Paradigm Studio 100 vs Klipsch Referance RF-7/RF-8 or aperion-audio-verus-grand

Right now I have the Pioneer SP-FS51 5.0 set that I got for $230, I wanted to get the new 52's but at nearly double the price and apparently not going on sale like the originals, I decided to just put my towers on a stack of magazines to raise them up a bit and wait. Now I have decided to get something a little better, the pioneers are great and very detailed but a little col and dry sounding, I wouldn't say dark because they have highs but they are a little lifeless? I just got a great deal on a pair of Wharfedale Diamond 10.2's and I really like them but the lack bass punch compared to my Pioneers and my 8" studio monitors and apparently the towers have the same issue, id really like to audition the 10.7's but haven't found a place with them.

So I'm looking for something with larger drivers 6.5" at least.

I know that the RF-7's are great and I have been looking for a place to check them out but are the RF-82's any good? At double the price the RF-7's have to be a different beast all together but could I save some money and get the RF-82's and still enjoy them?? 8" drivers are what I'm looking for, I'm sure id love the 10"ers in the RF-7's but they have to be huge.

I was also looking at the Paradigm monitors but the 7's and 9's are only 5 and 1/2" and don't offer a lot of bass and the 11's are pretty expensive for what they are so I figured there Studio 100's would be better but damn these get expensive fast, thats when I realized that there the same price as the RF-7's.

Will check out Id say about $2000, it depends, I also want a Integrated amp and CD player/DAC so what ever I end up getting, right now I'm running my 5.0 with a HK 354 with my Wharfs on the Second zone but only because it's there, I'm going to eventually go 7.1.

I just like value and price is a big consideration (like RF-7 vs RF-82?) and to some extent looks, size is not so much, I'd have to re-arrange if RF-7's just appeared in my room but I'm willing to do that. I got my Pioneers for $120 for the pair when they were $120 ($100 street) a piece, now there $125 each street, but I have always liked my KRK rokit 8's for music better and the Pioneers do there job for gaming and movies. I just don't think they will be that much better to justify trading up.

After reading Steriophiles review on the SP-BS41-LR's I became interested in the Wharfedale Diamond 10.1's and 10.2's and I remembered this new local shop I had been to had them and the owners really cool and does good business so I went there... turns out he has to much Wharfedale stuff on hand and had an open box pair of 10.2's that I got for $275 and they just have so much detail and air its ridiculous. I probably would of went with the 10.1's but he slashed the price on them so much I easily afforded the 10.2's. To bad he doesn't have the 10.6 or 10.7's or I might have gone back and gotten them too and not made this thread lol.

I've always liked music but most of my audiophilia was with headphones, now I've just recently got into it with speakers and the Wharfedales are the first ones that I have heard that sound bigger than the speakers with sound coming from outside the physical cabinets and vocals coming from between or above the 2 speakers (my Pioneers pull this off but as stated with music they just didn't do it for me) and there detail level is approaching my Denon D-5000's. My only complaint would be the bass punch (its a bookshelf what do ya expect) and that the treble, while even in level with the mids and detailed, is very airy and soft and like smooth now I don't want harsh or dry but I'm going to say I wouldn't mind a slightly more forward and dare I say a little faster more aggressive treble, I don't notice this over all the range just with the treble.

So I'm looking for something with a good sound stage and voicing like my wharfs with the corrections stated but with even more clarity and detail, sense I know it's out there now and the bug has bit, but with more bass punch, something I can rock out with and rattle some windows and feel the kick in my chest when I'm not critically listening (my monitors do this about 85% of what I want) but sense it will be the exact same sound and not a different crappy but loud speaker like a boom box or something I will always be able to enjoy the sound.
Edited by ScaryFatKidGT - 1/22/13 at 3:02am

I type all that and don't get anything? lol jk bump

I liked the KEF Q900's with there 4 8" drivers but 2 out of the 4 are passive and there bass isn't all that great or powerful. The R900's are out of my budget.

How in the heck and why do you have a RF-7 as a center? Any way what other speakers have you had and why do you like the RF-7's? and I am planning on blowing every thing I got on my 2.0 and amp first. That is why I sort of decided to go big or go home on this and not get some mid-grade stuff.

Are there any other powerful speakers I should look at? The only 8" towers I have looked at the Klipsch's and Q900's

Yeah big horn loaded tweeter things? I couldn't really find any reviews on them or a place to listen to them in MN. I found some reviews on the 580's but couldn't really understand if they were saying that they are "rock speakers" (JBL) but sounded good with classical or that they were colored "fun sounding rock speakers" but only passable with other stuff.

Do horns have a very narrow dispersion compared to dome tweeters or not really?
Edited by ScaryFatKidGT - 1/26/13 at 11:46pm

What about the Polk RTiA9? 4x7" drivers

I wish I new of a place to listen to all this stuff

So the Polks are out unless I can listen to them and hear different but apparently they have a upper mid emphasis on vocals and such that makes them sound bright, I don't think id like that idk mid range is ok but not upper mid lower treble.

Are horns basically just for low sensitivity? I read some reviews on klipsch's and the consensus seems to be they they have great bass (what I'm looking for) but no mid-range, 3 or 4 years ago these would probably be the speaker for me but now that I have learned about mid-range detail is I think I want something more refined and balanced. I listen to mainly rock and metal so I'm not all about the mid-range like classical and jazz but that is still where most of all the little hidden details lie.

This is what I suspected but haven't really heard of anyone else worrying about this when buying a pair.
Thats why I usually bring my speakers and listen to them and get a feel for the room, or at least how the sound changed, not the best but I can't really audition 5 different speakers in my room :/

Basically the reason I asked is for home theater are the people sitting on the sides going to get descent treble and imaging?

Well I have thought about it but a couple of reasons, I'm not super happy with them, they have more treble extension than my pioneers and monitors but they are really laid back I would like a little more upper and mid-treble presence, the mid range detail is outstanding but then the bass isn't very impactful and they don't seem to want to play as loud as my Pioneer towers or my monitors. I was also thinking about powering them with an integrated amp and there only 2.0 with no sub out.