Paradigm speakers
https://www.soundstagehifi.com/index.php/opinion/1350-paradigm-shift-the-bagbys-are-back Some new Paradigm company info. |
Strange to hear such wildly different interpretations and perspective on Paradigm. The one thing I will agree with, is that they don’t seem to be talked about nearly as much as they should on these types of forums (here, audiokarma, etc). But that said, they’ve certainly been reviewed extensively. Most notably, Stereophile always gave detailed reviews of every iteration in the studio line, starting with their first/v1 review: https://www.stereophile.com/content/paradigm-reference-studio20-loudspeaker-page-2 where they note it’s "by a wide margin, the finest speaker ... ever heard under $1,000." Certainly subjective, but I personally think that’s a fair statement. Each follow-up review, as they released the v2, v3, and so on, held similar sentiments, focusing more on upgrades and changes made compared to the previous version. Now, me personally? I grabbed a used pair of the v3, and absolutely LOVE them. To me, they simply sound fantastic. I recently grabbed a pair of KEF LS50s on sale for $1,000, thinking they may change my mind, and I’d stick with those. Nope. Didn’t care for them at all and returned (they get a lot of love on these boards, and some criticisms as well, of course), and to me, the Paradigm studio 20 v3s destroyed them. As stereophile noted years ago, I don’t think I’ll ever touch the sound quality of these for $1000. In fact, I think I’d have to drop at least $3k to get similar sound quality. As for those who don’t like the high-end/treble of them? Idk, me personally, I find myself turning off my pre-amps "tone" bypass so I can up the treble on these when listening to music. Not enough for me. It’s super clear, very refined, but I like a bit more treble. Perhaps it’s my pre-amp/amp combo being on the warmer side? (parasound halo p6 and A23+ — But then again, I'm also usually listening on my Rega with an Ania MC, which is pretty up there as far as treble. Who knows). All things said, I think Paradigm makes some fantastic products. Even just grabbed a 2.1 powered unit from them just for a small office setup without even demoing them, because I love the sound so much (paradigm 2.1 millenia CT, for any interested). Nothing mindblowing, but used for $100 was certainly worth it, and definitely can’t be beat for a decent computer w/ DAC setup. Anyways, just my 2 cents on Paradigm. I’m personally a big fan. |
