How long before Paradigm Studio series break in???

Depends on which paradigms you are using. If it is the Studio 20, 205 watts is plenty. If you are powering the Studio 100's, 205 is okay, but you could still use more. They take a very long time to break in. I would not do much serious listening before 200 hours. Just my opinion.

Which speakers from Paradigm do you have? Typically you need 75-100hrs before you sit down and critically listen to a speaker. I agree w/ S7horton though 200+ is even better. (also you should never play a brand new speaker very loud. you can burn up the tweeter and it is not covered under warrenty) I know this since I am a Paradigm dealer and they will not cover abused speakers. Let the speakers play at a low/medium volume while you're at work to help break them in (your dealer should've suggested this). Remember when you here speakers at a dealer they usually have hundreds of hours on them so they sound better. Hope this helped ya.

Meech33
You have not identified which of the studio series you have so I'll comment on mine. I have 60v2's that are now just about a year old (get the picture?). I'm only pushing 50w RMS each side at present through a old NAD 7100 receiver and yes they need more power. Like you I was not happy when I first set them up they sounded thin, harsh and very bright. It took about 3 three months for them to "start" coming around to the point where I could sit and listen for any length of time at all. Give them time, lot's & lot's of time. Don't push them to hard in the early stages, medium to moderately loud. The drivers need time to work and relax. I'll tell you mine sound great now. I now get so relaxed and drawn in by music it puts me to sleep and I end up missing what I wanted to listen to in the first place! My wife now just leave's me there in the chair. Give it time my friend you should end up being very happy.
Good luck and happy listening.

I'm sorry guys. I have the Studio 20's in the Rosenut wood veneer finish.

I've actually ran them a little loud for a few minutes a couple of times so far. I hope I haven't ruined the tweeter.

you should not have done that..if you want them really loud then you should go for a higher model..60' 80 or 100...

I don't neccesarily need to play them loud now. I can wait for that. I just want to be able to play them loud once they're broken in. When I heard them at the dealer, they went pretty loud with the 400+ watts behind them. I just want what I heard in the store.

wouldn't worry too much about the tweeters if you only did it for a few minutes...give them some hours behind them and they'll open right up and you can crank them. i own the 20s and i listen to my music farely loud so you won't have a problem.

Hi Meech. What is your room like? It could be a case of bare walls or speaker placement. In case you already have addressed the above issues, it could be that your ears are still used to your previous speakers sound. Although I do believe in breakin to a degree, I do believe that your ears getting used to a different sounding speaker is part of the break in process.

As far as how much power you may need to push them goes, your Paradigms are not as inefficent as some may lead you to believe. They are 4 ohm speakers but they are still pretty easy to push to high levels. The culprit I would bet is your room or your source material.

Paradigms are 8ohm speakers not 4ohm

I had the 20 V-1's at one time and drove them with a Dyna ST-70 @ 35wpc.
I tried them once with a 100 wpc NAD.
If you are expecting to get a "wall of sound" out of these,I doubt you will.
They are a fabulous speaker,dont get me wrong.But they just will only play 'so' loud.

Thanks for all of your feedback. I think I'll be selling these speakers pretty soon. I wwas planning on getting into tubes within a few months and I don't think these speakers are ideal for small tube power. I'm currently looking at the Coincident Triumph Signatures (94 dB). I think these will appreciate the SET amp I plan on getting.
Oh well, we'll see.

Thanks again.

If you're looking for efficent bookshelf speakers check out Reference 3a de capos. They're some of the best bookshelves I've heard.

speaker positioning -- experiment