Paradigm Persona series

I’ve been reading this thread for a while, and as an audiophile consumer... here’s my 2-cents.

I’ve never met or spoken with audiotroy or visited his shop, but what I have done is auditioned several high-end speakers in the $10-$25K range recently when I was bitten by the bug to upgrade. Frustratingly the Magico A3 was no where on display in the Washington DC area last year when I was doing my auditioning, but I listened extensively to Dynaudio’s new flagship Contour, Focal Sopra 3s, Rockport Atrias, Persona 5Fs and a few others. I auditioned these speakers several times in the various shops where they were on display... both with the dealer’s preferred gear and then finally with my own gear. I literally hauled my Hegel 30 amp, Hegel 30 DAC, Ansuz power conditioning, Aurender music server, all cabling and still-points to each place so I could hear the speakers with my own gear.

When this quest began... the speaker that sounded the best (in a room that closely approximated the size and shape of my own) was the Persona 5Fs driven by the dealer’s preferred Meridian amp and dac/pre front-end (and I think MIT cabling). It sounded lovely... silky, airy, open, expansive and lush. Bass was deep and powerful and palpable... midrange was liquid and utterly detailed with no brightness, harshness, or glare. Those were the speakers I was ready to buy. Then I swapped out the gear with my own... which was by no stretch sub-par. However, the sweetness and glow of the music vanished, and it just sounded "good" but no longer seductive (though still not . Interestingly, moving my same gear to the Rockports was almost a revelation... and was some of the best bass I have ever heard. In the end the speakers my own gear paired best with seemed to be the Focal Sopra 3s.

In any case, the point of this story is that in the same room, the same set of Persona 5Fs sounded phenomenal fronted by one system, but then swapping in another (of comparable cost and audiophile design) only sounded "good" but not compelling.

We all know that gear matters... and can matter a lot. Most of us have been around long enough and have changed enough components in our system over time to know that some $$$ gear can make or break a system... and what sounds fabulous in one system can degrade the sound of another. It’s all about the synergy.

So why are we arguing?

-Dave

At the dealer where I compared (in the same room with speakers in the same basic location), using my Hegel 30 amp, 30 dac, and Aurender music server (and Anzus C2 Cabling)...

The Contour 60s sounded "good" and had phenomenal bass... so extended, effortless, and with "punch" when called for. However, the soundscape was "monochromatic" or to use another visual example... it was like the color was washed out and subdued. At least they sounded that way when listening to them right *after* listening to the Sopra 3s.

The Sopra 3s had bass that was articulate, but less satisfying to my ears without a sense of weight and authority (though they did go low)... that's where the Dyns really beat them IMO. But the mids and highs were glorious... airy, open, extended, not shrill or bright at all... with resolution and micro detail that kept making me wonder how anything could sound higher-resolution than the red-book CD files I was playing. There was also a lush and alive sound to vocals that was seductive... which was why I ultimately bought them.

After having them for a few months I wasn't thrilled with how they sounded in my own living space (I had a hard time getting front/back holographic imaging with them for some reason in my own house... and that's a key criteria that makes me happy when I listen to high-end audio) and I needed cash given some unexpected issues that came up.

I kept my Ansuz cable upgrades (speaker cable and power cords) that I had done at the same time I had bought the Sopras and wow... that has totally transformed my entire system and made my old (I kid you not) AV 123 "rockets" sound better-than-ever. I hope in a few years to be ready to sound-treat the room and figure out what used speakers might be available at that time so I don't take such a financial risk/loss the next go-around.