Paradigm Owners Thread - Page 883

Thanks!

^^^
The height dimensions are on their website in the specs. That, compared to looking at the pictures of where the tweeter is, I think would get you within an inch or two. I'd say about 42"

I run mine on a QSC PLX 3402.

Studio 100 v5 and the CC-690 are 8 ohm. I drive mine, along with two ADP-590's and two ADP-390's, with a Pioneer SC-25 that puts out 140 wpc (love those ICE amps) and haven't had much of a problem at all. But I rarely listen to anything louder than -15. Somtimes I'll bump it up to -10 on a good movie. I do plan to add a power amp in the future though.

I think a lot of the problem people have is trying to drive them with an 85 wpc AVR. That just isn't enough if you play them very loud.

My 2 cents: I would buy a good set of used Studios before I would buy any Monitor series new, or used.

EDIT: The Pioneer AVR's, although not rated for them, drive 4 ohm speakers very well also.
Edited by Ishniknork - 1/22/13 at 8:14pm

Don't confuse spec with measurement, nor nominal with minimal. The 60s are supposedly 8ohm too:
http://www.stereophile.com/content/paradigm-reference-studio-60-v5-loudspeaker-measurements
The difference between 85w and 140w is <3db.

There are other issues to consider (you should see what a Krell 150w (KPA150) does at 2 ohm).

The 100v2 and v3 are also "8 ohm" speakers but have fairly wide and deep impedance dips. Wouldn't surprise me if the v5 was similar. If you don't push them it's probably no big deal.

I think v5 did dump the pole plugs in favor of pointy dust caps as part of a push to raise sensitivity. Is my memory correct there?

I guess I should have said "rated" at 8 ohms. And what is that ratio, it takes twice the power to get a 3db increase in volume? Is that correct? (seriously, I'm really asking if that is right. I know I've read that in here somewhere...)

That article is very interesting, thanks for the link. Maybe the reason the SC-25 drives my Studio's so well is because it is able to handle the impedance variations so well. Before I upgraded to the Studio line the SC-25 was driving a pair of 11se MKII's that were "rated" at 4 ohm and it handled them very well too.

I've run both the S2 and S6 off a 70W integrated and don't see any reason for more power. I can't really get to twelve on the volume without my ears HURTING. I think the power requirements are greatly exaggerated. I think it's fine to lust after nice amps; I know I do, but truthfully I don't see a true 140WPC receiver having any trouble driving them. The S2 and C3 cannot handle more than 140W of input power anyway, and the S6 isn't much higher at 200W.

I take it the NAD puts out 150W/channel?
I hope you realize that since you're still using the internal x-over, you're doing what they call passive bi-amping....essentially only 150W going into that speaker.

Yup 2x power for +3dB, which is only a slight increase in perceived volume. 10x power for +10dB, which is perceived as roughly twice as loud.

This is why incremental changes in power seldom seem to make much difference.

It's not about going LOUDER .. It's all about much more Clarity , much better Dynamic Realism .

Adding a decent power amp to the Studio 100's would transfer you to a completely new world .

Remember : " A loud clean undistorted sound wouldn't sound that loud " . What really hurts the ears is some level of misbehavior of your system due to some sort of clipping ..

I agree with Dayter 100%. I have a Pioneer elite receiver with 120/ch. It did a reasonable job. It certainly would play my 100s and 690 plenty loud. I recently purchased an Axiom 1500 ice amp (325 watts rms x3, all ch. driven, 20 to 20K) There IS a difference. The mids opened up and IMO, everything is just so much "cleaner". I haven't heard much feedback (or reviews) on the Axiom amps, but I sure like what it did for the 100s/690

Firstly: It could be problems from insufficient current that are causing the ear pain; rather than the SPL. I've amazed many a friend by cranking up a good set of speakers and then pointing out that their ears aren't hurting despite the volume.

Secondly: it's not an issue of wattage. That just lets you know max volume (and the difference between 70w and 140w is 3db). There are also issues like that of current.

Finally: capacitance starts to deal with the volume peaks (which under THX are +25db and +35db depending on frequency).

I also agree. I fine my studio's especially my cc 690 sounds a lot better with my xpa-5 than they did with my Marantz 7007. Not necessary louder. The sound just sounds clearer and more effortless than before.

I'm with you there. Even when i had my Studio 10v5's running off of my Pioneer Elite SC35 and SC61 they sounded much better when i added a 200 Acurus amp.

I should try running my Sig2 v3's without the 200watt amp and see how they sound.

Anyone know if the Signature S2v3 would blend with a Studio 690v5 or would it sound odd? I'm debating getting a S2v3 and moving my Studio 100v5 to another room for my wife. My local Paradigm dealer doesn't have Signatures on display so it is hard to hear for myself.

Thanks for confirming that whoaru99, I've learned a lot in forums like this (cars, TV's, BD players, pre/pro amps too) but all the information can be a little difficult to remember.


Well, after those testimonies I KNOW I am getting a power amp.

A friend of mine has an Emotiva XPA-3 sitting around that he replaced with the XPA-5. I'm trying to get him to sel it to me provided the price is right. Wish me luck!

The amp is NOT clipping or distorting the sound in any noticeable way. The volume is plain old loud approaching twelve. The integrated is a high-current design. I cannot listen at such a loud volume. You may listen at louder volumes, but I will consider that a personal preference and not a must have.

But yes, everyone buy your 200W Emotive amp. I don't think these speakers are so hard to drive that a $1000 integrated cannot get the job done.

My Sig 2v3's blend well with my 490cc. This is for a smaller bedroom and the 490cc does a good job, for much bigger rooms then a 690cc should do fine.

What integrated are you using?

 

I tried my Marantz PM 8003 with my S6 v3, S2 v3, Studio 10 v5, Studio 100 v5 and have been using the Studio 20 v5 with them for quite some time. The volume doesn't get any louder past the 12 o'clock, seems like the gain limits of the amp have been reached at that point. Even approaching the 12 o'clock mark I'm pushing the amp pretty hard, I can tell by the amount of heat it's producing. It is audible starting to have trouble pushing the speakers at those kinds of levels, to my ears anyway. YMMV with your IA.

Shipped my new MilleniaOne CT to Paradigm for repair/replacement because of a few issues they had (randomly shutting off for example) and 6 weeks later still no word. Called 4 times with no response. This is not good service and having no music is really dragging me down. Anyone else have lousy service lately?

I went to listen to the the studio 20 and CC-490 with the anthem 500mrx receiver and the Integra 40.4 and Integra 50.4 receivers. Wow the paradigm sounded great.
The salesman at the store told me if im listening to 70% music go with the anthem 500 If 70% HT go with Integra because of the better video processing.
But he told he had some customers that have both anthems 500 and Integra 50.4. And they use the anthem for music and the Integra for HT. I ended up buying studios 20 and CC-490 and the Integra 40.4 for
a great deal all brand new for a total of $3000.00 including taxes. Already had a sub and rear and rear surround ceiling speakers. I will now move my old studio 20 V2 and center channel and denon 3802 to my master bedroom.

I just bought some Studio 20 v.5 also they are replacing Monitor 11 v.5 so far they are impressive. The mid range and highs are by far cleaner the bass of course cant compete but they do well, with the sub i run its a non issue.

Now im on the hunt for nicer stands these are from the bedroom setup.

Although I am not a Paradigm owner, I had the privilege to hear the Paradigm Tribute at my local dealer today. Apparently they were able to get ahold of a "pre-production" sample and had it set up in a room connected to some Simaudio components. Quite the experience! Anyone in the Columbus, OH area who can should definitely go take a listen. PM me for details if you don't already know which dealer it is

Awesome set up!

I am currently interested in putting together my first 2.1 system. At the moment, I can afford a set of Studio 20s plus a Marantz 1403. I already have a sub lined up. My question is, will this be enough to adequately power the speakers? I will be using these probably 60/40 home theater to music. With more funds, I figured I could acquire an amp and continue to use the Marantz as a pre-amp. Thoughts?

I like the look of those slim Marantz, the 1403 is 50wpc this will be enough to drive studio 20's but I'd go for something a bit stronger. If you plan to buy a Amp later you should be good to go.

This would work quite nice http://shop.emotiva.com/collections/amplifiers/products/upa200

This was almost exactly my thought. I wasn't sure if there is much of a difference between the UPA200 (125W x 2) and the XPA 200 (150W x 2). For cost reasons, I was leaning towards the UPA...

Ive put my UPA-2 (same power as UPA-200) up against my XPA-300 200wpc powering my Monitor 11 and it held its own.