Paradigm Owners Thread - Page 7

After several months of stalking boards like this one and auditioning equipment, I've finally decided to pull the trigger on the Studio 100's & 570 center. I'm going to hold off on the rear/surround (can't decide between the 20's and the ADP's). I also just ordered a Velodyne SPL 1200 II (closeout price...trying not to blow the budget). Now I just need to decide what to power this all with. Any input? I'd like to get a Denon 3805 or Yamaha 2500 (because either is about $1000) for now and add an amp later, but I'm not sure from what I've read that this would adequately power the 100's. I've also been considering the Outlaw 770/990 combo, but I'm a little hesitant to buy w/o seeing, touching, etc. first. Sorry if this has all been beaten into the ground several times over, I'm just excited that I finally found the system I've been looking for.

It was quite a pain in the a$$ for me to choose Paradigm. I live in Las Vegas, and there is no Paradigm dealer here. So I drove to my nearest dealer in St. George, UT, (2 hours) but they only display/stock the Studio 20. I asked the 12 year old salesman to get me a price on the entire Studio setup...he said he would call me the next day with the information (he never did). Not being willing to buy w/o fist listening, I drove to Phoenix (5 hours) to listen to the 100's and really liked them and I liked the salesperson. The St. George store beat the Phoenix store's price by about $500, but I can't get the kid to call me back! I guess I'll have to figure this one out myself.

Thanks for the link!!

Been pricing around. Thankfully I have a local Paradigm dealer 1 mile away to demo between the Studio 100s and the Signatures. Next part was finding a good deal. The local dealer wouldnt budge very far off the MSRP, then I found this link. Saved me a bunch of cash.

On order, due to be delivered at the end of the week:

Pair of Signature S8s
Signature ADPs
Signature Servo 15" Sub

All in that luuuvely Rosewood finish! The guy said they were flat out of the C5s, but would call me in a week or two to tell me if he would get anymore in stock. Anyone else knows a good place with similar prices, please let me know.

Yeah I was going off memory. Which I believe is why I wasn't so impressed by the in store demo. I also went from the v.2's to the Sig's. I have the v3 ADP470 and Studio 20's on hand to compare at least the tweeters. There's no doubt in my mind the Sig's tweets are more "refined".

I'm very wary of buyers remorse causing a bias in opinion, having been there myself. I bought some Anthem PVA's to bi-amp my 100's thinking my HK AVR8000 might be on the lean side powerwise. Yep, conviced myself that it sounded way better until I decided to get the Z9 and sold the Anthems before the HK. Hooked it back up and, surprise, there was no dicernable difference.. period... Ouch.

So another walk to have a listen today & Lunch - My Dealer is telling me I should lean towards a pair of Ref 60s & not the Mon 11s
I think the 60s are brighter & more acurate But the 11s mave more of a punch
Ant thoughts ?

antman, I directly compared those two speakers and my wife and I both liked the 60s much better. In fact, she didn't want the 11s at all, and wanted me to get the 60s. Who am I to complain?

Did you find the 11s to have more Low's & a pit more punch ??

How will the new V compare to a V1 in the 60s ? I am looking & a pair of used 60 V1 for $500 ish

Yes, but the mids and highs were much more crisp on the 60s, and the lows are covered by my sub.

Supposedly the V1s & V2s are very similar, bigger difference between the V2 & V3. Not sure about the V4s.

I would imagine any sensible shopper could find the differences in writing, and then again in hearing. This should be able to discern between noteable improvements (or differences) and snakeoil.

I love my V2's (100's), but I cannot see a reason to upgrade.

I love my V2's (100's), but I cannot see a reason to upgrade.


Put in your situation I would not upgrade either. On the other hand if one was to upgrade to 100s from a lower level then there is a definite improvement in the V3 over the V2.

[quote= On the other hand if one was to upgrade to 100s from a lower level then there is a definite improvement in the V3 over the V2.[/QUOTE]


What in particular is the improvement? I have the V3. 100s never heard V2. I'm just curious

I'm just about to pull the trigger on these and had a question about the ADP-470s.

The frequency response on the ADP-470 surrounds is ±2 dB from 90 Hz - 22 kHz. 90Hz sounds a bit high (especially since I was going to set my LFE crossover to 80Hz - possibly 60Hz). Have any of you had any problems when things get loud and low with the ADP470s crapping out? I'm considering using the 20s but I think the ADPs will give me a better movie experience.

Speakers Setup:
----------------
- Fronts: Studio 20's
- Center : CC570
- Sides Surrounds: Studio 20s or ADP 470s
- Rear Surrounds: Studio 20s
- Sub: HSU VTF-3
- Receiver: Denon 3805 (or Marantz 7500)

Room Setup:
--------------------
- 15 x 17 x 9 (screen on 17' wall)
- 115 diag 16x9 screen
- BenQ PE7700 DLP Projector
- 12' view distance from screen
- Couch 3' from rear wall
- 90% HT, 5% DVD-A/SACD Music, 5% 2-Channel Music

Your thoughts would be appreciated.

Steve

One difference is that the V.3 uses a solid aluminum phase plug in the mid/bass driver where the V.2 uses a dust cover. The V.3 also has a small adjustment in the crossover setting. Other than that I'm not sure if there is much difference in sound. I listened separately but not side by side.

I need to make the same decision. I just ordered the Studio 100s for front and the 570 center channel, but couldn't decide between the 20's or ADP 470's for the surround speakers...so I decided to hold off for now. I am definitely interested to see what other people's experience has been.

I wouldn't worry about it. I cross mine over at 80hz as well and there's no problem whatsover. I listen to a lot of loud SACD, DTS and DD music.
You should look at the low frequency extension spec; I believe it's in the 50's or lower. And I doubt that there would be a steep drop-off between the 90hz and the LFE; it just wouldn't fall in the +/- 2db range Paradigm uses.
A lot of speaker manufacturers use + / - 3 db as the reference point for their F.R.'s to make it look better. From what I undestand a 3db variance is supposed to be inaudible.

I just checked their site, the ADP 470's LFE is 58Hz.

S&V measured it down to 50hz @ 70db SPL before it got below their 10% tolerance

To expand on the physical differences that Phideax mentioned there is the obvious. Slightly smaller cabinet and absence of veneer side panels as well as outboard spikes as opposed to gold spiked feet underneath. The binding posts are also different. Some/many will consider the smaller cabinet, non veneer and loss of gold feet negative differences.
Sonically the V3 has a sweeter midrange and less aggressive tweeter IMO. I did not do side by side comparisons in my house but I did do this at the dealer. I think that the difference is large enough that it is quite obvious. If you loved the tweet in the V2 then the V3 will seem perhaps a little laid back for your tastes but many including myself feel that the only real V2 weakness was the sometimes harsh tweeter. A smaller difference to my ears was perhaps a little more speed in the bass with the V3 but at the same time a little less weight in the bass. Some will love this and others will consider it a negative. For myself I like the speed but I also like weight so I'm glad I have a servo 15 which can carry any weight the V3 may be giving up.
Please remember these are my opinions and I will not be surprised if some people prefer the V2 over the V3. Like I said earlier. If I had 100 V2 already I'm not sure I would upgrade to V3 but if I were to go from a 60 or an 80 then 100 V3 all the way.

I never really noticed the tweeters in my V2-100's until a friend brought over his table and we spun some horn (brass) music. WOW, did those puppies come alive. No where near reference level, but loud enough to get rid of the cats and the wife. Completely changed my impression of my speaker's capabilities. Took me a few to get off the floor and stop bowing to the gods they are. lol

rnrgagne,

Thanks for the reply. I'm going to demo them again and put some volume to 'em. I'll see if they hold up

Steve

Very well put.

I noticed the diference in the tweeters right away between the 100 v2's and the ADP v3's when I had them both going. And I would say the difference is just as pronounced in the tweets between the Sigs' and Reference

I have found a pair of Monitor 7 V3 for sale (asking $450) and am seriously considering them. Do you guys think the V3 would be a decent chioce for Music / HT?

It seems that for the price compared to the retail of the Monitor 7 V4 these might be a nice find.

The only diffrences i can can dig up for the V3 to V4 are an improved tweeter and redesgined crossover.

Are they the same size, height wise? Will the V3 likely be more bright sounding?

How do you thik these would compare to the Ascend 340s?

Just got my Signature S4s today. I've owned a set of Paradigm Studio 100v3s with the Servo 15v2 for over a year. I have a very good ear as to how they sound with music. How do the Sigs stack up. The Sigs are much better than the Studios. Some would say %10 or %20 better, but in the audio world that last %10 is huge. It's the difference between a good speaker and a great speaker. The Sigs are truly great speakers.

Although not the same speaker the situation is similar, my Paradigm CC-370's have a range of ±2dB from 100 Hz - 20 kHz however I set my receiver's cross over point at 60Hz, this number bieng well within the limits of my 11's and 7's. I have to date noticed no adverse affects because of this and all seem's to work great, IMHO you won't notice any problems.

Denon AVR-3805
2 x Paradigm Monitor 11's Mains
2 x Paradigm Monitor 7's Surrounds
1 x Paradigm CC-370 Center
1 x Paradigm PW-2100 Sub

A question for you Paradigm owners. Given the choice between the following 2 setups, which one would you pick?

Monitor 11 Fronts
CC-370 Center

- OR -

Studio 20 Fronts
CC-470 Center

MSRP on these setups look pretty close. I have a Denon AVR-2805, and I'm leaning towards the SVS PB10-ISD subwoofer. Surrounds will come later. It will probably be used equally for movies and music. My family room is about 14'X16' with 9' ceilings, but it is also open to a dining area and kitchen. Thanks for the input!

Assuming you're getting a sub (as you stated), without a doubt I'd get the 20s & 470. The 470 is a much better sub than the 370, but each center matches with the fronts that you have listed. You can also use the 20s later for surrounds if you end up upgrading beyond the 20s for fronts.

FYI, I have almost your exact room configuration, and use a PB12-ISD, which I think is a perfect fit for the space.

Although there's no question the Studio's are superior to the Monitor Series I would go with the 11's and CC-370 over the 20's and the CC-470. If however you choose at a future date to add Studio 60's or 100's as Fronts and move the 20's to the back as surrounds then I'd go with the 20's. It's my opinion having heard both, that the 11's are superior to the 20's.

Thanks for the input, guys. The fronts I get now will stay in the front for good, so it sounds like the Monitor 11's with the CC-370 would be the better choice. Tim, I'm considering that 12" sub instead of the 10", considering how much open area there is with the dining room and kitchen.

In My upgrades I may concider SA 35s Over the Monitor 11 Or the Studio 60 Just for a clean look BUT not sure yet .

After demoing the Klipsch RF-35's, Paradigm Monitor 7's, Monitor 11's, and Studio 60's today I made my decision to go with the Studio 60's and the CC-470 center channel. Quite a bit more than I wanted to spend on speakers, but after hearing them I knew I just couldn't settle for any of the others. Even my wife thought they sounded best, and afterwards she said that she didn't think there would be so much of a difference in speaker sound. She wanted them almost as much as I did! Have to wait for my dealer to get them in from up north, so it may not be until Friday of next week before I can hook them up.