still in research

In reverse order look at the AV123 mfw-15 for $599+ $100 shipping... the last of the real deals! I have one wowowowow!

forget the 7's go with the 9 or 11's, CC290 is very nice sounding unit and can produce real bass down to the 40's, ADP-190 a little small, move up to the 290 for about $50-70 more retail. The list price is only $100 more a pair.
My thoughts!:D

I pulled the trigger and bought the Monitor 9s and put in orders for the CC-290 and the ADP-190 (390s are too big for the wife).

I got the 9s for $898 and he quoted $450 for the center and $450 for the ADP pair. Are these good prices? He's the only close dealer.

ptlurking & dleto: When you auditioned the Studio 100's and the Signature 8's, how did the bass compare? I've read many places where the S8's sound great with better detail and more realistic over the 100's, but I don't see anything about how the bass compares between the two.
...My use is going to be mostly home theater

If you are primarily going to use your system for HT vs 2ch or 5ch music (say 90% HT vs 10% Music)...you may be happy going with the Studio Series and saving the big $$$'s over the Sigs.

I think the Studio 100's are a great speaker for HT and a very good speaker for music. Just my 2 cents

Mark: That P5 sounds like a great amp to power the Signatures you're getting. What color/finish are you going with? I'm leaning towards getting the S8 because I don't have room restrictions and I am going "subless" for a while. Also, I may get the Studio ADP590 over the ADP1 as surrounds.

ptlurking & dleto: When you auditioned the Studio 100's and the Signature 8's, how did the bass compare? I've read many places where the S8's sound great with better detail and more realistic over the 100's, but I don't see anything about how the bass compares between the two.

Like many of you, I originally was going with the Studio Reference speakers (100's, cc690, adp590), but after reading the great reviews on the new Signature v2 series, I didn't want to have "buyer's remorse" and am now leaning towards the S8, C5, adp1 or adp590 and S1 or S2 as rear surrounds.

The S8 and C5 would be definite, but I'm having problems justifying the cost of ADP1 and S1 or S2 as surrounds. My use is going to be mostly home theater and not 5 channel music. I'm looking to substitute the cc590 for the ADP1 and not sure about the rear surrounds, but I do think the best wisdom for those is to get direct radiating speakers. Any thoughts on substituting the surround speakers?

Thanks for all your advice!

Yeah, I don't think the upgrade to the Signature series is huge, but its definitely better, and if you can spring for it, awesome I would as well.
So therefore with the close proximity of the sound characteristics of the Sigs and the Studio's you should be fine with the combo, and I totally agree with you about the price upgrade, the front 3 is one thing, but the surrounds are far less critical or crucial IMO. Lots of people have even mixed different brands as their surrounds and had good results. the voicing is similar, and should work just fine...

That seller I posted for ebay seems to be selling alot of the ADP-590's, good place to grab them from, I was sceptical at first, but hey I got my credit card to protect me. There is also that HIFITrader on ebay, and they are even selling the Signature Line there.. Just a heads up, another one I'm leary on, but the savings is immense.

rnrgagne also did what you are thinking and has been running Studio series as his surround support, with S4's and C3 up front, he loves it. He also powers everything with IcePower, I will have the S4's & C3 up front with the ADP-590 for the sides... I haven't mounted them, may be tonight after work.

Seriously looking forward to my IcePower amp hope it comes soon... I decided on getting the D-Sonic 2000-5 at 500W X 3 fronts - 250W X 2 at 8 Ohms, and they double at 4 Ohms.

Yeah, I don't think the upgrade to the Signature series is huge, but its definitely better, and if you can spring for it, awesome I would as well.
So therefore with the close proximity of the sound characteristics of the Sigs and the Studio's you should be fine with the combo, and I totally agree with you about the price upgrade, the front 3 is one thing, but the surrounds are far less critical or crucial IMO. Lots of people have even mixed different brands as their surrounds and had good results. the voicing is similar, and should work just fine...

That seller I posted for ebay seems to be selling alot of the ADP-590's, good place to grab them from, I was sceptical at first, but hey I got my credit card to protect me. There is also that HIFITrader on ebay, and they are even selling the Signature Line there.. Just a heads up, another one I'm leary on, but the savings is immense.

rnrgagne also did what you are thinking and has been running Studio series as his surround support, with S4's and C3 up front, he loves it. He also powers everything with IcePower, I will have the S4's & C3 up front with the ADP-590 for the sides... I haven't mounted them, may be tonight after work.

Seriously looking forward to my IcePower amp hope it comes soon... I decided on getting the D-Sonic 2000-5 at 500W X 3 fronts - 250W X 2 at 8 Ohms, and they double at 4 Ohms.

I was also thinking of mixing the S4/C3 combo with the ADP-590 if I can get killer deals on the sig line. I'm also thinking of ICEpower amp as well, and Wyred just announced a much more moderately priced amp that should be a step up in AQ from the D-Sonics, if you can live with 100WPC all-driven.

Should I go with the studio line I was thinking the 60 or 100. I have SVS PB12-Plus, but it sits behind the listening position. Thus, I thought going with the 100 mains might allow better cross-over matching so the bass isn't as localized to just the sub.

It may bein your interest and pocketbook to move that sub to the corner front right or left as is customarily suggested. This almost always provides a better melding of the lower frequencies produced by your front channels & Center, reduces out of phase boundary issues and may reduce nodel problems as well. Add to this, the less of a need for larger floor standers which tend not to image quite as well as stand mounted units i.e. Ref 60's, 40's et al.

But nevertheless its your money.... some times less is MORE. Especially true with the Paradigm line.

It is my experience that spending the additional monies to go the SIGs or any other TOTL speaker route is overkill and frankly never fully realized sonically due to the lack:
1) the use of high quality front end components i.e. pre/proc, HTR, Amplification and,
2) the universal failure to use high quality I/C's and Speaker cabling, and not the brand of the minute from somebody's garage shop.
3) The oft forgotten interaction of the listening room boundary's and almost always failure to sonically treat the room with the appropriate sound treatments (likely due to the WAF or worst yet-- ignorance).

Unless you plan to address the fundamentals first, then you could install Wislon WAMMs and puppies and it won't provide anymore satisfying a sound:(. However, it may satisfy your ego's and bragging rights...:D. The last time I listened to ego it still sounded like crap:eek:.

Save your money and do your homework... You'll be happier in the long run.

It may bein your interest and pocketbook to move that sub to the corner front right or left as is customarily suggested. This almost always provides a better melding of the lower frequencies produced by your front channels & Center, reduces out of phase boundary issues and may reduce nodel problems as well. Add to this, the less of a need for larger floor standers which tend not to image quite as well as stand mounted units i.e. Ref 60's, 40's et al.

But nevertheless its your money.... some times less is MORE. Especially true with the Paradigm line.

It is my experience that spending the additional monies to go the SIGs or any other TOTL speaker route is overkill and frankly never fully realized sonically due to the lack:
1) the use of high quality front end components i.e. pre/proc, HTR, Amplification and,
2) the universal failure to use high quality I/C's and Speaker cabling, and not the brand of the minute from somebody's garage shop.
3) The oft forgotten interaction of the listening room boundary's and almost always failure to sonically treat the room with the appropriate sound treatments (likely due to the WAF or worst yet-- ignorance).

Unless you plan to address the fundamentals first, then you could install Wislon WAMMs and puppies and it won't provide anymore satisfying a sound:(. However, it may satisfy your ego's and bragging rights...:D. The last time I listened to ego it still sounded like crap:eek:.

Save your money and do your homework... You'll be happier in the long run.

I hear you. But due to the room size, and the vast size of the sub, it can't go anywhere else in the room. I have done extensive acoustical treatments in the room including: super chunk bass traps floor to ceiling in all corners, first reflection points all treated, and wall/ceiling corners treated on the left and right. Front wall is treated as well, and heavy curtains over the one window in the room. OC703 was used throughout, with GOM fabric. Slap echo has been substantially reduced. Dialog sounds clear and crisp to me.

Current AVR is Denon 3808, which I may augment with ICEpower amps. Sherwood 972 receiver or their forthcoming pre-pro with ICEpower is also an option, later this year.

Thanks for the input..if I could put the sub elsewhere I would. And you are right, without acoustical treatments you could spend $20K on audio and it would still sound like crap.

Sounds like you have done extensive work to get your room setup here... what size is your room..?

With a setup like that, you may want to seriously think about doings external amping which will allow for future upgrades to be far easier. Better and better pre-amps are going to be coming out in the next couple years, with more improved implementation of HDMI, it would be worth it to have the ability to be as flexible as you can.

I will agree with Gino on whether the upgrade is substantial, he works with them side by side.
I'll also agree with the Imaging on the stand mounted units like the S4, 40's, S2's and 20's being superior.

I upgraded to the Sigs, mainly for the looks, but also in the hopes that even if they were only slightly better, it would be worth it to me... But remember I also went second hand too save the $$. $2500 for the front 3 was something I could easily live with here..

Ultimately I own both the Sigs and Studio's and either is a fantastic choice, with the Studio's being 85% as good as the Sigs. If you can swing a super deal on them great, but I would imagine that you would be also very impressed with the performance and SQ of the Studio's, I am..

Sounds like you have done extensive work to get your room setup here... what size is your room..?

With a setup like that, you may want to seriously think about doings external amping which will allow for future upgrades to be far easier. Better and better pre-amps are going to be coming out in the next couple years, with more improved implementation of HDMI, it would be worth it to have the ability to be as flexible as you can.

I will agree with Gino on whether the upgrade is substantial, he works with them side by side.
I'll also agree with the Imaging on the stand mounted units like the S4, 40's, S2's and 20's being superior.

I upgraded to the Sigs, mainly for the looks, but also in the hopes that even if they were only slightly better, it would be worth it to me... But remember I also went second hand too save the $$. $2500 for the front 3 was something I could easily live with here..

Ultimately I own both the Sigs and Studio's and either is a fantastic choice, with the Studio's being 85% as good as the Sigs. If you can swing a super deal on them great, but I would imagine that you would be also very impressed with the performance and SQ of the Studio's, I am..

The room is actually tiny..but I live in SoCal. :) It's about 10x12x8, hence my very limited placement options of the sub. Its actually a spare bedroom that I turned into a dedicated HT. There are a couple larger rooms in the house, but acoustically they are much worse due to very asymmetrical nature of them.

Since I have a good sub, do you think for HT putting the 40s on a stand is better than say the 60 or 100? The only Sig line I might possibly afford is the S4, so they would naturally be on a stand. I hadn't thought of the imaging as being better on the stand mounted versions than floor standing.

yngdiego,

With that size room & a sub, have you considered going to the Studio 20s?

yngdiego,

With that size room & a sub, have you considered going to the Studio 20s?

While I do have a budget, it does allow for either 40/60/100 mains. Plus, I may move in a few years and have a larger room. So I'd like to find something that won't overpower my current cozy space, but could sound good in a larger room. I think of speakers as long term investments, unlike AVRs or displays that rapidly change with technology and I need to keep my geeky side of me happy. :)

yngdiego,

With that size room & a sub, have you considered going to the Studio 20s?

That is certainly an option, and you also have less crossovers that can be said to be more difficult to manage from a design standpoint.

The S4's with the C3 are also a fantastic choice, and crossover perfectly to my Pb12-Plus in my system. But the S2's would be equally capable in that small of a room... You do not need Floorstanders in there... It would be a waste of money, plus you would more then likely get better performance and flexiblity with bookshelves... Many many people use S2's/20's and C3/cc590, depending which route you choose, and they can pound your walls down just fine..
You can always upgrade to a floorstander later if you feel you need it.
I will add, the S4's with the C3 already, get extremely loud and will fill a large area just fine, as my son reminds me to turn it down when he's listening in the Great Room to the Studio setup.. :D

While I do have a budget, it does allow for either 40/60/100 mains. Plus, I may move in a few years and have a larger room. So I'd like to find something that won't overpower my current cozy space, but could sound good in a larger room. I think of speakers as long term investments, unlike AVRs or displays that rapidly change with technology and I need to keep my geeky side of me happy. :)

I'm with you as far as speakers as long-term investments. I've a pair of Roger Russell designed McIntosh speakers that I purchased in 1985 that I'm still running. And I'm thrilled & amused that that pair is high in the WAF factor. My wife loves them.

Given that, I have Studio 20s as the front L/R in another system I'm running. This system is in a large & open room. The 20s fill the room fine and I've yet to add a subwoofer.

Just my opinion, but the 20s or S2s are long-term worthy contenders. Add a subwoofer and room size shouldn't be much--if any--of an issue.

The rear of my HT (aka former bedroom) is a bit oddly shaped and limit my ideal placement of rear surrounds. Currently my to-be-replaced speakers are mounted on the side and to the rear of the listening position. The Veritas speakers I currently have (and will likely replace) are bi-pole/di-pole switchable to help tune the sound.

During Audyssey correction the rear surround by the door gets a +8dB boost over the other surround due to the door (even closed) and the angled wall.

If I go with the Paradigms (Studio or Sig), for my situation is the ADP-590 or ADP1 a good choice? Or would I be better off with some other surround? As I mentioned before, the room is about 10' left to right by 12' deep.

I can't really remove the closet, which would make it easier to place the surrounds on the back wall.

Thanks!

Wow, that is an oddly shaped room... hehhehee
I would think that a set of ADP's would yield the same result as what your running now. But look at all those room treatments... excellent work...

Do you ever just use a sound meter to readjust the surround speakers.. I almost never find myself leaving the AVR to set my speakers, they always seem to be off in one manor or another.. +8db seems like alot, but I'm sure you got it right...

I'll be installing my ADP's tonight, first time I'm using them as surrounds, and will give them a run through upon finishing.. can't wait to have surrounds setup again..

I was at my local Paradigm dealer today and auditioned a pair of Studio 60's V3 with a CC570 center. I was going there to audition the Monitor Audio RS6 because I was suggested by some folks here (and friends) to go listen to this (RS6) before I commit to buy my fronts and center.

I certainly wasn't disappointed by either speaker although the Studio 60 had more detail IMHO. I can get the Studio set for roughly 300$ more than the Monitor Audio set (1500 vs 1800 Canadian) but I think than even though Paradigm came out with a new revision the Studio are a better deal. I can't audition the V4 anywhere near me alas. Should I really make a detour to go and listen to the V4 before I decide?

Always listen to as many as you can,

I agree and I went to a bunch of local dealers lately. However, I'd have to drive more than an hour to and from the closest store that has the V4 in stock. Everyone is trying to move their V3's around here. I know the V3's aren't new kids on the block and I guess part of the reason I'm not sold yet is that I have heard good things on the V4's (on this forum). Don't know if it's worth the premium though... (I can get the 60 V3 for roughly 500-700 less than the V4's - I haven't haggled for the V4 but I guess I could get them to lower the price a bit on them).

Wow, that is an oddly shaped room... hehhehee
I would think that a set of ADP's would yield the same result as what your running now. But look at all those room treatments... excellent work...

Do you ever just use a sound meter to readjust the surround speakers.. I almost never find myself leaving the AVR to set my speakers, they always seem to be off in one manor or another.. +8db seems like alot, but I'm sure you got it right...

I'll be installing my ADP's tonight, first time I'm using them as surrounds, and will give them a run through upon finishing.. can't wait to have surrounds setup again..

Yes, I have a SPL and Audyssey got it spot on for all channels...75dB on the nose.

I agree and I went to a bunch of local dealers lately. However, I'd have to drive more than an hour to and from the closest store that has the V4 in stock. Everyone is trying to move their V3's around here. I know the V3's aren't new kids on the block and I guess part of the reason I'm not sold yet is that I have heard good things on the V4's (on this forum). Don't know if it's worth the premium though... (I can get the 60 V3 for roughly 500-700 less than the V4's - I haven't haggled for the V4 but I guess I could get them to lower the price a bit on them).

The V4's are worth it, IMO. They have the tweeter from the old Sig V1's, which is a big improvement to the older v3 Studio tweeters.

But like we always say, you really do have to go and listen to them. Especially for the kind of cash you'll be paying.

That is certainly an option, and you also have less crossovers that can be said to be more difficult to manage from a design standpoint.

The S4's with the C3 are also a fantastic choice, and crossover perfectly to my Pb12-Plus in my system. But the S2's would be equally capable in that small of a room... You do not need Floorstanders in there... It would be a waste of money, plus you would more then likely get better performance and flexiblity with bookshelves... Many many people use S2's/20's and C3/cc590, depending which route you choose, and they can pound your walls down just fine..
You can always upgrade to a floorstander later if you feel you need it.
I will add, the S4's with the C3 already, get extremely loud and will fill a large area just fine, as my son reminds me to turn it down when he's listening in the Great Room to the Studio setup.. :D

So how would you compare the S2 to the S4, given I have a more than adequate sub? I'm thinking the S2/C3/ADP-590 combo might be in budget. Alternatively, the Studio 40/CC-590/ADP-590 combo is quite reasonable but I'm trying to find a good way to get the Sig line and not break the bank.

So how would you compare the S2 to the S4, given I have a more than adequate sub? I'm thinking the S2/C3/ADP-590 combo might be in budget. Alternatively, the Studio 40/CC-590/ADP-590 combo is quite reasonable but I'm trying to find a good way to get the Sig line and not break the bank.

If you are still thinking about a room upgrade in the future, I would say go with the S4's, C3 and ADP-590's... But your best bet is to go listen to the difference between the S4's and the S2's. Both will pump it out.
Any of those combinations will be winners for sure...

I just hooked up the ADP-590's with my S4, C3 combo here, and I am completely satisfied. Surround sound is fantastic, and easily matches the voicing of the Sigs here...

I've just set up my system with 3 Cinema 330's for L,C,R and 2 CS-LCR's for in ceiling rears. I'm also using the PDR-10 sub. I'm pretty happy with the system so far. I'm looking forward to some improvements when I get a new HDMI cabable reciever.

If you are still thinking about a room upgrade in the future, I would say go with the S4's, C3 and ADP-590's... But your best bet is to go listen to the difference between the S4's and the S2's. Both will pump it out.
Any of those combinations will be winners for sure...

I just hooked up the ADP-590's with my S4, C3 combo here, and I am completely satisfied. Surround sound is fantastic, and easily matches the voicing of the Sigs here...


You've been a great help! I'll drop by my local dealer this week and check them out. I'm glad to know the 590s blend well with the sigs as I can't see spending the $$ on the ADP1.

Hi - I finally got through the last 60 pages in this thread... I'm a noob, and so before I go for an audition, I'd really appreciate some advice.

I am looking for a 2-channel setup for music/movies with music being the absolute priority. My listening volume is about 12'x12'x10'. The problem is that my budget is only about $1,000-$1,200, including the AVR. I have selected the Cambridge Audio 540R V2 ($400 refurbished), which tells you right away what my priorities are: no frills, but excellent quality in whatever the device is supposed to be doing.

I'm trying to decide between Atoms, Titans, Minis, Monitor 7, or Studio 20 (pushing it).

I listen mostly to Classical music and Jazz, so I am looking for full-range speakers that can ideally reproduce pianississimos to full orchestral tutti fortississimos. I don't want to blow my ears off; the system does not have to do more, in terms of loudness, than what one would encounter in a symphony hall, and I'd be happy if it was somewhat less than that.

I realize that's a tall order and that I may not find a decent speaker set at the moment. However, I'd be perfectly happy to upgrade these fronts later and move them to the rear.

Which ones do you think would best fit the bill? Would you recommend something else altogether? Do you think I'm nuts?

Thanks a million! Best - MM


If you can stretch for the studio 20's I would do that. I just put in a home theater, but like to listen to music as well. I have a pair of V3 mini monitors upstairs which I think are great, but may need a little more umph down low for your orchestral scores, but take a listen first as you may be surprised.

In my theater room I have Monitor 9's which I liked better than the Monitor 7's. The Titans are a little boomy. 20's had a great expansive sound which would be great for orchestral music, but some think the highs can get a little shrill.

My humble opinion would say "studios" first with Monitor 9's second. Forget about the Monitor 7's and Titans. If budget is a priority go with the mini monitors. You may have a little left over for a small sub to help the low end.

Good luck and have fun.:D

I'm looking into the Monitor series, specifically the Monitor 9s and 7s. I going to my local dealer this weekend to audition them but they only have the 9s in the shop. Is there a lot of difference between these 2? Are they that much better or will the 7s suffice if paired with a sub. This is for 70/30 HT-music.

My plan is for a setup like this:
Fronts: Monitor 9/7
Center: CC-290
Surrounds: ADP-190
Sub: still in research



I pulled the trigger and bought the Monitor 9s and put in orders for the CC-290 and the ADP-190 (390s are too big for the wife).

I got the 9s for $898 and he quoted $450 for the center and $450 for the ADP pair. Are these good prices? He's the only close dealer.




I just put in a home theater and went with the 9's over the original spec'd 7's after doing an afternoon of listening at my paradigm store. Very happy with them. I like to listen to 2 channel music on occasion and these fit the bill. Unfortunately, I couldn't do the ADP's due to my room config. but am happy with the in ceiling AMS series for the side and rear surrounds.

I had room for the cc390 (the beast) and went with that. Not for the faint of heart. I have some built in cabinetry and when I pull off the grill covering the speaker people either "gasp" or say something to the effect of "I need one of those". The thing also weighs a ton!

For my sub I like the Paradigm PW 2100 even though many people say there are better out there for an equivalent price.

Food for thought anyway.:rolleyes:

Thanks wHaCkY! My local dealer only has the Minis and the monitor 9s, no 7s or Titans or Atoms. I didn't ask for Studios, so I don't know.

I listened to the Minis together with similarly spec'd Regas. I much preferred the Minis, and I think they would be fine for me. However, I am interested in the next level, just to see what the difference would be. I don't think I need a sub to supplement the Minis (for music, anyway). I'll check out the Studio 20s (if they have them) and the Monitor 9s next.

Thanks again. Best - MM

All,

Newbie to AVS & Paradigm, so pls don't flame.

I have similar, yet different questions from some of the most recent posts.

I am renovating my house and I want to put in a 7.1 HT system (almost entirely for movies). The room I am installing in is a pretty large great room -- about 4,600 cubic feet -- with 9 foot high ceilings and wood floors. There will be an alcove about 3 feet deep and 10 feet wide, and I'd like to put the AV equipment in the alcove. My wife is dying to have built-in cabinets in the alcove, but I think it will limit our AV choices.

I recently got a great deal on a cc290. So that's my starting point.

Specific questions:

1. I'm cheap, and I was thinking of using the Titan v.5s as fronts. Does anyone have experience with Titan v5s in this big of a room? Or am I crazy?

2. If I get Titans, will putting them on top of built-in cabinets completely screw them up, or do I really need to put them on dedicated stands?

3. I was thinking of also going with the Monitor 7 or 9s. From the most recent posts, it seems like the Monitor 7s should kind of be avoided. If so, anyone ever compare the Titan v.5s directly with the Monitor 9s -- will the extra $ be worth the difference? (I'm not an audiophile, nor do I play one on TV.) Furthermore, will the Monitor 9s work with the cc290 I've already bought?

4. Does it matter which sub I get with the Titans or the Monitor 9s, as long as it fills the room (which seems to be the bigger challenge)?

Thanks!

br

All,

Newbie to AVS & Paradigm, so pls don't flame.

I have similar, yet different questions from some of the most recent posts.

I am renovating my house and I want to put in a 7.1 HT system (almost entirely for movies). The room I am installing in is a pretty large great room -- about 4,600 cubic feet -- with 9 foot high ceilings and wood floors. There will be an alcove about 3 feet deep and 10 feet wide, and I'd like to put the AV equipment in the alcove. My wife is dying to have built-in cabinets in the alcove, but I think it will limit our AV choices.

I recently got a great deal on a cc290. So that's my starting point.

Specific questions:

1. I'm cheap, and I was thinking of using the Titan v.5s as fronts. Does anyone have experience with Titan v5s in this big of a room? Or am I crazy?

2. If I get Titans, will putting them on top of built-in cabinets completely screw them up, or do I really need to put them on dedicated stands?

3. I was thinking of also going with the Monitor 7 or 9s. From the most recent posts, it seems like the Monitor 7s should kind of be avoided. If so, anyone ever compare the Titan v.5s directly with the Monitor 9s -- will the extra $ be worth the difference? (I'm not an audiophile, nor do I play one on TV.) Furthermore, will the Monitor 9s work with the cc290 I've already bought?

4. Does it matter which sub I get with the Titans or the Monitor 9s, as long as it fills the room (which seems to be the bigger challenge)?

Thanks!

br



Monitor 7's and Titans should be passed on in my opinion. I listened to the mini's through monitor 9's in selecting my HT speakers and prefer the bigger range of the monitor 9's. However, I do like listening to 2 channel music as well. Your alcove is good sized so floorstanders shouldn't be a problem. How close is your seating?

The CC290 should be fine, but may I intice you to go with the cc390? I have a litter smaller alcove (about 7' x 2') and can fit it in my built in cabinets without difficulty.:cool: I had the cc290 and monitor 7's spec'd originally but I'm a sucker for bigger speakers.:(

The Titans are basically a port added to the mini monitors to extract more bass. Correct me if I'm wrong fellow comrades. So if you do the mini monitors with a sub you could save the cash on the Titans and put it towards your sub. The monitor 7's are just kind of whimpy IMHO and the 9's are just a little more money and not much bigger, but with a lot more umph. You won't need a huge amplifier to run them either. I have an Integra 5.8 with 90w/ch to 7 channels and it plays plenty loud.

I have a PW 2100 sub which is good enough for me and sounds fine. Shakes my room enough that two layers of drywall and insulation don't stop it from leaking up to my main floor when I'm listening at a respectable volume. Others here would say spend the same money and go with SVS or Velodyne, etc.

Lastly, get some rugs on that floor and a nice big comfy sofa! I got some nice rugs at overstock.com for my upstairs. (I have no connection to the aforementioned web retailer.)

I'm into long posts today...:(

All,

Newbie to AVS & Paradigm, so pls don't flame.

I have similar, yet different questions from some of the most recent posts.

I am renovating my house and I want to put in a 7.1 HT system (almost entirely for movies). The room I am installing in is a pretty large great room -- about 4,600 cubic feet -- with 9 foot high ceilings and wood floors. There will be an alcove about 3 feet deep and 10 feet wide, and I'd like to put the AV equipment in the alcove. My wife is dying to have built-in cabinets in the alcove, but I think it will limit our AV choices.

I recently got a great deal on a cc290. So that's my starting point.

Specific questions:

1. I'm cheap, and I was thinking of using the Titan v.5s as fronts. Does anyone have experience with Titan v5s in this big of a room? Or am I crazy?

2. If I get Titans, will putting them on top of built-in cabinets completely screw them up, or do I really need to put them on dedicated stands?

3. I was thinking of also going with the Monitor 7 or 9s. From the most recent posts, it seems like the Monitor 7s should kind of be avoided. If so, anyone ever compare the Titan v.5s directly with the Monitor 9s -- will the extra $ be worth the difference? (I'm not an audiophile, nor do I play one on TV.) Furthermore, will the Monitor 9s work with the cc290 I've already bought?

4. Does it matter which sub I get with the Titans or the Monitor 9s, as long as it fills the room (which seems to be the bigger challenge)?

Thanks!

br


Sounds like alot of what I went through.

I have Titans v5, atoms v5 as rears, cc290 v5, and ps1000. My Titans sit on top of my built ins - about 10 feet up. Rears are about 10 ft up. Center is right above the tv about 6ft up.

My room is huge - 20x25ish wall to wall, really open area too, not enclosed with 3 walls. My speakers are not even angled down. Ceiling height is at 12ft. I can hear everything perfectly fine and its plenty loud. Im using a Marantz 6001 for power - volume level at -20 is just right for me. Sub turned up about 1/3 the way up also.

Your center may not be enough umphhfff for what i heard out of the 9's. I would get the 390 if your going to get the 9's.

Hope this gives you an idea. I can post pics if needed. Now that i have everything setup i wish i would have gone with the Studio line.

Monitor 7's and Titans should be passed on in my opinion. I listened to the mini's through monitor 9's in selecting my HT speakers and prefer the bigger range of the monitor 9's. However, I do like listening to 2 channel music as well. Your alcove is good sized so floorstanders shouldn't be a problem. How close is your seating?

The CC290 should be fine, but may I intice you to go with the cc390? I have a litter smaller alcove (about 7' x 2') and can fit it in my built in cabinets without difficulty.:cool: I had the cc290 and monitor 7's spec'd originally but I'm a sucker for bigger speakers.:(

The Titans are basically a port added to the mini monitors to extract more bass. Correct me if I'm wrong fellow comrades. So if you do the mini monitors with a sub you could save the cash on the Titans and put it towards your sub. The monitor 7's are just kind of whimpy IMHO and the 9's are just a little more money and not much bigger, but with a lot more umph. You won't need a huge amplifier to run them either. I have an Integra 5.8 with 90w/ch to 7 channels and it plays plenty loud.

I have a PW 2100 sub which is good enough for me and sounds fine. Shakes my room enough that two layers of drywall and insulation don't stop it from leaking up to my main floor when I'm listening at a respectable volume. Others here would say spend the same money and go with SVS or Velodyne, etc.

Lastly, get some rugs on that floor and a nice big comfy sofa! I got some nice rugs at overstock.com for my upstairs. (I have no connection to the aforementioned web retailer.)

I'm into long posts today...:(

Here's hoping I can borrow your time for another long post :)

I have the following setup:
All V.4
Monitor 7's
CC370
ADP 370
PW2100
All on a Onkyo 705.

The room is 15x12x9. Now I really like the PW2100 and the ADP's. It's the monitor 7's and more importantly the CC370 which to me isn't very good. I'm about 95% HT and 5% music. During movies (DVD/HD DVD/BluRay) the center channel seems quite weak. Hooking up Sennheiser headphones HD280 gives me much more detail in dialogue, effects and so on that should be coming out of the fronts and center. There doesn't seem to be a lot of impact delivered either.

I went and spoke to my dealer and he hasn't been much help honestly. It's a small shop anyway and most of his work in fixing equipment. What would you say I should look at upgrading to for better clarity and detail? Any suggestions would be great.

...Now that i have everything setup i wish i would have gone with the Studio line.

You mean to say, you're happy with your current set-up? Or unhappy? Sounds like you're unhappy... (Just wanted to be clear.)

br

Here's hoping I can borrow your time for another long post :)

I have the following setup:
All V.4
Monitor 7's
CC370
ADP 370
PW2100
All on a Onkyo 705.

The room is 15x12x9. Now I really like the PW2100 and the ADP's. It's the monitor 7's and more importantly the CC370 which to me isn't very good. I'm about 95% HT and 5% music. During movies (DVD/HD DVD/BluRay) the center channel seems quite weak. Hooking up Sennheiser headphones HD280 gives me much more detail in dialogue, effects and so on that should be coming out of the fronts and center. There doesn't seem to be a lot of impact delivered either.

I went and spoke to my dealer and he hasn't been much help honestly. It's a small shop anyway and most of his work in fixing equipment. What would you say I should look at upgrading to for better clarity and detail? Any suggestions would be great.



Your room acoustics may have a lot to do with the poor sound quality in your HT. That may be something to check out before scrapping your current setup. Others on this site may be able to help more than I on that subject.

I have a slightly unusual setup with built in cabinetry housing my speakers and TV. The lower cabinets are for storage and my center cc390 below my new 61" Samsung LED RPTV (bad reviews in AV mags, but I love it:p). The top of the lower cabinetry is about 30" from the floor. My TV sits on top of this with cabinets housing my monitor 9's on either side. (I know floor standers up high is weird, but I have them toed in and down slightly and it works fine). This is why I went with the largest center I could to beef up the voices in music and movies since my L and R channel tweeters are up fairly high. I have in ceiling AMS side and rear surrounds and a PW 2100 for a sub.

What is your speaker arrangement and what size TV/Screen do you use? How far back is your seating? My room dimensions are about 14' wide by 18' deep with 9' ceiling up front and 7+' ceiling the back half of the room due to duct work. It works well for me. Oh, and where is your sub located? Mine is along the front R side wall about 3' from the front built ins.

Your Onkyo receiver should be just fine. I went with their Integra gear, but haven't invested in a HD DVD/BD player yet. Was thinking about Samsung's combo player, but it looks like BD wins so PS3 is in my future.:)

I haven't posted pics before on this site but I may try to fiddle with it later tonight. If you could do that it may be easier than writing novels like me.:o

I'll take some pics tonight and post em up!

You mean to say, you're happy with your current set-up? Or unhappy? Sounds like you're unhappy... (Just wanted to be clear.)

br

I am more than happy with my current setup. Just I was willing to pay more but my dealer didnt have studios at the time for me to listen. After i already purchased and get setup i had the opportunity to hear the studios..

I'm a little surprised but I have recently damaged one of the woofers of my ADP-170 surrounds. They are several years old now (V1 or V2). Does anyone have experience with going from V1 or V2 Monitor series to the V5s? I'm looking at the ADP-190s but I may say screw it and just go with the 390s. Any input would be appreciated.

BTW, if anyone cares, I damaged the woofer playing back the Atma Classics SACD of Saint-Saens Symphonie No 3 -- during one of the organ encores. Even x-over at 80 Hz, the poor little woofers were experiencing a ~1/4" excursion when listening at near to realistic noise levels.

Hey Gordo.... there are alot of dealers that will honor your purchase and allow you to upgrade to the next line, while using your original investment, within a year.. Not sure what your time frame has been, but it might be worth asking. Make sure you get your verbage correct before you ask, if you know what I mean...

Example... bought monitors and decided that you like the studio's better, your original investment of X amount of dollars remains intact, and you spend the extra money for the upgrade.

Or maybe that applies only along the same line - ie... monitor to monitor

Please anyone comment in, as I have never had to deal with this...

Your alcove is good sized so floorstanders shouldn't be a problem. How close is your seating?

The CC290 should be fine, but may I intice you to go with the cc390?

My seating will be about 10 feet away from the speakers (just measured it). It's a big room, but half the room is the dining room. Don't really care about listening while eating, but do want something appropriate for the space. There's also an open stair well in the room leading upstairs to another pretty big room. You sure the Mini Monitors will fill the room?

The floorstanders fit in the alcove just fine, but if my wife also wants to put built-in cabinets on the inside of the alcove, then we probably won't have space for the subwoofer, and it will have to be put in some place more obtrusive and trip-over-able (2 kindergarten aged kids who like to run around the house).

You could entice me to go with the cc390s, but if I'm going with the minis, then the cc390s will some like overkill, right (and then I'll also need to resell the cc290)? So your reco is cc290s/minis, or cc390s/monitor 9s, right?

br

The 290 will do well with the M9's but obviously the the 390 was made for the M9's and M11's...

The 390 is well, um, big! That said, I love mine and would have a hard time going back to a smaller one. I use mine with M11's.

It's great that you love the 390 but I am sure all previous owners of the 370 (which is a similar size to the 290) loves their matching center to their 9's (your 11's) as much as you enjoy yours.

Saying something like the "obviously the 390 was made for the ('s or 11's" is a little deceiving in my opinion. Yes, Paradigm wants you to purchase the more expensive center but both the 290 & 390 are 3 ways (or was it 3.5 ways?)? Not sure but they are similar with the only difference being the cabinet and more woofers (of which are still the same size). I think the cabinet size is why the 390 is rated to go a little lower. Anyone else also think this?

My seating will be about 10 feet away from the speakers (just measured it). It's a big room, but half the room is the dining room. Don't really care about listening while eating, but do want something appropriate for the space. There's also an open stair well in the room leading upstairs to another pretty big room. You sure the Mini Monitors will fill the room?

The floorstanders fit in the alcove just fine, but if my wife also wants to put built-in cabinets on the inside of the alcove, then we probably won't have space for the subwoofer, and it will have to be put in some place more obtrusive and trip-over-able (2 kindergarten aged kids who like to run around the house).

You could entice me to go with the cc390s, but if I'm going with the minis, then the cc390s will some like overkill, right (and then I'll also need to resell the cc290)? So your reco is cc290s/minis, or cc390s/monitor 9s, right?

br


Correct. I wouldn't pair the minis with the cc390.:eek:

Mini monitors with a sub definitely would fill your room.

If a sub would be difficult to put in your room then I would listen to the Monitor 9's and see if the bass is adequate for your application and skip the sub. If you are thinking no sub, then check out the Monitor 11's at the same time.

There are also companies that do make in wall subs, but these may be fairly expensive. Triad I think makes one, but I'm sure there are others. I have no personal experience with them.

If you are doing built in cabinetry, you could put a sub in a cabinet and cover it with grill cloth. If the WAF requires symmetry, then put your equipment behind another cabinet with matching grill cloth.:D

It's great that you love the 390 but I am sure all previous owners of the 370 (which is a similar size to the 290) loves their matching center to their 9's (your 11's) as much as you enjoy yours.

Saying something like the "obviously the 390 was made for the ('s or 11's" is a little deceiving in my opinion. Yes, Paradigm wants you to purchase the more expensive center but both the 290 & 390 are 3 ways (or was it 3.5 ways?)? Not sure but they are similar with the only difference being the cabinet and more woofers (of which are still the same size). I think the cabinet size is why the 390 is rated to go a little lower. Anyone else also think this?



I agree. One could easily pair the cc290 with the 9's. If you have the 11's I might have to go with the cc390.

The 390 has two more woofers than the 290 and also another mid range driver which is nice for listening to dialog in movies. The cabinet size and weight is definitely different. I think the cc390 is near 65 lbs.:eek:

Hey Gordo.... there are alot of dealers that will honor your purchase and allow you to upgrade to the next line, while using your original investment, within a year.. Not sure what your time frame has been, but it might be worth asking. Make sure you get your verbage correct before you ask, if you know what I mean...

Example... bought monitors and decided that you like the studio's better, your original investment of X amount of dollars remains intact, and you spend the extra money for the upgrade.

Or maybe that applies only along the same line - ie... monitor to monitor

Please anyone comment in, as I have never had to deal with this...

I talked to my dealer last week about this very thing. I bought the Studio's in November and now I'm thinking of going up to the Sig's. He offered to take back the Studio's less 10% which I thought was fair.
Not sure if this is across the board for everything.

I talked to my dealer last week about this very thing. I bought the Studio's in November and now I'm thinking of going up to the Sig's. He offered to take back the Studio's less 10% which I thought was fair.
Not sure if this is across the board for everything.


Thats does sound like a fair deal... Hope you can reach a good discount on the Sigs...

Which Sigs are you looking at...?

Thats does sound like a fair deal... Hope you can reach a good discount on the Sigs...

Which Sigs are you looking at...?

I working on a discount on the Sig's.
Right now the S4 and C3, I was not happy with the S6's he had, I think there's something wrong with them. I could tell right away we he changed to the S6's, it was like he turned the volume down.
If I go with the S6's I'll get the C5 center.
There getting in a pair of S4 this week so I can have a listen before I make a decision.
I just wonder if I'm stepping down form the 100's, 690 if I go with the S4, C3.

Correct. I wouldn't pair the minis with the cc390.

I've gotten a few personal messages saying that the Monitor 9s work fine with cc290s.

I'm pretty sure I want to get a subwoofer. I'm all up for the "bass that you can't hear, you can only feel" thing -- I mean, it is called Home Theater, after all.

If I'm definitely going to get a subwoofer, are the 9s then overkill, and just go with the mini-monitors?

Thanks!
br

I working on a discount on the Sig's.
Right now the S4 and C3, I was not happy with the S6's he had, I think there's something wrong with them. I could tell right away we he changed to the S6's, it was like he turned the volume down.
If I go with the S6's I'll get the C5 center.
There getting in a pair of S4 this week so I can have a listen before I make a decision.
I just wonder if I'm stepping down form the 100's, 690 if I go with the S4, C3.

Well if your not in a big hurry, Nuance will be coming over possibly to give you an answer to exactly that, although they will be .v1 sig S4's I think they are probably 95% of what you are looking at.

My Stands will be here possibly today for the S4's and my IcePower amp should arrive next week, and then we will be pushing comparisons between the 100's .v4 and the S4's.

Coming from the 690 to the C3, I am not feeling that I am missing anything here. The C3 is very impactful, tight, and projects extremely well. The cabinet on the Sig line is very impressive. Extremely dense as well as beautiful. I don't think the C3 wouldn't be to small for any room. If you could swing the C5 great, but I don't think its necessary.

The S4's image very well... they to me are just as powerful as the 100's, but I don't have the power backing them up right now.

OK, given all the advice (THANKS!) I think I've narrowed it down between the Monitor 9s and the Mini-monitors.

I have found a pair of Monitor 9s that are 5 years old (v.1 or v.2?). (1) would I be crazy trying to match that with a brand new cc290? Or would I be safer going with a brand new Mini Monitor? (In other words, how much have the monitors really changed over the past 5 versions?)

Also, any thoughts on a what a reasonable price would be for 5 year old Monitor 9s?

br

OK, given all the advice (THANKS!) I think I've narrowed it down between the Monitor 9s and the Mini-monitors.

I have found a pair of Monitor 9s that are 5 years old (v.1 or v.2?). (1) would I be crazy trying to match that with a brand new cc290? Or would I be safer going with a brand new Mini Monitor? (In other words, how much have the monitors really changed over the past 5 versions?)

Also, any thoughts on a what a reasonable price would be for 5 year old Monitor 9s?

br


If you have a brand new cc290 v.5 and v.5 Monitor 9's are out of budget I would get v.5 mini monitors. The monitor series got an upgrade with either v.4 or v.5 so you may notice a difference between older 9's and your cc290. I never made the comparison personally, but others on the thread likely have. If you are going to get a sub the mini's should do just fine. It will also make placement in some built in cabinetry easier.

My v.3 mini's on my main floor can play very loud without distortion and sound great.

Well if your not in a big hurry, Nuance will be coming over possibly to give you an answer to exactly that, although they will be .v1 sig S4's I think they are probably 95% of what you are looking at.

My Stands will be here possibly today for the S4's and my IcePower amp should arrive next week, and then we will be pushing comparisons between the 100's .v4 and the S4's.

Coming from the 690 to the C3, I am not feeling that I am missing anything here. The C3 is very impactful, tight, and projects extremely well. The cabinet on the Sig line is very impressive. Extremely dense as well as beautiful. I don't think the C3 wouldn't be to small for any room. If you could swing the C5 great, but I don't think its necessary.

The S4's image very well... they to me are just as powerful as the 100's, but I don't have the power backing them up right now.

I'm aleast 1 - 2 weeks out from pulling the trigger, so any input would be appreciated. I'm waiting to hear the S4's
Have you or are you going to hook the S4 and C3 up to your main system using the Rotel to power them?

I agree. One could easily pair the cc290 with the 9's. If you have the 11's I might have to go with the cc390.

The 390 has two more woofers than the 290 and also another mid range driver which is nice for listening to dialog in movies. The cabinet size and weight is definitely different. I think the cc390 is near 65 lbs.:eek:

I personally think the cc290 will go well with the 11's. The older versions had the 350 & 370 (which are both pretty similar to the 290) go with the 9's (which are now basically the 11's). I am sure previous users loved that setup just as much.

If you have a brand new cc290 v.5 and v.5 Monitor 9's are out of budget I would get v.5 mini monitors. The monitor series got an upgrade with either v.4 or v.5 so you may notice a difference between older 9's and your cc290. I never made the comparison personally, but others on the thread likely have. If you are going to get a sub the mini's should do just fine. It will also make placement in some built in cabinetry easier.

My v.3 mini's on my main floor can play very loud without distortion and sound great.
That is a good question. Would the older Mon 9's (with the 8 inch woofers - which are now the Mon 11's) be a good enough match with the new cc290. According to Paradigm, they should match but in reality, maybe users who have this setup can shed some light on things.

I'm aleast 1 - 2 weeks out from pulling the trigger, so any input would be appreciated. I'm waiting to hear the S4's
Have you or are you going to hook the S4 and C3 up to your main system using the Rotel to power them?

Yes, but I was waiting on my stands to come...

the C3 will be harder work into my main system but I will try, I also want to A/B the IcePower 500W Amp with the Rotel 200W Amp..

Unforturnately I will be leaving town on the 14th, and I'm not sure If I will be able to get Nuance over before then for the run through....

We'll have to see how things go...

Does anyone out there have an extra wall mount they aren't using that came with a Cinema 330? I am in need of one as I only currently have two, but plan on mounting my center 330 as well. Thanks!

Hey guys,
Looking for a set of Studio 40's/CC570 to buy or trade w/cash for my Studio 20 V.3...if anyone has a set sitting around collecting dust I'd be happy to haul them off for you.

Thanks,

Hey pottscb...

http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrmoni&1208148569

search audiogon for used paradigm or even ebay

Hey all,

Thanks for reading this first off. I was getting hungry to do a little upgrade in the sound department...this is my current setup:
Front L/R - Focus V3
Center - CC270 V3
Sub - Old rappy one
Rears R/C/L - Yamaha's...not great but they sound ok.
Receiver - Onkyo TSXR502

As you can see its not an amazing setup, but its the best I could afford.

Last night I went to my local Sound shop and put a downpayment on

1) New Fronts - Monitor 9 V5
2) Sub - DSP3100

1) Will the monitor 9's blend ok with my current center V3? I really didn't want to have to buy a new center too.

2) Because 95% of my time is movies vs music..am I better off to just get the sub, keep my fronts and center the same and upgrade the rears to the adp190's?

3) Or get the monitor 7's, CC190, and the DSP3100. I really liked the way the 9's sounded but they do cost $200 more than the 7's. Maybe the 9's are overkill for what I need...considering my amp will probably set them to "small" for movies.

So....what should I do guys? What do you think would give me the best bang for the buck while improving my sound? My theater is downstairs and the room is about 16' x 12'....I don't need crazy bass, but I would like it as an option.

Thanks so much for your input!!!

Jeremy

The monitor 9's look awesome. They seem reminiscent of earlier Studio models. Every new v. looks more and more familiar. . . you're gonna love um.

What's your sub budget? You can do a lot better then Paradigm for music. For HT they don't suck.

DN

Hey thanks for the reply. I was going to get the DSP3100 for $400 CDN, which I though was pretty good. The monitor 9's were $799. Pretty good deal I thought.

I had a thought...if I was to buy the monitor 9's and the sub, would it sound good if I moved my focus to the rear?

My main concern though is introducing the monitor 9's because of the V5 vs my current V3's. Will that sound ok?

Thanks,

Jeremy

I was just wondering if anybody here has been able to listen to the B&W 683s and the Paradigm studio 100s. Looking to see what yours thoughts of them were. Thanks

Jeremy, looks like you are ready to drop $1100 bucks to upgrade your system. If it was me, I would keep you cc270 and rears and consider smaller satellite speakers + a better sub. Have you checked out some of the other subs out there like HSU? If you can pick one of these up, I would suggest doing that over the Paradigm that you have selected. Reason being, there are some reports that the newer Paradigm subs are not as good as the old ones. This may or may not be a true indication but it is showing up here and there. Then wait to upgrade your fronts to Mini Monitors if you cannot afford it now. That is what I would do. I think the the Mini's would do well for music and HT when backed by a good sub. I also think the Mini's + your 270 would work well. It may not match 100% but it would be same if you picked up the Mon 7's or 9's since they are the same versions as the new Mini's right?

Not to throw you another scenario to consider but knowing what I know now today and knowing what I know (& own) about Paradigms, I would at least consider this in your journey of the upgrade highway.

I was just wondering if anybody here has been able to listen to the B&W 683s and the Paradigm studio 100s. Looking to see what yours thoughts of them were. Thanks

Hey there ace27....

Personally IMO as well others stated over the time I have been here, that to me the B&W's are very nice speakers but are overpriced for what you get, and Paradigm is starting to creep into that same perception for me as well. With that said, when I was on my journey for speakers, and had settled in towards the Studio 100 I felt that I would have to jump all the way up to the 800 series to get the kind of performance that the 100's offer, ie. sound quality, tightness, low fr. extension. Even comparing them even to the 703, I thought the 100 definately had the edge in SQ, but the cabinets on those B&W's are where you are paying the premium here...

My last number of speaker purchases have been used from Audiogon, or online with no warrantee, which to me is worth the extra savings, and I couldn't be happier. got my Sig S4's, and C3 for a bargain, even cheaper then a new set of Studios. Nothing better to me then Bang for the Buck...

I'm making a great room (30 x 16 x 9) into a HT (almost 100% movies). I have already decided on the Paradigm Monitor 9s and cc290 for front and center, and I'm now contemplating sides/surrounds.

I have small kids running around, and because the great room is also a dining room, I need the speakers to be at least ceiling mounted (as long as they pass the wife test), if not in-ceiling. I would love to do the dipole thing, but it doesn't look like the ADP-190s are really meant to be ceiling mounted. So 2 questions:

(1) If I'm going to go up to the ceiling, is ceiling mounted significantly better than in-ceiling? If yes, can you recommend a good ceiling-mountable speaker that will be compatible with the Paradigm system I have?

(2) If there's no difference between in-ceiling and ceiling mounted, then for aesthetic purposes, I may as well go in-ceiling. With in-ceilings, do I really need to stick with Paradigms, or can/should I turn elsewhere (e.g., are the tweeters aimable with Paradigm in-ceilings)? If you strongly recommend sticking with Paradigm, what would be the cheapest in-ceiling that would be reasonably compatible with the cc290 and monitor 9s? (It seems like, if you're going in-ceiling, it's such a compromise that it almost doesn't matter which paradigm speaker you get.)

Thanks,
br

I'm thinking of adding Studio 20 v4 surrounds to my 5.1 setup and was wondering if it is really worthwhile. Currently I am using Sonus Faber Concertos for my surrounds. I know timbre matching the fronts and center is important however I'm not sure if the surrounds would make that much of a difference. The Sonus Fabers seem to do a good job. Any recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks.

Dennis

Jeremy, looks like you are ready to drop $1100 bucks to upgrade your system. If it was me, I would keep you cc270 and rears and consider smaller satellite speakers + a better sub. Have you checked out some of the other subs out there like HSU? If you can pick one of these up, I would suggest doing that over the Paradigm that you have selected. Reason being, there are some reports that the newer Paradigm subs are not as good as the old ones. This may or may not be a true indication but it is showing up here and there. Then wait to upgrade your fronts to Mini Monitors if you cannot afford it now. That is what I would do. I think the the Mini's would do well for music and HT when backed by a good sub. I also think the Mini's + your 270 would work well. It may not match 100% but it would be same if you picked up the Mon 7's or 9's since they are the same versions as the new Mini's right?

Not to throw you another scenario to consider but knowing what I know now today and knowing what I know (& own) about Paradigms, I would at least consider this in your journey of the upgrade highway.

I couldn't agree with you more.

While not the imperious guru of surround sound configurations, IMHO among the most significant additions you can make to any HT system is the subwoofer.

Maintaining brand matching for the primary and sub is absolutely unnecessary for the most part. I have stated more than once on this forum, Paradigm subs no longer figure in the equation. In Fact, recent subwoofer tests and play offs, they don't even make the middle of the pack in overall ratings and haven't for some years!!!!

Putting aside the mega subs such as JL Labs, Velodyne and Thiel which are out of the $$league of most buyers; the new crop of subs from companies such as SVS, AV123, EPIK and HSU are blowing away much of the old guard sub makers. Best yet, their doing it in the $600-$700 price point using mail order to keep costs down and quality construction, design very high. these models give new life to earlier versions of Paradigm and KEF to name a couple.

Take a trip over to the Official Craigsub rankings page right here in the forum and see for yourself. AV123 has 2 models for $600 in the top ten. All other speakers are in the $1000+ range. and NOT a single Paradigm is among them.....:eek:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=9164136#post9164136

Focus speakers are a dated design and maybe keep them around for 7.1 plans you may have. I have the good fortune of having two systems, One for the family comprised of Atoms v5 Front & Rear, CC290 v5 center and Snell Basis 300 sub driven by Yamaha RX-v2700 via Kimber 8TC & 4TC cables.

The second systems is Titans V5 front, cc290 center, Mini v5 rear driven by a Denon 4806Ci via Kimber 8TC & 4TC and the addition of a AV123 MFW-15 sub.
This system has been made dramatically better because of the sub which is almost flat down to 20hz. Trust me, thre are many 20hz signals in the LFE channels!

The mini monitors will mesh fairly well with the CC270 as long as you keep them away from the back wall (rear ported) or use the Atoms. Both speakers are extremely musical and can play accurately at loud levels (within reason- NOT 110 db!) in a home setup.

I'm thinking of adding Studio 20 v4 surrounds to my 5.1 setup and was wondering if it is really worthwhile. Currently I am using Sonus Faber Concertos for my surrounds. I know timbre matching the fronts and center is important however I'm not sure if the surrounds would make that much of a difference. The Sonus Fabers seem to do a good job. Any recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks.

Dennis

If the sound does not sound altered when its paned around the room and
you don't listen to multi-channel music then it may not be cost effective
but for me i have to have all speakers from the same family.

Good one Gino... One point I will make, is that the Paradigm Servo .v2 sub is an amazing contender put up against the likes of all those ID brands listed in the performance and SQ dept., but like he said, just can't compete with the ID brands in the price dept. Bang for the Buck goes to ID, but if money is no object - well then the doors wide open, and there are tons of things to choose from.

YMMV

I couldn't agree with you more.
Thanks gino. Good recommendation on the Atoms as alternatives to the Mini's. The Atoms are one of my all time favorite speakers (at this price point, I am not sure anything can beat it).

Let's see if Jeremy replies.

Update-

I just went to my dealer to work on a quote. I asked for:
2 x S6
1 x C5
2 x ADP1 (side)
2 x S1 (rear)
1 x P5

He gave me that quote, but he really thinks I should be going with the ADP3's and S2's instead. So he gave me a better discount to make the price virtually the same on:

2 x S6
1 x C5
2 x ADP3 (side)
2 x S2 (rear)
1 x P5

Then, I noticed that they were running the A5, not P5 is their setup (and the one that I spent a lot of time listening to and comparing speakers against). I know the P5 will be at least as good as the A5, but now I'm wondering if I even need the P5? It is a really nice amp, with mono-blocks for each speaker, and slightly better specs all around. But is it 2-3K better? He gave me another quote with the higher discount, but with the A5 instead of the P5 (about $2500 difference, discounted).

Who am I kidding... I'll probably end up with the P5... why skimp on the amp when I'm spending so much on speakers...

Any opinions on the A5 v. P5?

Update-

I just went to my dealer to work on a quote. I asked for:
2 x S6
1 x C5
2 x ADP1 (side)
2 x S1 (rear)
1 x P5

He gave me that quote, but he really thinks I should be going with the ADP3's and S2's instead. So he gave me a better discount to make the price virtually the same on:

2 x S6
1 x C5
2 x ADP3 (side)
2 x S2 (rear)
1 x P5

Then, I noticed that they were running the A5, not P5 is their setup (and the one that I spent a lot of time listening to and comparing speakers against). I know the P5 will be at least as good as the A5, but now I'm wondering if I even need the P5? It is a really nice amp, with mono-blocks for each speaker, and slightly better specs all around. But is it 2-3K better? He gave me another quote with the higher discount, but with the A5 instead of the P5 (about $2500 difference, discounted).

Who am I kidding... I'll probably end up with the P5... why skimp on the amp when I'm spending so much on speakers...

Any opinions on the A5 v. P5?

That thought of i could of had a p5 is going to nag at you,if i were going
separates the p5 would be on my list or Parasound Halo.

Both are fantastic amps, I think one would really be pressed to hear a sonic difference between the two, but thats just me... Both should supply your speakers with ample amount of power, and it has been said many many times, that you would have to double the amount of power to only benefit - what 3 or was it 6 db in SPL...

The P5 is built to far better specifications, but I'm not sure whether its worth it to spend that much additional money on it..

Not worth 2-3K more in my book.

You should be spending the vast amount of money on your speakers, and electronics are far less of a variable in SQ, IMO...

Both amps will provide a stable amount of power for all channels, and you would likely not need the extra HP from the P5.

I went with the IcePower at 500 x 3 and 250 x 2 as its been getting rave reviews, but the price was far better then anything in its league... YMMV

Any opinions on the A5 v. P5?

Have you checked out the ICEpower amps by Wyred4sound.com or D-Sonic? I've heard they pair nicely with the Signature speakers.

For sure.... If you already know that the Sigs dip low and below 4 ohms, how about 500W that doubles down to 1000w at 4 ohms.. :D
Oh and lets not forget that Ice Power is far more effecient, and doesn't serve as a room heater to boot..
I can't wait to see what that will benefit me, if any... In my puny room... :)
but I will tell ya, It will be a far cry from the Cr@ppy amp section in my Pioneer receiver I got until a PreAmp of quality comes out that does what I need it to do...

I'll post it again though.... seriously heavy hitting players in the High End market putting out IcePower amps.. for really big money.. and using the exact same B&O modules as the D-Sonic amps..
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICEpower


I don't think you can go wrong with either of your choices, A5, P5, there are good deals to be had on Parasound A51's at Audiogon You could also look at Earthquake Cinenova Grande Five (http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_11_4/earthquake-cinenova-grande-power-amplifier-10-2004.html), another serious power house, which gets great reviews, and can be had for $2K 300W 8ohms, 600W at 4ohms...

Definitely not the prettiest looking thing I have ever seen either, but pound it will.
We used one of those at my SE Wisconsin GTG... freakin heavy...

AbMagFab,
I agree with Oztech, it'll be in the back of your head everytime you turn it on, I should have went with the P5.

Hi guys,

I'm in the market for a bookshelf speaker pair and my original choice was clearanced out and discontinued before I could hop on them (Boston Acoustic CR67). I heard them and sounded really good. Amongst more research I finally decided to give the Paradigm Atom line a shot. Just got back from 6th ave (apparently the only place I can get Paradigm in the US :confused:) and I LOVED the way it sounded. I asked the salesman to compare them to a similar Deftech, KEF and other lines they carry and frankly, the Paradigm's just sounded crisper, cleaner, and clearer. I figured for the time being this will be perfect for the room I'm going to use them and eventually when I move/buy a home I will upgrade to their towers and center channel. I have an Onkyo 605 on queue to order and was going to utilze only a 2.0 setup for now (room is too small for anything worthy or big).

Is there any other place I can get Paradigm? Like online? I might just jump on these for the time being and eventually move them to rear surrounds when I upgrade... the house ;)

What compares to the Atom line? They had the Titan line which sounded good too but it's bigger than what I want.

Hi guys,

I'm in the market for a bookshelf speaker pair and my original choice was clearanced out and discontinued before I could hop on them (Boston Acoustic CR67). I heard them and sounded really good. Amongst more research I finally decided to give the Paradigm Atom line a shot. Just got back from 6th ave (apparently the only place I can get Paradigm in the US :confused:) and I LOVED the way it sounded. I asked the salesman to compare them to a similar Deftech, KEF and other lines they carry and frankly, the Paradigm's just sounded crisper, cleaner, and clearer. I figured for the time being this will be perfect for the room I'm going to use them and eventually when I move/buy a home I will upgrade to their towers and center channel. I have an Onkyo 605 on queue to order and was going to utilze only a 2.0 setup for now (room is too small for anything worthy or big).

Is there any other place I can get Paradigm? Like online? I might just jump on these for the time being and eventually move them to rear surrounds when I upgrade... the house ;)

What compares to the Atom line? They had the Titan line which sounded good too but it's bigger than what I want.
Dealer only but you can enter different zip codes in the dealer locator on the paradigm site and it will
show other surrounding dealers, good luck.

Hey Guys,

Thanks so much for your input. This is what I decided. For now, I am going to keep my focus and cc270. I went after work tonight and picked up a pair of adp190's and the dsp3100. I appreciate your recommendations on the other subs....but when I heard this sub at the store it blew my socks off! I was really impressed, it is leaps and bounds ahead of the crappy sub its replacing.

In the next 6-12 months I think what I will do is take a peak at the mini monitors, or the titan monitors and a new center cc190.

Thanks and I will let you know what I think of the sub when I get it hooked up....tomorrow night hopefully!

Jeremy

Plan on buying new Paradigm speakers for HT. Just got a Marantz 7002 and plan on buying monitor 9's for fronts, cc390 center, and either atoms for the rears or adp390's with an MFW-15 sub.

What surround speakers do you think would go best with my system. My couch is on the back wall so the surround speakers will be mounted on the wall.

I'm thinking about upgrading my cc-170 to a cc-290 to pair up with my monitor 9 v4 and mini atom v5. Are the v4 monitor 9's a good match with the cc-290?

Warpdrv: What made you go with the Icepower Amps? I've never heard of them and was checking out their website and they seem like an awesome value. Do you have any links to any reviews on their amps? Also, why are you going with 500 wpc for the front three speakers? Do the Paradigms really require that much power? Thanks!

Ok, for those of you in the know. How does the Studio CC690 center speaker compare to the Signature C5? For me, the Center speaker is the determining factor in what I will go with because of its high importance in a home theater system.

I'm trying to justify getting pretty much the same system that Abmagfab is looking at, but the price is pretty steep and I'm going to need some justification to jump up to that price level.

I very much want the Signature line with the S8's, C5, etc but list price for just those three speakers is almost $10,000.

With all the things that the center speaker handles in movies (dialogue, sound effects, etc.) I want a center speaker that is a total superstar component. But if the C5 is not that much more impressive than the CC690, then I'm going to have to seriously re-evaluate the Signatures.

Also, I'm still wanting to find out how the bass on the Signature S8's compare to the Studio 100 v4's for those of you who have had the chance to audition and compare them. Thanks!

Warpdrv: What made you go with the Icepower Amps? I've never heard of them and was checking out their website and they seem like an awesome value. Do you have any links to any reviews on their amps? Also, why are you going with 500 wpc for the front three speakers? Do the Paradigms really require that much power? Thanks!


I think that Ice Power amps will continue to become more and more mainstream... they are not new to the industry by any means here, very efficient.

Here is some thoughts of the ASP1000 module from B&O... http://www.6moons.com/industryfeatures/icepower/icepower.html
Remeber, Bang and Olufsen designs and builds the modules and companies put them basically untouched into their enclosure. So there is not really any change to the product by anyone, they just stick it into an enclosure and market it, some are really expensive and some are reasonable. I chose D-Sonic for the price, and the setup...
500 x 3 and 250 x 2 for rears... They just put it all in a package and add connections, inputs, outputs...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ICEpower

As far as reviews, just figure out what the name of the product is from each of those really really big name companies and search for reveiws that way.

Search google for IcePower

Do the Paradigms need that much power... No.. but what the hell, if you got it flaunt it.. It was worth it for the price...
Rotel sells a 2 channel older version of those modules for over $2K...., in fact they have quite a repertoire of Class D amps, which seems to keep growing. Now if all these companies are just doing this plug and play, what could possibly be different from one amp to another...

There are members here that are selling their 5-10K amps and buying these, why..? Whether they be the D-Sonic, or the Jeff Roland, BelCanto, Red Dragon... Whats the difference, if they just throw the same modules into the a case and slap it together...?

Have a look around..

Ok, for those of you in the know. How does the Studio CC690 center speaker compare to the Signature C5? For me, the Center speaker is the determining factor in what I will go with because of its high importance in a home theater system.

I'm trying to justify getting pretty much the same system that Abmagfab is looking at, but the price is pretty steep and I'm going to need some justification to jump up to that price level.

I very much want the Signature line with the S8's, C5, etc but list price for just those three speakers is almost $10,000.

With all the things that the center speaker handles in movies (dialogue, sound effects, etc.) I want a center speaker that is a total superstar component. But if the C5 is not that much more impressive than the CC690, then I'm going to have to seriously re-evaluate the Signatures.

Also, I'm still wanting to find out how the bass on the Signature S8's compare to the Studio 100 v4's for those of you who have had the chance to audition and compare them. Thanks!

There's really no objective information to push you one way or the other. For me, listening to the speakers, there was a huge improvement in sound from the Studio v4 to Sig v2 line. And for me, it's worth the price jump, but for others it might not be. The CC690 was great, but the C5 is just amazing.

In terms of bass, the S8's are at least as capable as the 100's, and IMO they are more capable. The S8's are an amazing speaker, especially for 2-channel music. The only negative is that if you are going to use them mostly for HT, you might get some competition between the S8's and your sub (and placement is an issue with the S8's since they are rear ported).

Both are fantastic amps, I think one would really be pressed to hear a sonic difference between the two, but thats just me... Both should supply your speakers with ample amount of power, and it has been said many many times, that you would have to double the amount of power to only benefit - what 3 or was it 6 db in SPL...

The P5 is built to far better specifications, but I'm not sure whether its worth it to spend that much additional money on it..

Not worth 2-3K more in my book.

You should be spending the vast amount of money on your speakers, and electronics are far less of a variable in SQ, IMO...

Both amps will provide a stable amount of power for all channels, and you would likely not need the extra HP from the P5.

I went with the IcePower at 500 x 3 and 250 x 2 as its been getting rave reviews, but the price was far better then anything in its league... YMMV

Well, I'm already spending a chunk of change on speakers, not sure what more I could spend on them?

And the P5 just seems like an amazing amp. Probably overkill, but I also probably won't ever need to replace it, just perhaps augment it (with a P2 or something else).

For now I'll use my 905 for the 2 or 4 other channels (depending on whether I passively bi-amp the fronts or not), and the 905 as my pre-pro.

Of course, that D2 sure looks like a nice pre-pro, but at $7K list, it seems a little steep!

I'll be ordering this afternoon - anyone have any strong advice one way or the other on the P5 vs. A5?

Well, I'm already spending a chunk of change on speakers, not sure what more I could spend on them?

And the P5 just seems like an amazing amp. Probably overkill, but I also probably won't ever need to replace it, just perhaps augment it (with a P2 or something else).

For now I'll use my 905 for the 2 or 4 other channels (depending on whether I passively bi-amp the fronts or not), and the 905 as my pre-pro.

Of course, that D2 sure looks like a nice pre-pro, but at $7K list, it seems a little steep!

I'll be ordering this afternoon - anyone have any strong advice one way or the other on the P5 vs. A5?

Sweet setup your getting. :D
If you can afford the P5 then that's the one to get, I would if I could.;)
I'm looking at getting the A5 & A2 this weekend if I can work a deal. I trying to save enough $$ to also upgrade to the Sigs.
I can't wait to hear your thoughts after you get it all hooked up.

That P5 is a monster of an amp... wish I could afford one... You'll be very happy with it, everyone is... Extremely solid build and performance... Definitely between that and the Parasound A51, you couldn't go wrong, both are very close.

Good luck at the dealer buddy... hope it all goes smoothly, sounds like the dealer has worked things out with you, and will be a great asset for the future.
Nothing worse then a dealer that isn't flexible or willing to work with the customer, I'm glad you got a good one. :)

Hi all -

Am thinking of this as my movie crossover settings. All speakers set to 'small':

Studio 100 (front L/R): 60 Hz
CC-590: 80 Hz
ADP-590 (side surrounds): 120 Hz
Studio 20 (rear surrounds): 80 Hz

The ADP-590's are my biggest question ... -2dB at 85Hz but only 60Hz DIN extension ... one octave above that is 120Hz. But then how is spatial localization of upper-bass surround material affected?

Sub is Hsu VTF-3 MK3 + turbo. BTW, music/2-ch material uses only Studio 100's, in 'bypass' mode/sub off ...

Thanks in advance for advice -

- Ian Campbell

Hi all -

Am thinking of this as my movie crossover settings. All speakers set to 'small':

Studio 100 (front L/R): 60 Hz
CC-590: 80 Hz
ADP-590 (side surrounds): 120 Hz
Studio 20 (rear surrounds): 80 Hz

The ADP-590's are my biggest question ... -2dB at 85Hz but only 60Hz DIN extension ... one octave above that is 120Hz. But then how is spatial localization of upper-bass surround material affected?

Sub is Hsu VTF-3 MK3 + turbo. BTW, music/2-ch material uses only Studio 100's, in 'bypass' mode/sub off ...

Thanks in advance for advice -

- Ian Campbell

Audyssey (on my Onkyo 805 receiver) determined my cross-over settings as 80hz for my ADP-590s. I leave it at that. I think one run it set it a 90hz. But generally, consistely, Audyssey is telling me to set them at 80hz.

Sounds great.

Weirdly, Audyssey always puts my Atoms (rear surrounds) at 60hz. I raise that to 80hz though from what Audyssey says.

Agreed.... 80 hz works perfectly for the ADP's... I believe they were designed with the THX crossover implementation in mind, and they work flawlessly in that regard. You are lucky that you have a receiver that allows you the flexibility to change the x-over on individual speakers...

BTW, Dam fine looking room you have there, I am very jealous, I wish I could have a dedicated room like that. Nice job...

Have you considered Acoustic Panels at all...? Could really enhance your in room acoustics... :)

Agreed.... 80 hz works perfectly for the ADP's... I believe they were designed with the THX crossover implementation in mind, and they work flawlessly in that regard. You are lucky that you have a receiver that allows you the flexibility to change the x-over on individual speakers...

BTW, Dam fine looking room you have there, I am very jealous, I wish I could have a dedicated room like that. Nice job...

Have you considered Acoustic Panels at all...? Could really enhance your in room acoustics... :)

Yes, that's my next addition. I will be adding some bass traps and some panels likely from http://www.gikacoustics.com/ after tax refund money comes in.

Please help! I am trying to decide between the adp390's and the atoms as my surround speakers.

My fronts are monitor 9's, center is cc-390 and mfw-15 sub.

Receiver is marantz sr7002. Thanks for the help.

For sides or rears or both... Size of room would be helpful....

For sides or rears or both... Size of room would be helpful....

It will be for a 5.1 system. My room size is 19x14x10. Sorry for not clarifying that Warpdrv. I am very new to this.

I assume that your tv will be on one end of the 19' long dimension, and that makes your room 14' wide... correct me if Im wrong here.. If thats the case, its not a very wide room and you might best be served with ADP's on the side. They will provide you a more disperse sound environment.

If your room is really wide you can use direct radiating speakers like the atoms...

the room is 19 wide

I assume that your tv will be on one end of the 19' long dimension, and that makes your room 14' wide... correct me if Im wrong here.. If thats the case, its not a very wide room and you might best be served with ADP's on the side. They will provide you a more disperse sound environment.

If your room is really wide you can use direct radiating speakers like the atoms...

the tv is on the wall that is 19 feet wide. My couch is on the back wall around 14 feet from the tv. I thought I would have to mount the speakers on the side walls that are 14 feet long about level with my couch.

Well then you could run it either way... but if your side speakers are quite a distance from you, then maybe the Atoms would be better... mounted above your head a couple to a few ft, and then aimed or angled downward to just over your head. Especially if your couch is up against the back wall...

Thats pretty much the situation I have in my great room, where the side speakers are a little farther from the Listening Position (LP). The direct firing at a distance work great.

thank you I really appreciate your help.

cward76, get your couch a few feet off the back wall, it will help the sound quality a lot.

Hi all -

Am thinking of this as my movie crossover settings. All speakers set to 'small':

Studio 100 (front L/R): 60 Hz
CC-590: 80 Hz
ADP-590 (side surrounds): 120 Hz
Studio 20 (rear surrounds): 80 Hz



Set everything to 80 Hz...trust me you won't be wasting the 100s by running them at 80 Hz and it will provide a consistent bass management experience.

Wall mount of the Studio 20's is the B-Tech BT77
http://www.btech-usa.com/bt77.html

Don't even think about using something else... they don't work. I found out the hard way... ;)

Warp - These say they do a max of 13" depth, but my S2's are 14". It looks like there is no real physical limitation, since they are side-clamped, but what do you think would happen with a 14" speaker? The weight of the S2 is half what the bracket is rated for, so that should be fine.

I could always screw an additional base onto the bracket if the issue is the speaker being more than half-way off the front of it?

I really need to order these tonight so I can have them ready for my speakers next week! Help!

They shouldn't be any different then the studio 20's that I have them mounted on..

I don't see any other option out there then the B-Tech's... they should work ok for what you have with the S2's... I guess it depends on how you put them on the mounts. Mine are turned almost sideways mounted on the wall... so back or depth distance isn't an issue for me... if you are pointing the straight forward from the wall, I would have to do some measuring for you... I still think they would work....

I also implemented a safety measure screwed into the bottom that clamps the speakers to the bottom of the B-Tech's.. I'll have to take pics of them and describe what I did for you, just getting a little late for me tonight to do that...

I take it you ordered your speakers... what did you all end up with buddy...?

They shouldn't be any different then the studio 20's that I have them mounted on..

I don't see any other option out there then the B-Tech's... they should work ok for what you have with the S2's... I guess it depends on how you put them on the mounts. Mine are turned almost sideways mounted on the wall... so back or depth distance isn't an issue for me... if you are pointing the straight forward from the wall, I would have to do some measuring for you... I still think they would work....

I also implemented a safety measure screwed into the bottom that clamps the speakers to the bottom of the B-Tech's.. I'll have to take pics of them and describe what I did for you, just getting a little late for me tonight to do that...

I take it you ordered your speakers... what did you all end up with buddy...?


The S2's are about 1.5-inches deeper than the 20's, at least according to the spec sheets on the Paradgm website. The brackets say up to 13", the S2's are 14", and the 20's are just under 13".

If you could take pictures and describe what you did that would be great! I'll order the mounts now, and figure I can do something to make them work. The weight is the biggest issue, the base support I should be able to make work.

Yup, ordered this afternoon:

- Sig 6's for the FR/FL
- Sig C5 center
- Sig 2's for the rears
- Sig ADP3's for the sides
- Anthem Statement P5 for the fronts (passive bi-amped) and center

What the heck... At least I know for sure I won't regret anything... If I got the A5 I'd always wonder...

And if the anti-passive-bi-amp folks are right, and it makes no difference, I'll probably power the ADP's or S2's with the A5 also, and then power the remaining pair with the 905 only.

He said nothing is backordered, so he should be able to deliver by mid-next week. Although I'm going out of town next weekend, so that would kinda stink - to get them here, then leave...

My stage is pretty much built, I'm staring at it now with sand in the base, leveled off. Just letting it dry for a couple days, to be safe, before putting the top on. I also need to grab a neighbor or two to help me carry the top down from the garage (2 glued sheets of 3/4" MDF are very heavy).

I can't wait! Next I need some sort of acoustic paneling... No idea where to start there. I'd rather take a try myself before paying someone too much money to come in and put a couple panels up.

I'll take some pics tomorrow, and post them for you... I think the b-techs will be fine for what your doing, they are flexible on the clamping scenario... you will be fine, especially with the way I protected them with the bottom clamp method thing...

simple but it works great...

Sell the V3's while their still in demand and Buy the V4's (reverse that order) this way you taek your time and sell at a good price, not a fire sale.

Paradigm tends to keep model series for 24-36 mos. Sigs are v2, soon to change, Monitors are V5 -New, Studios V4 are -New.

If you like accuracy of sonics avoid the ADP series as they smear the sound and make music diffuse. If your doing strictly movies and TV, then go for it as they do place a nice soundfield , though not necessarily musically and sonically accurate. The same holds true for most bi-polar speakers IMHO.


Gino,

Did the v2 Sigs not come out just a few short months ago? :confused:

Help me lads!

I'm pretty much set to buy my speakers this weekend. I'm going back to my dealer tonite and may get back home with speakers or will pull the trigger this weekend.

I'm trying to decide between Paradigm 60 V3 + (edit)CC570 or Monitor Audio RS6 + RSLCR. Although different, I loved the sound of both. I'll drive this with an Onkyo 705, maybe go for external amps later although I'm really not sure when so I'd love to use them directly with the amp. The Studio set is 250-300$ more expensive but at that point it doesn't change much. It's 300$ I could spend more on a sub later on though. Room is 12 x 18.

I know it's silly of me to ask, and it's probably insecurity and wanting someone to help in deciding what I should decide for myself but I'm really not an expert although I plan on fiddling a lot more with audio in the coming months (acoustics of the room, etc.) so I want to make an enlightened decision also. I'm a bit worried about the V3 since I may not be able to buy surrounds later on since this is already a discontinued line. Also, I don't know why, but it bugs me just a bit to buy something that is discontinued...

Hi Flash,

While I am not an audiophile, I have been (still am) a huge fan of Paradigm speakers. During the last few years, I have gone from Mini Monitors to Monitors 7's to Monitor 9's and now to Studio 20's (v3). I cannot tell you whether to go with the new Monitors or the Studios in terms of price or sound...that is inherently up to you and your ears/wallet. What I can state emphatically, is that a well cared for set of used speakers poses very little in the way of problems (of course factoring in that you are able to gauge the shape they're in prior to purchase).

IMHO get the better speakers used and get a nice SVS or HSU sub for your system.

Cheers!

I would suggest that you should be getting a major discount on speakers that are discontinued, tons of people love the .v3's and there wasn't much in the difference between them and the .v4's. So if the price is right, then pull the trigger, from a dealer they will carry a warrantee as well. Sounds like he has been sitting on these dying to get rid of them, so the ball is in your court, and make sure you negotiate for an even better price...

As for finding .v3 versions out there, you shouldn't have any problem, audiogon is littered continuously with them, all the time. heck I even see .v1 stuff out there. Buying used is a great way to save money and still profit from getting some great speakers. I just bought some .v1 Sigs for a great price I couldn't pass up on... Good luck...

I need help on how to orient my surround speakers. I'm using ADP-190s. They will be about 130 degrees and 4' from the listening position mounted on 36" stands. On left side of the room there's a wall, right side is open to the kitchen.

My question is about how to orient them. Should they be facing the listening position? parallel to the back wall? parallel to the side wall?

Here's a floorplan of my setup.

I would suggest that you should be getting a major discount on speakers that are discontinued, tons of people love the .v3's and there wasn't much in the difference between them and the .v4's. So if the price is right, then pull the trigger, from a dealer they will carry a warrantee as well. Sounds like he has been sitting on these dying to get rid of them, so the ball is in your court, and make sure you negotiate for an even better price...

As for finding .v3 versions out there, you shouldn't have any problem, audiogon is littered continuously with them, all the time. heck I even see .v1 stuff out there. Buying used is a great way to save money and still profit from getting some great speakers. I just bought some .v1 Sigs for a great price I couldn't pass up on... Good luck...

The dealer's offering something like 400$ off retail (1300$CAN instead of 1700$ on the 60V3 and similar price drop on the CC570. I think I can haggle for a much better price... hopefully. Thanks for the help guys. Funny thing is, as always, we end up complicating things. I'm sure I'd be very happy with either speaker setup. I just want to end up with speakers knowing I paid the right price for. I saw some 60's V3 on Canuckaudio mart lately be sold for a good amount (close to what I think I can get them new).

Parallel to the side wall...however, the left surround will have more low frequency due to proximity to that side wall (actually will have more output period). This is not likely to be much of a problem with surround speakers.

Just wanted to chime in. Because of the positive chatter in this thread I purchased my first Paradigm speakers today. I just hooked them up and I must say I love the way they sound right out of the box. They beat my old 1989 Polks 11Ts hands down. I have had a tough time finding speakers in the price range of the Monitor 9s that sounded as good as my old Polks. I finally did and they look much better as well. I also purchased the PDR 10 sub and the 190 surrounds to fill out my 5.1 system. I look forward to enjoying these speakers for many years. :) Thanks for helping me make a good choice.

I could use a little help with an all-Paradigm surround sound setup... if anyone would contribute their thoughts I'd appreciate it.

Thread here:

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1004971

Hello everyone, I have had the following for about 4 yrs now and I have since moved about 5 wks ago into a new house. My old setup was in my basement and was setup more like a HT system should be... With relocating out of state for work into a new house the basement is not finished (yet) and I wanted to get the system setup in the family room but it had its limitations. I wanted to post my equipment and layout to get some input as the system sounds "good" but I am sure it can be "better" until I can get the basement finished and everything moved down there...

I have the following Monitor Series v.3

Front - 2x Monitor 11's
Center - CC-370
Surrounds - 2x ADP-370's
Subwoofer - PS 1200

All of the above is connected to a Denon AVR 4802R (http://oldusa.denon.com/catalog/pdfs/AVR4802R%20Final.pdf)

Here is a little info about the family room that the system is in...

This picture is of the first floor (Garage is facing North) (http://broderick.asnatlas.com/1st%20Floor%20-%20Hardwood%20and%20Tile.jpg)

The family room is 16' (east to west) x 14' (north to south) x 9'...

Here is the room empty (http://broderick.asnatlas.com/New%20pics/IMG_7570.JPG)
The PS 1200 is in the SW corner of the room (left of the fireplace)

Here is a picture of the "front and center" of the system. (http://lnt5271f.asnatlas.com/IMG_7588.JPG)

Since this is a "temp" setup I wanted to have the 2xADP-370s on 36" stands. I have also been thinking about getting two more ADPs that would be against the South facing wall behind the viewers. I have been trying to find a used set of the 370s (v.3 or v.4) so that it would match my system. I was looking at the 390s, but would it be better to get "sides" and then move my current ADPs to the "back surround" ?

This system is mainly for movies but I do listen to music here and there...

I have read alot of good things about the av123 (MFW-15), how does is stack up to the PS 1200 ??

I have also been reading a few things about pro amps, would I see a huge improvement over my current AVR 4802R ??

I am sorry for all the questions, when I first started my setup like 4 years ago I didn't do as much research as I should have and then I kinda placed it on the back burning, but I am getting back into it now and want to make my current system perform the best I can and even look into upgrading when I get the basement finished...

If this is a temp setup, why not just used your current surrounds as your rears? Also, I feel for you with that half wall behind you, no where to mount the flat screen.

Hey, is that a PS3 on your Mon 11's? In the long run, the big magnets in the speaker may not be good for the harddrive in the PS3. The Mon 11's are not shielded like your 370. Heads up.

Unless you are looking for a drastic upgrade, I don't see why you need anymore gear to enjoy the movies and even listen to music to be honest. Go and enjoy!

If this is a temp setup, why not just used your current surrounds as your rears? Also, I feel for you with that half wall behind you, no where to mount the flat screen.

Hey, is that a PS3 on your Mon 11's? In the long run, the big magnets in the speaker may not be good for the harddrive in the PS3. The Mon 11's are not shielded like your 370. Heads up.

Unless you are looking for a drastic upgrade, I don't see why you need anymore gear to enjoy the movies and even listen to music to be honest. Go and enjoy!

Yea that wall sucks... And as you can see the stand does not match anything, it's from my last AV setup when I had my 32" 16x9 TV which was silver... I have been looking for a nice cost effective stand and found this one (http://www.standsandmounts.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=7665). It seems like a decent one for the price... What do you think ??

Yea, the PS3 was up there for a short time and a little later I was thinking it would be a good idea to move it :)

As for the current setup I wanted to get others advice who have been into this longer then me :) I don't mind spending a little money if it would make a good bit of difference...

There is a beautiful pair of Signature S8's for sale on Audiogon. They are version 1 with a "Rosewood" finish. They are incredibly beautiful. I guess Rosewood is not available as an option for version 2. I can see what you guys were saying about how the specs did not do justice to the S8's. They are huge. I was surprised at how deep those speakers are and how narrow as well. Wish they had the S8 v2 in Rosewood ... awesome.

There is a beautiful pair of Signature S8's for sale on Audiogon. They are version 1 with a "Rosewood" finish. They are incredibly beautiful. I guess Rosewood is not available as an option for version 2. I can see what you guys were saying about how the specs did not do justice to the S8's. They are huge. I was surprised at how deep those speakers are and how narrow as well. Wish they had the S8 v2 in Rosewood ... awesome.

Yea I saw those on there, they look awesome... The price seems very good as well...

Yea I saw those on there, they look awesome... The price seems very good as well...

Yes, they do look pretty stunning. Unfortunately I'm looking for a pair of v2 S4s and C3 combo in Cherry. Anyone? :)

There is a beautiful pair of Signature S8's for sale on Audiogon. They are version 1 with a "Rosewood" finish. They are incredibly beautiful. I guess Rosewood is not available as an option for version 2. I can see what you guys were saying about how the specs did not do justice to the S8's. They are huge. I was surprised at how deep those speakers are and how narrow as well. Wish they had the S8 v2 in Rosewood ... awesome.

Yeah thats the same finish I got on my new pair of S4's and C3...
They look exactly the same... just beautiful... I finally got my J-23 Stands, Let me tell you how much I hate the USPS... almost 2 weeks from New Jersey... Seller from Audiogon was great though... If someone is interested in those S8's I know the guy who sold me the S4's (unopened box) also has the C5 , and ADP-3's in Rosewood, also unopened.
I didn't need to spend that kind of money.


AbMagFab; I took those pictures, but I didn't bring the cable with me to work, so I can't upload them until later, unless I find a chord here at work.. Or I go grab one from the store... :o

Basically the B-Techs clamp on the sides, as you know and will easily clamp and hold the speaker by itself with no worries, but just as a security measure, I took some of the spring drywall anchors like this (http://www.hammerzone.com/archives/bath/accy/baacy20.JPG) and drilled out the threads, and ran the screw through them into the bottom of the speaker (Speaker mounting threads) to hold the speaker to the clamp. Works great. and easy to implement. I'm sure you could come up with something similar, but that was what I had layin around.

I have a 5.1 Studio Reference setup I bought in 2003 (Ref 60 L/R, Studio CC, and Studio ADP for surrounds - Servo 15 for sub). I wired for rears at the time, and am in the process of upgrading my HT Pre/pro to get decode of 7 channel source material.

I am interested in suggestions on what would be good sonic match in today's speaker line. One constraint -- the rears will need to be ceiling mounted, so they can't be huge monsters....

Thanks!
Ken

I have a 5.1 Studio Reference setup I bought in 2003 (Ref 60 L/R, Studio CC, and Studio ADP for surrounds - Servo 15 for sub). I wired for rears at the time, and am in the process of upgrading my HT Pre/pro to get decode of 7 channel source material.

I am interested in suggestions on what would be good sonic match in today's speaker line. One constraint -- the rears will need to be ceiling mounted, so they can't be huge monsters....

Thanks!
Ken
Why not another set of adp's i have seen them ceiling mounted the driver
was removed and the cabinet was screwed to the ceiling then the driver
reinstalled.

AbMagFab; I took those pictures, but I didn't bring the cable with me to work, so I can't upload them until later, unless I find a chord here at work.. Or I go grab one from the store... :o

Basically the B-Techs clamp on the sides, as you know and will easily clamp and hold the speaker by itself with no worries, but just as a security measure, I took some of the spring drywall anchors like this (http://www.hammerzone.com/archives/bath/accy/baacy20.JPG) and drilled out the threads, and ran the screw through them into the bottom of the speaker (Speaker mounting threads) to hold the speaker to the clamp. Works great. and easy to implement. I'm sure you could come up with something similar, but that was what I had layin around.

Gotcha... so the S2's should have bottom screw holes in them? So I just need to either align them with thr mounting plate, or drill new holes in the mounting plate (you did the latter?). Or are you saying you drilled holes in the speaker (I'd like to avoid that)?

:eek:No Drilling !!!!!:eek:

The speakers have threaded inserts on the bottom...for securing them to stands, so you can screw into them, but the only problem is that the B-Techs brackets are outside the reach of the threaded inserts, and don't cover the holes. You have to bridge the gap with something If you really feel the need. I don't think its imperative, but I like to cover myself for the unexpected...

I will be home in shortly, and upload the pics, You can see what I'm talking about then... I think the S2's might be overkill for the rears, but the FR dips lower then the S1's so I think thats probably why you went that route...


Should be a killer system

:eek:No Drilling !!!!!:eek:

The speakers have threaded inserts on the bottom...for securing them to stands, so you can screw into them, but the only problem is that the B-Techs brackets are outside the reach of the threaded inserts, and don't cover the holes. You have to bridge the gap with something If you really feel the need. I don't think its imperative, but I like to cover myself for the unexpected...

I will be home in shortly, and upload the pics, You can see what I'm talking about then... I think the S2's might be overkill for the rears, but the FR dips lower then the S1's so I think thats probably why you went that route...


Should be a killer system

Yeah, the S2's are overkill (but so is most of what I'm getting). The problem is the S1's are probably not enough, so if I want to do direct for the rears, my only option is really S2's. Otherwise I'm back to ADP's.

I look forward to the pictures... And if I had the S2's in front of me, it would probably make more sense right now, but I like to think about these things for a couple days before doing the work, and I should have the wall brackets this week, and the speakers by the weekend or early the following week.

Here ya go buddy.... Hope that helps you get the idea...
I hope they can work for ya...

http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d109/Warpdrv/home%20theater/B-Tech003.jpg
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d109/Warpdrv/home%20theater/B-Tech002.jpg
http://i34.photobucket.com/albums/d109/Warpdrv/home%20theater/B-Tech001.jpg

I'm in the market to buy a 5.1 set of Paradigm. After reading this thread I will probably not buy a paradigm sub, though.

I listened to the Atoms and liked them very much. I consider either Atoms for fronts and CC-190 for center or the Cinema 110/220 (fronts) plus 110C. For rears I will probably buy cinema 70, 90, or ADP (space limit).

The dealer I visited had no cinemas to demonstrate. Has anyone compared similar sets? Would any of the cinema 110/220/330 lines compare to the Atoms?

I'm using 80% HT, 20% music.

Should I go for Atoms/Minimonitors or Axiom M22 v2? Can anyone familiar with these chime in?

I'm making a great room (30 x 16 x 9) into a HT (almost 100% movies). I have already decided on the Paradigm Monitor 9s and cc290 for front and center, and I'm now contemplating sides/surrounds.

I have small kids running around, and because the great room is also a dining room, I need the speakers to be at least ceiling mounted (as long as they pass the wife test), if not in-ceiling. I would love to do the dipole thing, but it doesn't look like the ADP-190s are really meant to be ceiling mounted. So 2 questions:

(1) If I'm going to go up to the ceiling, is ceiling mounted significantly better than in-ceiling? If yes, can you recommend a good ceiling-mountable speaker that will be compatible with the Paradigm system I have?

(2) If there's no difference between in-ceiling and ceiling mounted, then for aesthetic purposes, I may as well go in-ceiling. With in-ceilings, do I really need to stick with Paradigms, or can/should I turn elsewhere (e.g., are the tweeters aimable with Paradigm in-ceilings)? If you strongly recommend sticking with Paradigm, what would be the cheapest in-ceiling that would be reasonably compatible with the cc290 and monitor 9s? (It seems like, if you're going in-ceiling, it's such a compromise that it almost doesn't matter which paradigm speaker you get.)

Thanks,
br


I have Paradigm in ceiling speakers for my surrounds and rear surrounds. I think they blend really well with my Monitor 9's and CC390. I really wanted the dipoles too but my room wouldn't allow it. I have the AMS series 150R for side surrounds and the 150R 30's for rear surrounds. The least expensive route are the PV series, but with your L/R/C setup you might go for the CS or AMS series.

Plan on buying new Paradigm speakers for HT. Just got a Marantz 7002 and plan on buying monitor 9's for fronts, cc390 center, and either atoms for the rears or adp390's with an MFW-15 sub.

What surround speakers do you think would go best with my system. My couch is on the back wall so the surround speakers will be mounted on the wall.

You could think about in ceilings as well, provided you don't live in a loft or something with high ceilings. If your on the back wall I would prefer atoms to the side of the couch or in ceilings. ADP's may sound funky along the back wall. (bad reflections, etc.).

I have the same L/C/R setup and love it! Good Times!:)

I'm thinking about upgrading my cc-170 to a cc-290 to pair up with my monitor 9 v4 and mini atom v5. Are the v4 monitor 9's a good match with the cc-290?


It will sound fine.

Cuurently my setup is studio20v3 fronts titan v4 rears pdr12 sub with no center. Due to space limitations &waf i'm looking at the millenia 20 for center . I know this is not a proper match so any help /sugestions would be great. I listen to
80%movies 20%music I have a decent ear but I'm not super critical thanks.
I know the proper match is either cc470 or cc570 but they are too big for my space.

Cuurently my setup is studio20v3 fronts titan v4 rears pdr12 sub with no center. Due to space limitations &waf i'm looking at the millenia 20 for center . I know this is not a proper match so any help /sugestions would be great. I listen to
80%movies 20%music I have a decent ear but I'm not super critical thanks.

Proper match available here:

CC-470 v3 (http://cls.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?spkrmoni&1208976703)

Warpdrv: Are your new speakers version 1 or 2? I didn't see where the Rosewood finish was an option for the Signatures v2's. I only ask because the dealer on Audiogon said they were the "original" Signatures so I'm confused. If they are the version 2, then I am already salivating over that S8 and C5. Also, how do you like the J-23 stands? Are they pretty solid and decent quality?

Over the weekend, I've been doing a lot of thinking (always dangerous) about the surrounds and rear surrounds for a 7.1 setup. If I go with the Signatures, I find it more difficult to justify getting the ADP1's for surrounds and S2's as rear surrounds. The MSRP for these surrounds would be in the $4700 price range correct? That's a lot of money for surround speakers. I could get an entire Studio Reference system for that price (minus sub).

If I went with a 5.1 setup and planned on using it for multi-channel audio, then I can see getting the S2's as surrounds. If I wanted to go with a less expensive option for the surrounds and rear surrounds, do you guys have any suggestions? possibly the adp590 for surrounds and 20 v2's as rear surrounds? or maybe two pair of the adp590's. Or maybe there's an even cheaper option I could go with so I'm open to that.

For the S8's and C5, I'm looking at close to $10,000 list and that was kind of my total budget for my home theater system. I'm having to rethink that.

Was just wondering if anyone here has ran a set of Studio 100s off an Anthem pva-7 amp. If so did it seem large enough to power the speakers, or not.Thanks...

Warpdrv: Are your new speakers version 1 or 2? I didn't see where the Rosewood finish was an option for the Signatures v2's. I only ask because the dealer on Audiogon said they were the "original" Signatures so I'm confused. If they are the version 2, then I am already salivating over that S8 and C5. Also, how do you like the J-23 stands? Are they pretty solid and decent quality?

Over the weekend, I've been doing a lot of thinking (always dangerous) about the surrounds and rear surrounds for a 7.1 setup. If I go with the Signatures, I find it more difficult to justify getting the ADP1's for surrounds and S2's as rear surrounds. The MSRP for these surrounds would be in the $4700 price range correct? That's a lot of money for surround speakers. I could get an entire Studio Reference system for that price (minus sub).

If I went with a 5.1 setup and planned on using it for multi-channel audio, then I can see getting the S2's as surrounds. If I wanted to go with a less expensive option for the surrounds and rear surrounds, do you guys have any suggestions? possibly the adp590 for surrounds and 20 v2's as rear surrounds? or maybe two pair of the adp590's. Or maybe there's an even cheaper option I could go with so I'm open to that.

For the S8's and C5, I'm looking at close to $10,000 list and that was kind of my total budget for my home theater system. I'm having to rethink that.

I felt the same way, but quickly slid down that slippery slope. I ended up with ADP3's for the sides, and S2's for the rears.

My dealer strongly recommended it because of the S6 fronts. With such large fronts, the ADP1's and S1's (my original choice) would just be dwarfed by the fronts. He also gave me a bigger discount so the price was basically the same for me, so it was an easy decision, but I also think he's right.

With S8 fronts, you really need to go strong with your surrounds. If you don't want to get them all at once, go 5.1 and get S2's for now, then add S2's or ADP3's later?

Long post so bear with me. Replacing my old system, Denon PMA-700V 100w/channel running Infinity SM-120s (3-way w/ 12” woofer, 98db, 49Hz – 25kHz +/- 3db). First step was a Denon AVR-4308, very happy with that. Ordered an Axiom Epic 60-500. HT was good, but 2-channel stereo a huge disappointment, even after hours of tweaking. No comparison even to my 20-yr old Infinitys (M60s were not very spatial). Sent back the $3,500 Axiom system as this is something I will have for a long time and need to be satisfied with it.

Bought/auditioning a pair of Studio 100 v4s. They are the floor model. Paid retail -15%. After 2 weeks I can take back for refund or they will order me a new set and I will return the demos. If I like the mains, I would complete with a CC-690, ADP-590s, and JL f112 or f113.

Room is 20’W, vaulted, and opens into the dining room/kitchen. Speakers spaced 7’ and 16” from front wall. Listening position is 9’ back (I can probably go back another foot). The punchline question is the Studio 100 sound quality. Highs are incredible with great detail, mids full but maybe not quite as smooth as the English brands. Midbass/bass solid and crisp but dependent on the track and volume. All receiver settings are flat, although I have been running a bass boost of +4db.

Where I am a little disappointed is the SPL, especially at low volumes. The sound quality and accuracy are great, but they just don’t seem as full as I would have expected from the largest tower in this line. Understanding that my frame of reference is an old speaker with a much larger woofer, am I expecting too much or have a distorted perspective of what a "good" speaker should sound like? (I have heard that most speakers from that era had a 60Hz boost to make them sound better). Should I be auditioning these with a sub? Do most speakers today require a sub to sound complete, even for just 2-channel stereo?

I won’t write any more as this is already long. Been reading your posts for a few months and would appreciate your feedback.

JimmyDaves; my speakers are .v1, they removed the Rosewood as an option since then. It was something that popped up, and for the price I couldn't pass it up. So far they are spectacular. I have no regrets whatsoever, not dumping the extra money on the .v2's. The J-23's are great stands, very sturdy and extremely well thought out. I had weighed the idea of getting aftermarket stands, these ones (http://www.lovanusa.com/index.php?cPath=1_6&osCsid=ded329be145ad56e55852355afa19619), but I couldn't screw S4's to those stands, not that it was a total deal killer, but it would have been nice, who knows, I might still go that route as they are far nicer looking IMO, and the added height might be helpful for me in that room.

As far as the surrounds, as you know, I have the ADP-590's mated with the front 3 Sigs, and I feel they are more then adequate for the minute amount of surround material that is sent to them. The power coming from the surround material is no where near as drastic as the front three... filler if you will. Now, If I had the money for a full 5 or 7.1 surround with all Sigs., I would have no problem dropping the coin for all Sigs.

AbMagFab, I in no way think you wasted your money here, I am in fact jealous of what your putting together, but sometimes one needs to make sacrifices, and I would really have to spend a huge amount of time A/Bing the benefits of gong all Sig. to weigh the differences. Already having a full Studio lineup I know the power and clarity of what the studio's are capable of...

Many here have stated that the Studio's are 85-90% of what the Sigs are, I have to spend more time and start doing some A/Bing the 100's to the S4's to get a more clear picture, and that is coming.

JimmyDaves; I am not the first to use the Studio's for surrounds, to lighten the blow, and so far its sounds simply amazing, you can't go wrong giving it a run, the Studio's have an excellent resale value, and If you aren't satisfied, you can easily unload them. If your room is large enough, and you are planning on running 5.1 audio then I would say your side surrounds should be Sig S2's, but if your intentions are mainly movies, then the Studio's will not disappoint you. And last but not least, there is also the difference with the new .v2 Sigs tweeter being quite a bit different then the Studio's, where the old .V1 Sigs, was a far closer match, allowing me to feel that wouldn't be so difficult to bridge the gap.

Obviously opinions vary, so YMMV..... Everyones ears and needs are different.

Should I be auditioning these with a sub? Do most speakers today require a sub to sound complete, even for just 2-channel stereo?



Personally I can't run even 2 channel stereo without a sub, I'm a bass head and crossed over 80hz, the Studio's are phenomenal. The mid's and highs on these speakers are their strong point, they are definitely a typical Canadian speaker, more punchy in the mids then the laid back nature of an English design.

When I was auditioning, I found the Studio's had great bass, but no where near what I needed or wanted, and for an extreme HT scenario the truly excel. I think that was the only drawback with the studio's, but I knew that they were designed to be mated with a sub. Cutting out the Freq. below 80hz is very minimal, which also brings out the best in them, allowing less power to make them really sing. Also they are far more potent when using a dedicated Amp.. To get big bass from a floorstander and get it right, you better up your budget.

There are not alot of speaker options at this budget to get the kind of bass that Low Freq effects movies today produce.... Good luck with your trial.

Also they are far more potent when using a dedicated Amp.. To get big bass from a floorstander and get it right, you better up your budget.

That seems to be the main thing to focus on, I totally agree.

More than what type of surrounds you get, as you'll be happy with Studio or Sig surrounds of any type. If you have a budget that you don't want to bust, after the fronts and center, focus on the amp.

(Sadly, I had a budget, but I totally busted it, like 3 times...)

(Sadly, I had a budget, but I totally busted it, like 3 times...)



Excellent Work My Friend... Best of the Best, is so totally gratifying !! :D

I'm really excited for you... thats going to be a killer setup...

AbMagFab,
You are going to have one SWEET setup, I'm with Warpdrv on this, very jealous. :)

Agree on the dedicated amp, I just got the A5 & A2 hooked up today and what a difference. It sounds clean like it's not that loud, but it really is. The wife just walked by shaking her head.
I was going to sell the A2 but I just might have to keep it.
Now need to find a new rack to hold all this stuff.
I hope to have more time to play this week, I want to use 6 of the channels and bi-amp the front 3 and see how that sounds.

Long post so bear with me. Replacing my old system, Denon PMA-700V 100w/channel running Infinity SM-120s (3-way w/ 12” woofer, 98db, 49Hz – 25kHz +/- 3db). First step was a Denon AVR-4308, very happy with that. Ordered an Axiom Epic 60-500. HT was good, but 2-channel stereo a huge disappointment, even after hours of tweaking. No comparison even to my 20-yr old Infinitys (M60s were not very spatial). Sent back the $3,500 Axiom system as this is something I will have for a long time and need to be satisfied with it.

Bought/auditioning a pair of Studio 100 v4s. They are the floor model. Paid retail -15%. After 2 weeks I can take back for refund or they will order me a new set and I will return the demos. If I like the mains, I would complete with a CC-690, ADP-590s, and JL f112 or f113.

Room is 20’W, vaulted, and opens into the dining room/kitchen. Speakers spaced 7’ and 16” from front wall. Listening position is 9’ back (I can probably go back another foot). The punchline question is the Studio 100 sound quality. Highs are incredible with great detail, mids full but maybe not quite as smooth as the English brands. Midbass/bass solid and crisp but dependent on the track and volume. All receiver settings are flat, although I have been running a bass boost of +4db.

Where I am a little disappointed is the SPL, especially at low volumes. The sound quality and accuracy are great, but they just don’t seem as full as I would have expected from the largest tower in this line. Understanding that my frame of reference is an old speaker with a much larger woofer, am I expecting too much or have a distorted perspective of what a "good" speaker should sound like? (I have heard that most speakers from that era had a 60Hz boost to make them sound better). Should I be auditioning these with a sub? Do most speakers today require a sub to sound complete, even for just 2-channel stereo?

I won’t write any more as this is already long. Been reading your posts for a few months and would appreciate your feedback.

Do you have access to a seperate amp that you can bring home to demo?

You are describing my experience with Denon receivers. Just not fulfilling.
I believe the amp will cure your problem.

Hmm....sounds like you came from a bass heavy speaker or may be sitting in a null or have poor speaker positioning. That being said, the 100s, like all new Paradigm speakers, are designed with a restricted low-end to maximize SPL capability and sensitivity. ALL Paradigm speakers are designed to work with a subwoofer IMO. What the 100 gets you is a dedicated midrange driver and awesome mid-bass capabilities.

Further more, the above posters are correct. The 100 presents an absolutely punishing impedance curve, and should really be used with stout amplification.

The 100 presents an absolutely punishing impedance curve, and should really be used with stout amplification.[/QUOTE]

When you say stout amplification, would an Anthem PVA-7 be enough for the 100s? (Looking to purchase a pair)I know they PVAs dont have the highest wattage rating but I do belive they allow high current flow.Please correct me if I am wrong, cause I dont want to get a pair of speakers my amp cant run. Thanks

Hey All,

I'm looking for some in-ceiling surrounds to go with a 5-yr old set of CC-370 v3 center channel and Monitor 7 v2 fronts.

I know, I know.. ceiling speaker are poo. :o

Paradigm tech support claims that the AMS series would be the best match for my fronts... but the more I look at the tweeters on my monitors and the tweeters on the CS series of in-walls... the look like the same exact tweeters. So I can't help but wonder if the CS series would be a better timbre match. Any thoughts?

Also, for 5.1 surrounds, placed a few feet behind and to the side of the listeners, should I go with something like a typical downfiring CS-60R or a 30-degree firing CS-60R-30, aimed across the back of the listeners?

I felt the same way, but quickly slid down that slippery slope. I ended up with ADP3's for the sides, and S2's for the rears.

My dealer strongly recommended it because of the S6 fronts. With such large fronts, the ADP1's and S1's (my original choice) would just be dwarfed by the fronts. He also gave me a bigger discount so the price was basically the same for me, so it was an easy decision, but I also think he's right.

With S8 fronts, you really need to go strong with your surrounds. If you don't want to get them all at once, go 5.1 and get S2's for now, then add S2's or ADP3's later?


I know I'm coming into this conversation a bit late, and I don't mean to rain on your parade, but there is one problem with wall mounting the S2's. They are meant to be a freestanding speaker and the balance of their frequency response depends on being at least a couple of feet away from any nearby walls. Put them right next to a wall and the bass will potentially become bloated and boomy and the lower mids will become chesty.

The ADP's on the other hand have been designed / "voiced" to be place on a wall.

Crossing the S2's over at at least 80Hz will help, but you'll still be boosting the lower mids and upper bass with on-wall placement.

If you go this route, I highly recommend that you get a prepro / AVR that has auto room EQ. The room EQ will see the hump in the bass response of the S2's and correct it. Or invest in the Audyssey Pro stand-alone unit.

I would recommend going with more ADP's for the rears, but I don't think that dipoles are very well suited for rear wall placement, as they will radiate their sound along the back wall instead of out toward the front.

To get big bass from a floorstander and get it right, you better up your budget.


I respectfully disagree with this statement. All that a more powerfull amp will get you is the ability to play louder and reduce the chances of clipping distortion at high volumes. The Paradigms are not all that difficult to drive, as they have relatively high sensitivity and while their impedance does drop to 3 Ohms in the bass, you don't necessarily need a P series Anthem amp to drive them. I ran a full Paradigm Signature 5.1 set-up with S8's up front off of a Denon 5800 AVR. Just for kicks, I decided to see what I could get out of the S8's running in full-range stereo when powered by the Denon. I measured 110 dB peaks at one meter with no audible distortion! This is stupid loud, running the S8's off of and AVR's amp section.

IMO, the P series Anthem amps are way overkill for most applications. Unless you have a massive room to fill with sound, or you like to constantly listen at rock concert levels, the A series amps will meet and often exceed most peoples needs.

Plan on buying new Paradigm speakers for HT. Just got a Marantz 7002 and plan on buying monitor 9's for fronts, cc390 center, and either atoms for the rears or adp390's with an MFW-15 sub.

What surround speakers do you think would go best with my system. My couch is on the back wall so the surround speakers will be mounted on the wall.

I have what seems to be the same setup as you. I went with the ADP390's on the back wall and have no complaints so far. I didn't obviously listen to the atoms on my back wall, but I'm really happy with how the 390's perform. They present a good stage, and I can really hear objects travel around the room when watching a good blu-ray.

I know I'm coming into this conversation a bit late, and I don't mean to rain on your parade, but there is one problem with wall mounting the S2's. They are meant to be a freestanding speaker and the balance of their frequency response depends on being at least a couple of feet away from any nearby walls. Put them right next to a wall and the bass will potentially become bloated and boomy and the lower mids will become chesty.

The ADP's on the other hand have been designed / "voiced" to be place on a wall.

Crossing the S2's over at at least 80Hz will help, but you'll still be boosting the lower mids and upper bass with on-wall placement.

If you go this route, I highly recommend that you get a prepro / AVR that has auto room EQ. The room EQ will see the hump in the bass response of the S2's and correct it. Or invest in the Audyssey Pro stand-alone unit.

I would recommend going with more ADP's for the rears, but I don't think that dipoles are very well suited for rear wall placement, as they will radiate their sound along the back wall instead of out toward the front.

- I have a 905, so it has Audessey built in (plus it's not that hard to manually do it, just time consuming)

- The S2's are front ported, so being placed close to a wall really won't have a huge effect, especially with a higher crossover (it will have an effect, I just question your statement on the magnititude of the effect, especially for such a tiny speaker)

- They're rear surrounds - it's not like massive bass comes out of the rear channel, so even if I had them packed into a corner of my room, it probably won't make any difference

The real point is that with ADP rears, the rear channel becomes slushy, where it should be directional. I should hear something over my right shoulder, not vaguely behind me somewhere.

I was going with the S1's, but the S2's are a better speaker overall, and will be much better performers for the rear (as much as that matters for the very limited sound coming out back there).