[Paul Fa]

I finally pulled the trigger after about 2 years of analysis and reading reviews and forum discussions until my eyes bled - and bought a 3805!!!

Now the bad news is that it is still in the box because I don't have a decent set of speakers to hook it up to - which is where you all come in (I hope!)

I have pretty much narrowed the 5.1 (future to be 7.1 w/ direct radiating rears) systems I'm considering down the the following 3:

1. Monitor Audio Silver Series (S10 mains, SLCR center, and Sfx surrounds.

2. Paradigm Monitor series (Monitor 9 or 11 mains, CC370 center and ADP370 surrounds.

3. Axiom Audio Epic 80 (M80 mains, VP150 center and QS8 surrounds.

These would be paired with a Sunfire sub and the mains would be powered by a Harmon Kardon Citation 16 amp to let the 3805 have more ooomph to give to the rest of the speakers.

I have listened to the Paradigms and the Monitor Audios at local B&M's but they are not inclined to let me have them for an in-home demo (I'm just small potatoes to them). I can in-home demo the Axioms (if I want to pay about $125 to send them back if I don't like them) but can't listen to them at any B&M.

My contemplated budget for these five speakers is around $3,000 which really doesn't get the Monitor Audios or the Paradigms, but will easily get me the Axioms. I know the Axioms get great reviews from owners etc. but so do Bose. Paradigm and Axiom get kudos for their websites and responsiveness to questions whereas Monitor Audio across the Atlantic in the UK can't be bothered to respond.

Do you think my family and I will really hear the difference spending almost a $1,000 more for the Paradigms or Monitor Audios??? Bear in mind I'm moving up from a 15+ year old stereo only mid-range Sony system and I also have to spend another $1,000 - $2000 on interconnects, speaker wire and a better DVD/SACD/DVD-A player just to get this all to play anything worthwhile!!! Oh yea, and the Sunfire sub is another grand, and then I need to buy some new CD'd, DVD-A's, SACD's, DVD's . . . . . . . . . ad infinitum!

Thanks for your input!

[Eddie Horton]

As an owner of internet direct speakers and sub, I think that the chance to save a grand is worth the risk of paying an extra $125 in shipping to test the Axioms. A good friend of mine has Monitor 9's, CC370, some kind of Paradigm surrounds, and a Velodyne sub. Not sure about the models of the surrounds and sub, but I know for sure that he spent a substantial amount more than I did for my speakers and mine sound better to me. This isn't a slam on Paradigm - I like them a lot, but couldn't justify spending the extra cash and not getting better sound.