My Proposed Setup....LOOK!!! (1 Viewer)

[Dave Ma]

That HK receiver is not enough for those Paradigms! If it were the Monitors then yes. I would go with the PW2200 sub, because the Servo is double the price. Money saved would go to an Rotel RSX 1065 receiver or Rotel seperates RSP 1066 & RMB 1075 combo. You will be wasting your money buying those Studio's and H&K because those Paradigms need power. The dealer should tell you this. You will be missing a whole lot if you use that H&K receiver. A whole lot.I am sorry but that H&K is not meant for those Studios,just not enough juice for them.H&K is toooooo underpowered for the Studio's, plain and simple they like power.

 

[ArthurJ]

Dave I disagree...I heard the Studio 20's and 60's off a Denon AVR1603 which puts out similiar power and they filled the room with ambiance bliss...I have heard the Studio 20's off a H/K AVR325 and without a doubt they sounded better, less distortion, and got louder then a comparable amp that "claimed" to put out MORE power...Im not saying your wrong, but I just don't take anybodys word for it...This is just my experience...Hey Garcia, what do you think?

 

[Dave Ma]

Arthur,
You can disagree all you want! But I own the Studio's and they need power, an amp section that has power reserves. Now they will sound good with the H&K but will sound sooooooo much better with more power,plain and simple. Those are the facts! After I moved up to a more power amp I hear things that I never heard before. If you call Paradigm they will tell you to use an Amp with 150-200 WPc amp. These speakers need power, they are power hungry and to bring out the best in them to drive them to there potential you have to feed them the juice. Other wise you are just cheating yourself to get the best sound out of the Studio's.

 

[ArthurJ]

Dave...what about the Studio 20's....? I know the 60's would obviously need more juice, but are the 20's that power hungry too? If this is the case Im considering just doing 20's all around seeing I live in an apartment anyways....

 

[Dave Ma]

Yes, The Studio 20's are a little less at sensitivity. 89db 60's at 90 db. Like I said I have 20's and having a better power amp brings them out. Paradigm will tell you to use 150-200 WPC amp for the 20's.Distortion kills speakers! That H&K with the Monitor series Paradigm would be fine but not the Studios. H&K would be ok but not what I would use. When I first went to hear the Studio's the owner of the store would not even play the 20's for me because he said I did not have enough power to drive them to their true potential. Well, I bought them somewhere else and then ended up going to a better amp down the road, wasting money on the receiver I bought in the first place. Live and learn.To me the 20's sound better then the 60's, so going with the 20's all around is an excellent choice if you have a nice sub. I think the clarity of the 20's is better then those of the 60's. I did about 1 1/2 hr side by side 60's and the 20's and for me the 20's won. You can buy two pairs of the 20's for the price of one pair of 60's. But do get the Premier stands to match the 20's. Fill the tubes with sand and sit back and enjoy Arthur, I would also and did go with the PW2200 sub over the Servo 15, because the Servo is double the price and double the performance is not gained whatsoever.I would go with the all black color but that is me,I think it would look great blend right in with everything and save your self some cash. The color will not change the sound.Plus with this setup 20's and the PW2200 sub you are sure to get evicted out of the apartment for sure:frowning:

 

[ArthurJ]

What kind of amp should I look at???

 

[ArthurJ]

Also keep in mind im not listening to these things at reference levels....the room is quite frankly SMALL...so do you really feel an out-board amp is neccesary? Also...if anybody else has comments please add...

 

[ChrisWiggles]

I would think that the HK would be plenty to produce the volumes you are looking at, but consult your dealer. As you say, in an apartment, you wont be reaching anywhere near insane levels, so I think the HK sould be great. However, you might think of getting a solid two-channel amp for the fronts maybe, to releive some strain on the receiver, and also to make them sound a little better. I don't think you are at risk of damaging the studios from lack of power, for they are not extremely difficult to drive, but more, and better power will make them SOUND better. You should compare a couple amps with your receiver at your dealer perhaps, and judge whether it's worth it for you.
FYI, I have a Marantz sr5300, and currently it's great with mini-monitors, but I am going to upgrade to studio 20s, and when I do I may also get something like a small rotel 2-channel amp for them to releive strain a little, and to get better two channel performance. The rest of the speakers will remain the 370, and 4 atoms around the back. I'm bigger on two-channel, and I'm a student so cash is very tight, and I really have no need to a studio center, or great surrounds that matter. I am a big movie buff, but they are almost always old movies in dolby surround at best, and usually on VHS anyway, so I figure not a big deal. Still, I beleive the lower Performance series is actually lower sensitivity than the monitors or the studios. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's how I remember seeing it. You're gonna love those 20s, I can't wait till I get past my SVS budget-eater so I can have them in my system.

 

[Dave Ma]

Arthur,I sent you a PM.