Paradigm Monitor series questions...

[IRG]

I have monitor 7's up front, mini monitors for rear and cc370 center and I absolutely love them. I don't know what else to tell you. These are some very fine speakers. I had considered the monitor 5's at one time but they are nothing more than a monitor 3 in a bigger box. I also found out from a dealer in Indiana that there were some problems with the 5's and they weren't sonically up to paradigm standards. Don't remember what the problem was but the dealer won't even recommend them anymore. And besides, you are getting the 7's at a fery good price.

Interesting about the Monitor 5s. Maybe that was why my dealer almost never sells or orders them either. At $580 that seems to be a pretty ood price on the 7s. Not sure if I can get by without them being shielded. I will have to check tonite. Where in Indiana are you? I went to grad school at IUPUI in Indy. Nice city, seemed to be improving a lot by the time I left.

[axelsrd]

Interesting about the Monitor 5s. Maybe that was why my dealer almost never sells or orders them either. At $580 that seems to be a pretty ood price on the 7s. Not sure if I can get by without them being shielded. I will have to check tonite. Where in Indiana are you? I went to grad school at IUPUI in Indy. Nice city, seemed to be improving a lot by the time I left.

I don't live in Indiana. I was working with a dealer to have them shipped to Atlanta to see if it would be cheaper to pay him shipping as apposed to paying the sales tax here. I ended up buying local and paying the tax. I auditioned the 7's, 9's and 11's side by side bouncing back and forth. The 9's had a bit better bass as they use two 8" vs two 6.5". The 11's, well, I couldn't hear any difference between them and the 7's so I ended up with the 7's at $659 out the door and never looked back. I didn't need the extra low end because I use a sub. I can't tell you how to spend your money other than stay away from the 5's.

[axelsrd]

Not sure if I can get by without them being shielded.

If you have a projection tv it won't matter.

[IRG]

If you have a projection tv it won't matter.

No I have a regular flat screen tube unit. Where in Atlanta do you live? My wife is from Marietta, and we might move back to that area in another year. I like it, except for the traffic. Are there any good audio shops in the area? There must be, given its size. If not, maybe I will open my own shop, then I can switch gear all the time!

[bikehikefish]

IRG -

I currently use Mini-Monitors (V1) with the PS-1000 sub. They are great.

Recently I considered buying a pair of Monitor 7s on ebay, which went for $275. I went to my local Paradigm dealer and auditioned the Minis and 7s side by side. Was there a difference? Without a sub involved the 7s had more bass than the Minis (obviously). With a sub, there was a difference, but not much. Little better mid range with the 7s, better imaging. But to me, it wasn't a $275 improvement, so I didn't buy the 7s.

My opinion is, if you are using your speakers for 80% HT, and you are using a sub, the Monitor 7s won't be that much better to justify the cost.

[IRG]

IRG -

I currently use Mini-Monitors (V1) with the PS-1000 sub. They are great.

Recently I considered buying a pair of Monitor 7s on ebay, which went for $275. I went to my local Paradigm dealer and auditioned the Minis and 7s side by side. Was there a difference? Without a sub involved the 7s had more bass than the Minis (obviously). With a sub, there was a difference, but not much. Little better mid range with the 7s, better imaging. But to me, it wasn't a $275 improvement, so I didn't buy the 7s.

My opinion is, if you are using your speakers for 80% HT, and you are using a sub, the Monitor 7s won't be that much better to justify the cost.

Thanks, I appreciate your comments. I suspect what you are saying is probably pretty close to what I would find too. In a bigger room, I could see the 7s making more sense as well. This is a small/medium sized room.

I am still considering a pair of JM Labs Chorus 706 S as well. Another dealer has them for a good price. Plus I wouldn't pay tax either, which adds up in NYS (8.25%). But I do like to support local dealers if possible. Hopefully this weekend I will be able to do some listening to see if anything grabs me.

[axelsrd]

No I have a regular flat screen tube unit. Where in Atlanta do you live? My wife is from Marietta, and we might move back to that area in another year. I like it, except for the traffic. Are there any good audio shops in the area? There must be, given its size. If not, maybe I will open my own shop, then I can switch gear all the time!

Now this is getting weird...I live in Marietta but I am being transfered to New Orleans. Have to be there on the 11th. Anyway, bikehikefish has a good point, if it is a small room then maybe mini monitors up front and maybe a pair of Titans for rear and of course a center and sub. This is the setup I had before I moved the minis back and got the 7's.

[IRG]

Now this is getting weird...I live in Marietta but I am being transfered to New Orleans. Have to be there on the 11th. Anyway, bikehikefish has a good point, if it is a small room then maybe mini monitors up front and maybe a pair of Titans for rear and of course a center and sub. This is the setup I had before I moved the minis back and got the 7's.

Does anyone like the Monitor 3 over the minimonitor? At this price point, I can get the JMLabs Chorus 706 S for about the same price, and I would probably go for those. TOugh to decide when I can't hear both back to back. Good luck with the move to New Orleans. I've never been there, but will be there in May for a conference. Supposed to be a fun town!

[jasmit]

I like Paradigm speakers; I'm a Reference Studio owner. And Paradigm's Monitor series are not bad speakers at all for the price. But to my way of thinking, JMLab Chorus series speakers are a step or two up from Paradigm's Monitor series. And IMO they are much nicer to look at. Assuming you really like the sound of the JMLab, go with those over the Paradigm Monitors.

[IRG]

I like Paradigm speakers; I'm a Reference Studio owner. And Paradigm's Monitor series are not bad speakers at all for the price. But to my way of thinking, JMLab Chorus series speakers are a step or two up from Paradigm's Monitor series. And IMO they are much nicer to look at. Assuming you really like the sound of the JMLab, go with those over the Paradigm Monitors.

That is kind of what I have been thinking lately too. The Monitor's seem nice enough but they really aren't much of a step up from what I have now, and don't look as nice either (got to keep the wife happy). The JM Labs do look nice, and the Monitor Audio Silver look even better. I would like to demo the B&Ws before I make any decision, but not sure when I can do that. I may look at the PSB Image speakers too, another decent speaker in this category, and something that is local. Still looking...

[cam]

Does anyone like the Monitor 3 over the minimonitor? At this price point, I can get the JMLabs Chorus 706 S for about the same price, and I would probably go for those. TOugh to decide when I can't hear both back to back. Good luck with the move to New Orleans. I've never been there, but will be there in May for a conference. Supposed to be a fun town!

I have auditioned all the monitors and ended up buying the 7's. Reason I did, besides the sound, was that I wouldn't need stands. The 9's and 11's were more money with no real improvement. If I had to buy a standmount I would have bought the 3's although I would have been satisfied with the mini's. The 5's sounded thin and less dynamic and to be perfectly honest, looked very goofy on stands. The 3's on the other hand are a tad fat which may need a little getting use to visually, but sound very full and can take alot of abuse. One thing to consider here is the speaker efficiency, example, the mini's are 90db 1/w1/m, while the 7's are 93db. If you had a 75 watt amplifier powering the 7's, to reach the same volume with the mini's you would need a 150 watt amp. Having the 7's can save you from having to buy more power down the road. Just a thought.

[oddeoowphil38]

Does anyone like the Monitor 3 over the minimonitor? At this price point, I can get the JMLabs Chorus 706 S for about the same price, and I would probably go for those. TOugh to decide when I can't hear both back to back. Good luck with the move to New Orleans. I've never been there, but will be there in May for a conference. Supposed to be a fun town!

Hello there I am a newbie here. But I must tell you that I really like the monitor 3's. They a have more presence and are fuller sounding as compared to the mini's. The 3's also play a lil deeper than the mini's because of the 8" midbass vs. the 61/2" on the mini's. Just thought I would add my two cents so to speak. Good luck on your descision and remember what works for you is paramount. That is, speaker choice is highly subjective -so if one brand sounds better to you then go with them and be done with it or you will go insane like I did.

[IRG]

Hello there I am a newbie here. But I must tell you that I really like the monitor 3's. They a have more presence and are fuller sounding as compared to the mini's. The 3's also play a lil deeper than the mini's because of the 8" midbass vs. the 61/2" on the mini's. Just thought I would add my two cents so to speak. Good luck on your descision and remember what works for you is paramount. That is, speaker choice is highly subjective -so if one brand sounds better to you then go with them and be done with it or you will go insane like I did.

I ended up buying the Monior 3 and have liked them quite a bit. I auditioned them with what I formerly owned, the Energy C-3, and the Monitor 3 is a fuller sounding speaker. I also auditioned them to the more expensive Paradigm Reference 20 v3, and surprisingly on some music, I preferred the Monitor 3, and other music (classical) I preferred the 20. Overall, I would have taken the 20 if the cost was similar, but since they were more than twice the cost, I was happy enough with the Monitor 3. My next purchase is a better sub that will really make the Monitor 3s shine.