Paradigm Studio V3's (1 Viewer)

[Ernest Yee]

I can vouch for that comment. 80's scrapped from the v3 line, NOT the popular 20s,40s or 60s.

 

[ChrisDixon]

Surely by now someone has done an A/B comparison between v2 and v3 versions of the same speakers. I've heard a few good and bad reports about the v3's, but never anything head-to-head.

Chris

 

[Kal]

Surely by now someone has done an A/B comparison between v2 and v3 versions of the same speakers. I've heard a few good and bad reports about the v3's, but never anything head-to-head.

I dunno - given the fact that the v.2 Studio's are reported as needing as much as 300 hours of break-in time before sounding 100% ok, I figure it'll be at least a couple of weeks before we start getting "real" reviews that we can use.

Kal

 

[ChrisDixon]

I know the whole "break in" vs. "ear adjustment" thing is a matter of controversey, but I can offer one personal experience that goes against the break in theory. When I first got my Studio 60 v2's, I thought they warmed up a bit after about two weeks of listening. During this time, I was also waiting for a replacement tweeter since one of mine had a small ding in the dome. When I switched out the tweeter, I wondered if that speaker would have "brighter" highs again since the tweeter would not have been broken in. Surprisingly (or unsurprisingly depending on who you ask), it sounded exactly the same to me, and blended perfectly with the "broken in" tweeter on the other side. So put me in the camp that believes that speaker break in is very short (maybe an hour or so) and the rest of it is our adjustment to the new sound.

Chris

 

[Greg_R]

Here's a thread on AVS that goes over the exact differences between the V.2 and V.3 studio line and briefly mentions the Signature line. Nothing official has been released about the Signature series by Paradigm (although some people have heard them at special dealer demo days). The signature line has yet to be released, the v.3 Studios are in stores now.

FWIW, the few people who have had the v.3 line in their home have been very positive about the speaker's performance.

 

[Brian Fitterman]

So put me in the camp that believes that speaker break in is very short (maybe an hour or so) and the rest of it is our adjustment to the new sound.

I cannot quote on exactly how long it really takes, but I did notice a big improvment on my V2 100's after only 10 - 20 hours breakin. Not sure how much "more" of an improvment you get with more breaking you get, its too long after to make a real comparason. But I have a feeling for bass, it does take some time for the larger stiffer new rubber to break in and get to the point it needs to be in for optimal sound. This also goes for the newer poly midrange cones everyone is using now. Tweeters, probably not as much.

 

[Martin Rendall]

FWIW, my personal experience re. break-in is a bit dubious. When I originally set up my Studio 100's, they definitely didn't out perform the Take 2 speakers they were replacing. After about a dozen or so hours, they did. I think the improvement rapidly fell off after that. But I also had to get used to the clarity of the 100's over the 2's, and for the first time, learned about bad CD source material. So there was some more adjustment I made as opposed to the speakers.

On the other hand, I recently bought a couple pairs of Studio 20 V2's, and tested them out by running them for a couple hours each as my mains. I couldn't detect any high end tweeter harshness on the 20's, which is supposedly typical of un-broken in speakers. The mid-range was definitely a bit mucky in comparison, but I don't know if that would be a break-in issue or not.

I think Paradigm themselves suggest that a "few" hours is necessary for break-in. Personally, I believe it... but not that it takes 300 hours.

Martin.

 

[Jamey F]

My 20s, CC and 100s all seemed to mello out a bit after 50-100 hours. I used the 20s up front while waiting for my 100s. The 100s did sound different to me than the 20s that were broken in. Is this a break in related phenomenon or the differences in the speakers themselves. I suspect more of the latter, but my 100s are smoother now than when I first hooked them up. I would say from my experience that the first 50-100 hours make the most difference. After that, I've noticed no change, but that isn't to say they haven't changed to a slight degree.