HiWire Posted October 12, 2009 Report Posted October 12, 2009 I am reserving this space for impressions about Paradigm's new Special Edition speakers. I'll try to audition them in the next month or so...
swt61 Posted October 13, 2009 Report Posted October 13, 2009 Did you think that we'd be out of space later?
cetoole Posted October 13, 2009 Report Posted October 13, 2009 He will be, considering the length of the edit window.
n_maher Posted October 13, 2009 Report Posted October 13, 2009 He will be, considering the length of the edit window. Precisely why I left it instead of deleting it. Stupid is as stupid does.
swt61 Posted October 13, 2009 Report Posted October 13, 2009 I thought maybe he had special editing privileges.
aerius Posted December 25, 2009 Report Posted December 25, 2009 Well, since I recently auditioned the SE3 version of the Paradigm S6, I'll go highjack this thread with my impressions. Frontend was a Rotel CD player and Bryston integrated amp, not the fancy tube stuff I normally audition but not too shabby either. The short version is I was not impressed. I don't think I can really blame the frontend since it sounded decent & better with PMC FB1i speakers. The sound is too crisp, I find there's too much emphasis on the attack and leading edge of all snare drum & cymbal hits, it's unnaturally sharp and out of balance with the rest of the instruments. Even on a great recording such as Whites Off Earth Now!! by the Cowboy Junkies the cymbals get to be a bit too much after a few songs, at which point it gets kinda tiring. The midrange seems ok, it doesn't have the full richness which I prefer but there's no obvious colourations, resonances, or wonky stuff. Mass choral works sound fine, as do strings and brass instruments though the latter two tend to get a bit crispy on the higher notes. Acoustic guitar sounds a little weird though, especially when playing chords. They sound like the microphone's too close & placed funny, the pick & string sounds aren't in balance with the sound from the body of the guitar. Bass was ok, except there wasn't enough of it. It was more like electrostatic bass than dynamic bass, it's there but there isn't enough and I don't really feel it. Takes the fun out of blues jams, playing some tracks off It's Time by Jimmy D Lane wasn't much fun. It's a Steve Hoffman mastering job so it should sound freakin' awesome and kill, and on a good system you will get down and boogie. It doesn't groove on the Paradigms, yeah it's nice & detailed and all, but frankly it's more fun & full of feeling and life even in my car's system which is factory stock and nothing to write home about. I could write more, but frankly it's fucking depressing. They K701'd the damn speaker. If you like Beyers, K701s, or the HD800 you can check it out, if you're a Grado person, I can't recommend it.
HiWire Posted December 28, 2009 Author Report Posted December 28, 2009 I'm going to take a pass on it, then... I guess it's going to be Sonus Faber after all...
Sherwood Posted December 28, 2009 Report Posted December 28, 2009 So wait... this actually worked out well for the OP? Damn. Way to encourage him, Aerius...
aerius Posted December 28, 2009 Report Posted December 28, 2009 I'm going to take a pass on it, then... I guess it's going to be Sonus Faber after all... Before you go Sonus Faber, check out Opera Loudspeakers as well. Similar design, but better sound for the money. I find they're more open and neutral sounding than their Sonus Faber counterparts at a given pricepoint, while still remaining quite musical. MKOM in Toronto has them, take a listen to the Quad ESL-57 too while you're there.
DigiPete Posted December 28, 2009 Report Posted December 28, 2009 Looks like a budget speaker from Paradigm, below the reference line. I have been toying with the idea of auditioning a Paradigm Signature 6
aerius Posted December 28, 2009 Report Posted December 28, 2009 Apparently, I can't read my own handwriting anymore. The Paradigm speaker I auditioned was the Signature S6 version 3, which I'd abbreviated as "Sig3 S6" and somehow mis-read as SE3 S6. I think. I'm still not entirely sure of what I wrote, but fortunately I took pictures, and the speaker is definitely the Signature S6.
DigiPete Posted December 28, 2009 Report Posted December 28, 2009 bummer that the Signature S6 v3 does not sound fantastic
Dusty Chalk Posted December 28, 2009 Report Posted December 28, 2009 Before you go Sonus Faber, check out <other speakers blah blah blah>Yeah, but does it come in leather?
HiWire Posted December 28, 2009 Author Report Posted December 28, 2009 That actually hurts even more... I was thinking about getting the "nice" Paradigms for years - particularly the Signature S6. I'll still go and audition them, but it sounds like they're better left to the home theater guys. I read that they did something to the drivers to save cost, compared to the last revision of the Signature series. I'll check out the Opera and Quad loudspeakers and then go back to re-audition the Totem "The One" and the PSB Synchrony Ones. Unfortunately, I think my budget is going to be closer to $2,000 for a pair of speakers rather than $5,000, which is almost certainly going to lead to serious compromises. The only way to get good speakers at that price is to buy used. aerius knows me - I don't compromise much on sound quality, so I'll probably delay the speaker question for another few years until I can afford something better.
aerius Posted December 28, 2009 Report Posted December 28, 2009 Yeah, but does it come in leather? Yes the Operas come with leather front & back, and you can get them in piano gloss black. And the Quads are totally black Are you happy now?
spritzer Posted December 28, 2009 Report Posted December 28, 2009 Are the stators painted black on the ESL57? Almost all black paints have carbon in them which isn't a very good idea with high voltages. Even the guy which runs Quads Unlimited made that error though...
aerius Posted December 29, 2009 Report Posted December 29, 2009 Are the stators painted black on the ESL57? Almost all black paints have carbon in them which isn't a very good idea with high voltages. Even the guy which runs Quads Unlimited made that error though... I think so, but I'm not 100% sure to be honest. In the shop's picture it looks like the stators are painted while in one of my own photos it looks more like a painted grill cover or something of that sort.
HiWire Posted December 29, 2009 Author Report Posted December 29, 2009 the Thiel CS1.6 can be had new for $2000, and they sound seriously good for the money. used opens up a whole new ballpark, of course... Thanks, Reks. I'll look around for Thiel dealers in my area.
Dusty Chalk Posted December 29, 2009 Report Posted December 29, 2009 Yes the Operas come with leather front & back, and you can get them in piano gloss black. And the Quads are totally black Are you happy now?Actually, yes.
HiWire Posted February 13, 2011 Author Report Posted February 13, 2011 (edited) I heard two pairs of nice floorstanding speakers today. First, I checked out the PMC GB1i and then I heard the PSB Synchrony Two - both are about $3,500 at list price. The PMCs are a bit more compact than the PSBs (no giants themselves). They were hooked up to a Simaudio Moon CD3.3 and i3.3 amplifier. I played some music from Santana's Abraxas (Mo-Fi) and the SACD of Alison Krauss + Union Station's Live album. The PMCs destroyed the PSBs. They are much more lively and fast than the PSBs, without being overly bright or harsh. I heard the Synchrony Two years ago and I wasn't too impressed, but it was a very short session at the time. After reading a lot of positive reviews, I decided to give them another shot. Unfortunately, they didn't stand up to a comparison with the British pair. Bass in the Synchrony Two was boomy and slow. It sounded like the bass player was literally behind the PMC rendition by an quarter of a beat. The highs and mids were relatively clean, but they struggled to push through the veil of the mid-bass bloom. They also lacked the liveliness and drive of the GB1i. Imaging was diffuse in the PSB compared to the PMC. Switching back to the PMCs from the PSBs was a bit of a shock. It was easier to go from the high-energy, precise, and upfront performers to the more laid-back sound of the PSBs than the other way around. The GB1i isn't shy about details, but it offers a balanced presentation, overall. I still want to hear the Paradigm Signature S6 v3, but I'll also continue to audition other tower speakers in the $2,000 - $6,000 range. Based on my listening session, I'd be very interested in hearing the slightly larger, $5,500 PMC FB1i (perhaps the Signature edition) at length with a greater variety of listening material. Edited February 13, 2011 by HiWire
swt61 Posted February 14, 2011 Report Posted February 14, 2011 So then you'r entire review could be summed up as... FWIW PMC>PSB NTTAWWT.
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