Paradigm Monitor v7 vs Monitor SE

[NorCalRP]

I just recently went and listened to bookshelves in anticipation of upgrading my LCR setup. In case anyone is wondering I listened to the Paradigm Mini Monitor v7, Klipsch RP-160M, KEF Q100 and Monitor Audio Bronze 2. While I thought they all sounded nice, I came away liking the Paradigms most for my taste. I only listened to music during the demo because I'm either 50/50 or lean slightly in the music direction for my use.

The sales guy told me about the change from the v7 line to the SE line. He mentioned Paradigm wanting to be more price friendly and that a couple of the changes to accommodate the lower price points were a reduction in the quality of the mid/bass cones as well as losing the magnetic grills. Additionally there's just the Atom SE, so no apples to apples comparison on the Mini's. They did have the 6000F, but my ears are not refined enough to ascertain how the Atom SE might compare to the Mini v7 by listening to a tower with 3 additional drivers (he said they've been able to sell the Atom SE based upon auditioning the towers).

I'm hoping for opinions from those who might have heard an apples to apples comparison (on the two different versions of the Atom I guess), or can explain to me how they might differ by analyzing measurement data. I think it's worth mentioning that I'm looking for something significantly more dynamic than my current LCR ( Polk T15's and T30), hence my wanting to go to a larger bookshelf- can't do a tower without doing unwanted damage to my relationship . I'd also love to hear any suggestions for an ID equivalent in terms of sound characteristics but at a lower price (the Mini's are $450 NIB and $400 open box).

 

[Good4it]

No luck on your speaker issue but if it helps you are not alone with bookshelves vs towers issue.

 

[j_garcia]

IMO, pretty much all of the monitor line would be a step up from the Polks. I liked the RTiAs pretty well, but the T lines I was not a fan of. No offense, but it won't be that difficult to find better speakers than the Polks and Paradigm is only one option.

IMO the Philharmonic Audio AAs will destroy the T15s and are only $210/pr. He offers a center that aligns with their timbre as well. Maybe not the prettiest speakers out there though, as they do look a bit basic. The sound on the other hand, is were it counts and these deliver.

http://philharmonicaudio.com/aa.html

The Ascend CBM170SE has been around a long time. Also not so pretty, but again, sound where it counts:

http://ascendacoustics.com/pages/products/speakers/cbm170/cbm170.html

 

[NorCalRP]

IMO, pretty much all of the monitor line would be a step up from the Polks. I liked the RTiAs pretty well, but the T lines I was not a fan of. No offense, but it won't be that difficult to find better speakers than the Polks and Paradigm is only one option.

IMO the Philharmonic Audio AAs will destroy the T15s and are only $210/pr. He offers a center that aligns with their timbre as well. Maybe not the prettiest speakers out there though, as they do look a bit basic. The sound on the other hand, is were it counts and these deliver.

http://philharmonicaudio.com/aa.html

The Ascend CBM170SE has been around a long time. Also not so pretty, but again, sound where it counts:

http://ascendacoustics.com/pages/products/speakers/cbm170/cbm170.html

Oh man, the Polks are pretty sorry indeed. I originally bought everything for a 2.1 using all SVS gear, and took about 10 minutes to realize I really needed to get up to 5.2 . I was able to get the 3 Polks for $170, without any waiting at all, so I just went ahead and did that.

Yeah, those AA's do look very intriguing, and I was also eyeing the CMT340se. I think I'd probably go that way rather than the 170s

There's just so many dang choices!

 

[j_garcia]

The 370s are the way to go if you ask me, but they're big, which is the only reason I didn't mention them.

 

[NorCalRP]

The 370s are the way to go if you ask me, but they're big, which is the only reason I didn't mention them.

Are you familiar with their sound in the warm/neutral/bright sense? Or better yet how they compare to Paradigm or Klipsch since I've heard them recently?

 

[snakeeyes]

Are you familiar with their sound in the warm/neutral/bright sense? Or better yet how they compare to Paradigm or Klipsch since I've heard them recently?

Did you listen to the Paradigm Premier series? I’m curious about those.

 

[NorCalRP]

I d

Did you listen to the Paradigm Premier series? I’m curious about those.

I didn't. The only other one I listened to was the Prestige 75F. Unsurprisingly they sounded fantastic. I'd get castrated if I came home with something at that price point The Premiers definitely look interesting. The Monitors sounded pretty nice so I'd also be curious to hear the next step up.

 

[snakeeyes]

I d

I didn't. The only other one I listened to was the Prestige 75F. Unsurprisingly they sounded fantastic. I'd get castrated if I came home with something at that price point The Premiers definitely look interesting. The Monitors sounded pretty nice so I'd also be curious to hear the next step up.

Not quite worth the castration, eh? LOL.

Ya I work from home a couple days a week so I’ve gone from 80/20 to 60/40.

I looked at your other posts and sounds like the center is a concern. Did you audition any of the Paradigm centers? That center from SVS looks like it might be powerful and I know they do returns. Have you looked at SVS?

 

[NorCalRP]

Not quite worth the castration, eh? LOL.

Ya I work from home a couple days a week so I’ve gone from 80/20 to 60/40.

I looked at your other posts and sounds like the center is a concern. Did you audition any of the Paradigm centers? That center from SVS looks like it might be powerful and I know they do returns. Have you looked at SVS?

I have thought about SVS as I have some sats I could trade in, but I'm worried about them being too bright. Now I'm wondering if it might be worth looking at going with 3 centers, all of which I'd mount vertically, to have a matched set. Any thoughts there?

 

[snakeeyes]

The ascend 340 looks great on specs. Sensitivity of 90db so easy to power. You will want a subwoofer though. Looks like they also sell stands that make them look like towers. That is cool. Best setup would be dual subs but one would be good enough and set the avr crossover at 80hz or so. I’m sure someone here has heard them. Maybe search the forum here. Also AVS forum. Also the Ascend forum. This model has been around for several years so you should find some reviews.

 

[NorCalRP]

The ascend 340 looks great on specs. Sensitivity of 90db so easy to power. You will want a subwoofer though. Looks like they also sell stands that make them look like towers. That is cool. Best setup would be dual subs but one would be good enough and set the avr crossover at 80hz or so. I’m sure someone here has heard them. Maybe search the forum here. Also AVS forum. Also the Ascend forum. This model has been around for several years so you should find some reviews.

Totally agree on the dual. I bought a PB1000 when I got the SVS sats. It couldn't have been more than a few weeks later when I saw a HSU VTF-3 MK4 in mint condition for $300, so I HAD to get it, much to the chagrin of my gal. To say that those two subs effectively pressurize my 16x12 room wouldn't be an exaggeration.

I've started eyeballing Elacs. The price point on the Debut series is tough to ignore. The front ports are attractive to me as I can't (read I'm not allowed) to bring them out as far as I'd like. I'm also curious about Wharfdales due to their port configuration. Any thoughts or experience with either of those?

 

[snakeeyes]

Ok ya I remember now. You looking at used stuff on Craigslist too? I have seen 340 on Craigslist before. I haven’t heard the elac or wharfdales but definitely keep an eye on speaker sensitivity so you don’t have to upgrade the receiver.

 

[NorCalRP]

Ok ya I remember now. You looking at used stuff on Craigslist too? I have seen 340 on Craigslist before. I haven’t heard the elac or warfdales but definitely keep an eye on speaker sensitivity so you don’t have to upgrade the receiver.

Yeah, it's something I pay attention to, as well as impedance. I work in power delivery (linework), so I have a pretty good understanding of electrical theory hence my attention to impedance. While it makes complete sense to me that a speaker rated at 87db and 6ohms would require much more power than one rated at 90db and 8ohms, the sales guy at my local shop where I listened to Klipsch, Paradigm, Monitor and KEF stated that too many folks get caught up on sensitivity.

He mentioned the importance of capacitors in the equation- specifically he said that bass frequencies that require more extension while moving a larger mass require the higher, short term wattage that a capacitor will provide. He said, with regards to sensitivity and power, that if you are using large speakers with a lot of mass to move (really large drivers or several large/medium-large drivers) and listen to music with a lot of mid to low bass then amplifier power is going to be an important consideration. Otherwise, he said, most speakers (especially bookshelfs) will use fewer than 25watts continuously with short bursts of higher power. His case was made fairly well by the fact that he was driving the speakers I was listening to with the 50wpc Marantz Slimline AVR.

I gotta tell you, dude... I can research all this stuff to death. I'm almost thinking at this point to grab the Mini Monitor v7 along with the Monitor SE center, for a total of $600+tax and just be done with it. I did really enjoy the sound of those Paradigms. I'm just hung up on the what if aspect of not being able to listen to some of these other speakers.

 

[snakeeyes]

Ya that’s a good deal. I would go for it.

 

[2channel lover]

Yeah, it's something I pay attention to, as well as impedance. I work in power delivery (linework), so I have a pretty good understanding of electrical theory hence my attention to impedance. While it makes complete sense to me that a speaker rated at 87db and 6ohms would require much more power than one rated at 90db and 8ohms, the sales guy at my local shop where I listened to Klipsch, Paradigm, Monitor and KEF stated that too many folks get caught up on sensitivity.

He mentioned the importance of capacitors in the equation- specifically he said that bass frequencies that require more extension while moving a larger mass require the higher, short term wattage that a capacitor will provide. He said, with regards to sensitivity and power, that if you are using large speakers with a lot of mass to move (really large drivers or several large/medium-large drivers) and listen to music with a lot of mid to low bass then amplifier power is going to be an important consideration. Otherwise, he said, most speakers (especially bookshelfs) will use fewer than 25watts continuously with short bursts of higher power. His case was made fairly well by the fact that he was driving the speakers I was listening to with the 50wpc Marantz Slimline AVR.

I gotta tell you, dude... I can research all this stuff to death. I'm almost thinking at this point to grab the Mini Monitor v7 along with the Monitor SE center, for a total of $600+tax and just be done with it. I did really enjoy the sound of those Paradigms. I'm just hung up on the what if aspect of not being able to listen to some of these other speakers.

I totally understand about hearing them first.

I bought a pair of Salks (designed by Murphy) sorta on blind faith (and a LOT of owner reviews) and clearly they are the best speakers I've owned in 30+ yrs in this hobby and they out performed some that I did demo that were more than twice the price.

My 1st exposure to Paradigms was some 20 yrs ago with the Atom book shelf speaker...I was so impressed with the performance and price that I bought a Paradigm CC (to go with my B&W 800 series speakers) and sub. Get the Monitors and a few years down the line if you get the itch to upgrade there will be a market for them if you want to sell them.

Good luck with it, but if your choice is between the AA's or the Monitor v7s...I don't see how you can go wrong.

 

[NorCalRP]

I totally understand about hearing them first.

I bought a pair of Salks (designed by Murphy) sorta on blind faith (and a LOT of owner reviews) and clearly they are the best speakers I've owned in 30+ yrs in this hobby and they out performed some that I did demo that were more than twice the price.

My 1st exposure to Paradigms was some 20 yrs ago with the Atom book shelf speaker...I was so impressed with the performance and price that I bought a Paradigm CC (to go with my B&W 800 series speakers) and sub. Get the Monitors and a few years down the line if you get the itch to upgrade there will be a market for them if you want to sell them.

Good luck with it, but if your choice is between the AA's or the Monitor v7s...I don't see how you can go wrong.

When I was in college in '95 I got my first student loan. As soon as the check cleared I went and bought a pair of the Titans and a sub. Man, at 19 years old, I was so stoked!

 

[2channel lover]

When I was in college in '95 I got my first student loan. As soon as the check cleared I went and bought a pair of the Titans and a sub. Man, at 19 years old, I was so stoked!

I remember the Titans too. I actually went in there looking for a B&W CC to finish out my front 3 and finally get a 5.1 set up completed...I didn't have nor was I interested in paying $2k for a B&W CC...even though it never was a proper match the CC190 served me for a few years.

My 15" sub was good for movies but not so much for music...compared to the subs I have now...let's just say sub technology has improved a great deal...lol.

If you want the flattest sound...the AA's are probably going to get you closer to it than the Paradigm's but I'm still a fan of their speakers and wouldn't hesitate to buy the Monitor v7s.

 

[KEW]

I've started eyeballing Elacs. The price point on the Debut series is tough to ignore. The front ports are attractive to me as I can't (read I'm not allowed) to bring them out as far as I'd like. I'm also curious about Wharfdales due to their port configuration. Any thoughts or experience with either of those?

I was disappointed when I heard the Elacs.
Here is my comparison of them to the Philharmonic AA's (which I consider the speaker to beat in this price range).

https://forums.audioholics.com/forums/threads/elac-b5-vs-philharmonic-affordable-accuracy-new-monitor.97171/

Also, don't sweat the rear vs front port too much. Ports do not need a ton of space to operate properly. Gene recommended 1.5 times the port diameter to prevent restriction, so if you have a 3" port, you want 4.5" minimum clearance behind the speaker. Otherwise, the main concern is how much bass increase you get from being too close to the wall. In general, I put my speakers so the front is even with the front of my console. My console is 16" deep and I usually leave about 6" behind it so I am not "crunching" the cords for 22" total. With a typical 12" deep bookshelf, that leaves 10" clearance behind, which is plenty. Of course, this would not apply for dipole or electrostatic speakers where the mid and upper frequencies are radiated towards the wall as well as forward.

Edit: Be sure to also check the thread Dennis Murphy linked in post #5. Everything BClark said about speakers I have heard rang true, so I am inclined to trust his comments on the ones I have not heard as well. The Wharfedales I have heard were earlier models from almost a decade ago (all have been revised),but I have always felt pretty good about their value as a nice sounding speaker at a reasonable cost!

 

[NorCalRP]

Ya that’s a good deal. I would go for it.

So I went for it. As it turned out, the owner of the shop had done a custom install and used one of a pair of the Mini, so I bought the other to have my LCR matching and vertical.