Monitor Audio S2, Axiom M3, Paradigm Mini Monitor or Studio 20 (1 Viewer)

[Nigel Hooper]

The B2 in many ways are magical speakers that perform well above their price point. It's one of those rare cases in audio where everything just comes together in a wonderfully synergistic way. While I truly do like the 20s they just lack that special musical quality that the B2s have; they're more clinical if you will. I actually prefer the B2 to the S2 as well. I eventually went to the S6 and it was in a whole other category.

 

[mackie]

Rokzi - thanks for writing up the comparison between the speakers. I have a couple of questions I hope you don't mind answering.

Were the studio 20s in the open or was it within close proximity of anything like another speaker, TV, or piece of furniture? When I had my Studio 40s too close to my RPTV, they sounded similar to what you're describing, but when I gave them more breathing room the vocals became much clearer and more forward. Also, it you have to pay special attention to tweeter location with these.

I don't necessarily believe in break-in times, but... my paradigms did seem to improve in clarity and lost any coloration that was there when I first got them over time. It might be that I'm used to the sound, but I have another brand of speakers in the house and I'm always amazed at the lack of any coloration with voices in the studios when I go back to them.

Okay, that was more than questions. I'm just curious.

 

[Max F]

Thanks for the write-up! Its nice to see the Monitor Audios get some props on this board. I love mine (B4 and B1s). I really enjoyed listening to the S2s when i had the chance. Thats how i fell in love with the brand; just couldn't afford them. I hope you get a chance to try them out. However, the B2s are classics as far as bang for the buck is concerned.

 

[Rokzi]

The Studio 20s are demo units, so if it needs break-in, I'm sure it's already broken in...

... still trying to get those pictures... I'll try again later today.

Now that MAs are increasingly becoming available they are becoming popular... that's what I think.

 

[mackie]

Good discussion.

The

I've heard most people, and based on my experience, describe the Studio series, especially vocals, more forward, extremely detailed, and bright but not laid back. That's why I was asking about placement and tweeter positioning.

The Studio's soundstange and imaging are quite good and the sweet spot is fairly wide, but they have to positioned correctly for this to happen. The sound tends to interact easily with objects around them. I'd be curious what other Paradigm Studio owners say.

What kind of table are they on? A table will affect how they sound. How high is the table?

I also recommend listening for awhile and not doing quick A-B comparisons. Sit with the sound for a couple of hours before switching to another pair. Pay attention to detail and nuances in music you know well. The Paradigms will really come alive and show their strengths for critical music listening when you do that.

Again, I'm mostly curios. When I was auditioning speakers before buying the Studios, I listened to many speakers. I listened to a floor standing speaker from the Monitor Audio Gold series. This is from memory from awhile back, so keep that in mind. It was an excellent speaker, and I would describe it's overall sonic character as warm. However, it wasn't to my liking.

I am partial to the Studios, and I think that some of the sound qualities you're describing can be attributed to set-up. I truly appreciate that people have different preferences with speakers, and that doesn't make one better than the other.

 

[John Garcia]

I actually think the Studios have a DIP in the lower midrange that makes them sound this way. I call it a "dished" sound, because they are forward at the top and upper midrange, pulled back in the middle, then have nice punchy bass. To me, this doesn't work with vocals, and it's very noticable to me with a lot of the music that I listen to. For movies they sounded great. They definitely have "presence"; they are a very lively speaker. The highs are sparkling, but when the music is busy and fast, like fast jazz or techno, they seem to compress. I ran the 20s with my Marantz PM7000 (true 95wpc) and the 40s on my Marantz 8300 (rated 120wpc). I know it's not my electronics, because I heard the same thing in various stores with a variety of electronics. I listen to a little of everything, but the majority of my listening is female vocals and techno, so the Studios didn't work for me.

The Axioms are clear, they just aren't "lively" like the Studios. When we auditioned them, I threw in a movie just for kicks and found that they blended nearly seemlessly with the rest of the Monitor series speakers I had at the time (Minis, CC370). Excellent speakers for the price.

I thought the Studios had a nice soundstage until I heard the GR Research A/V-1s. I ended up buying a full compliment of A/V-2s and A/V-1s.

I completely agree with Mackie that on a table may not be the best place to audition, but at least it sounds like they were all subjected to similar conditions, so you probably got a good representation. Make sure they are all pulled to the front edge of the table or they will reflect off the table's surface. Ideally, you would want to put each speaker in roughly the same location when listening, though some tweaking may be needed to get them to image properly. My mains are about 8' apart and are pulled about 1' in front of my display, and this is the setup I start with in most cases. I had to pull the 40s in by about 4" each to get them to image well.

Rozki, we have some very similar tastes in music. I include Tiesto's In My Memory to audition speakers because it gives the midrange and bass a good workout. Nice write up too!

 

[Jeff-0]

Do you mean right beside each other??

speakers could never produce a soundfield sitting right next to each other..........????

 

[Rokzi]

Sorry I'm having trouble getting my site up. (Programmer's default response when something not working: "It was working before...")
Things would've been easier to explain with some pics.


(edit)
BTW, my equip:
HK AVR 525
Panasonic F85 DVD player
Denon DCM260 CD player
Room: 16x16, 12 sloping down to 9 ft vaulted ceiling.
Left side wide open to kitchen that's about 1600~1900+ cu. ft.



I actually only have 2 Tiesto Cds so far. In My Memory is that one piece that actually hooked me!! I picked up one of the iPods at a local Fry's store and put the earphones on, and there it was... entranced was what I was... hard to find that album though at local CD stores.... whcih reminds me to order them from Amazon.

 

[BruceTM]

I auditioned the 20s at a Paradigm dealer before I ordered my Axiom m22s. I didn't listen to them long, but long enough. The tweets on these could pierce a hole in the ozone layer. They were very impressive. I loved the detail, but I could never own them. I knew that if I brought them home I would be suffering from severe hearing loss in a rather short period of time. I prefer the more natural sound of my Axioms over the sonic blitzkreig produced by the Paradigm S20s. :wink: :wink:

 

[Jeff-0]

BruceTM



Perhaps when you heard them they had the treble boosted, without doing a blind test with both under the same conditions and the same unit powering them you can never know which you really like better. I can’t even count the number of times I heard something in a store that sounded completely different once I auditioned it in my own home.


I have personally owned both speakers and have done extensive a/b testing with both. While the Axiom is a decent budget speaker, in my opinion, it was not even in the same league as my Studio 20.

I firmly believe you would agree with the proper testing procedures.

 

[mackie]

Rokzi - again thanks for the write-up. It's fun to have these types of discussions. In my earlier posts, I was just wanting clarification on a few things since I was thinking the set-up wasn't optimal for the Studios with the way you described the sound. That's all...

Funny thing is that I spent a couple of hours listening to music through the course of the day just to see if I could hear the sound the way you were describing. I guess it was there, but I'd never noticed it before. I've always felt the studios strong point was vocals. I guess it's really just a difference in sound presentation and what a person likes.

My tastes in music are somewhat, but not totally, different... rock, classic rock, progressive, new age, so it might not be as obvious. BTW Blue Man Group Complex Tour DVD is a great DVD.

 

[Joey_V]

BruceTM,

Listen to the two side by side and you will realize that they are not in the same league. It is careless to say that one speaker has "piercing" highs in comparison to the other when both arent heard in the same environment, using the same amplification, using the same source, and the same audio track.

 

[Max F]

All three are good speakers no doubt.

Rokzi, i'm sure you would really like the S2s also. I'm just not sure they are worth the price difference. If you listen to rock i would probably stick with the B2s. If you like acoustical stuff and classical music more then you probably should give the S2s a try. They seem to image better with more detail then the B2.

 

[Weilin_S]

Rokzi,

Great writing about B2 vs. M3. vs. S20.

I have done similar comparison with first version of B2 and Paradigm Mini Monitor with a Rotel Amp because they are in the same price range. My findings are very similar as yours about B2 and MM. In terms vocal clarity, Paradigm MM is not in the same league as B2. The tweeter on the MM can become too harsh when I watch some movies. With B2, they always stay smooth although some people call it bright, it is smooth bright. MM is harsh bright. B2 and MM have similar output for bass, B2 is a bit tighter.

 

[Rokzi]

The Paradigms went back to their daddy today. I have firmly decided that I will pick the Bronze 2s over the Studio 20s probably 7~8 times out of ten if I had to choose between them.

But I got a pair of Silver S2s today replacing their spot!!! I had almost given up on auditioning the S2s since I can't get them anywhere risk free. Almost miraculously I did find them today stocked near were my wife works and they are in Warm Beech color. Very nice!!! Also, it's real wood veneer and not vinyl!

I still can't get my site up so sorry, no pictures still.

I listened to them briefly at the store too and A/B them there with the B2s. The 2 just sound differently.

At the store: B2s are brighter. They seem to image wider too. They sound more airy than the S2s. They were not side by side though so wasn't really sure. And after what I learned from this auditioning experience, I unsure if I'll ever commit to buying any speaker again without auditioning them at my home first. Retail stores are not gonna like me, I suppose. Aarrgghh!

The S2s have more oomph, they sound more mellow than the B2s. I don't think they are bright at all. They are still detailed but they are also smoother that they seem to be not as airy than the B2s.
Maybe "airy" and "bright" tend to go together? Or maybe "bright" tends to accentuate airiness?

BTW by "airy" I mean that the sound seem to float in the air. I hope that how most of you mean by airy as well.

The brand new S2s out of the box sounded the same as they are in the store. I am breaking them in now and maybe for the next 3 or 4 days.

I'm not sure whether I like them more than the B2s or not but I surely like it's finish a way lot better than the B2 (I'm concerned that the vinyl will peel off the B2s - I have no experience as to how durable those are).

Also I have been with the B2s a lot longer and I think I'm beginning to get attached to them.

We'll see. I'm down to the last showdown but it'll happen towards the end of the week. I need to work my **** off too to get the paycheck that will pay for all these stuff

 

[Michael.N]

As I said in another post I auditioned the b2's today for the first time and really loved them. In my opinion they sound so much better than the Mini Monitors I heard.

 

[mackie]

Is the Silver series considered a step-up from the Bronze series, or are they supposed to be two different sounding speakers?

Trust your ears and forget the price tag. Buy what you think sounds best.

I wouldn't worry about the vinyl wrap on the speaker. Done well, it will last the life of the speaker, and I suspect the Monitor speaker is well made.

Thanks for the update.

 

[John Garcia]

I believe their common lines are just like the medals: Bronze, Silver and Gold (Reference).

 

[Rokzi]

Update!!!
Here's a pic of how I placed the speakers.



For more pics just go to the site rokzi.gotdns.com/ht and it should give you a list of pics. Sorry, I'll edit the site later to make it easier to view the pics but I made them accessible now for those who wanted to see some pics.

... still breaking in the Silver S2s...

 

[John Garcia]

Only comments would be that I would probably have kept the pairs symmetric, ie; 'digms on the outside, B2s in between, M3s on the inside, and they might do better a little higher off the ground. Like I said before though, they were all subject to roughly the same conditions, so at least the playing field was more or less even.