Paradigm Studio 80s or 100s? (1 Viewer)

[Yohan Pamudji]

So I'm about to upgrade from my Paradigm Monitor 9s to the Studio line, and I'm trying to decide between 80s and 100s. The system is in a 12x20x8 room (wxlxh), and the Monitor 9s play plenty loud, but I want the extra detail that the Studios can reveal. What factors should I consider? Are the 100s too big for my living room? Which ones do you think sound better, the 80s or the 100s? I recently bought a Marantz MM9000 150x5 amp, so I think I have enough power to drive either speaker. Thanks for any advice.

 

[Tony Meconiates]

I would say go with the 60's.... you don't have enough power to run the 100's and the 80's dont match the studio CC.

 

[Yohan Pamudji]

The 60s don't have enough low-end punch for me, so that's out of the question. I don't want to use a sub for music. The 80s not matching the CC is because of the midrange driver mismatch, right? I have the same situation with my Monitor 9s and the CC350 center speaker, but the mismatched drivers don't bother me. About powering the 100s some people say that you need 200W+ to really make them sing, but the sensitivity rating is so close to my Monitor 9s, which don't overload my 150Wpc amp until I'm 3dB above reference, so I'm thinking my 150W will be enough for the 100s. Maybe not ideal, but enough.

 

[Tony Meconiates]

Yohan,

In that case, go for the 100's... you won't be disappointed.

 

[Paul Gere]

Go for the 100's.
I was in the same debate a couple of years back and have never regretted it. You can always upgrade power if you choose, but you'll never have to wonder what the 100's might have been like!

 

[Mike_T_]

I have the 100's and love em. I'd be interested to hear how they sound with that Marantz amp. It's an interesting argument regarding power with these speakers. 150 clean, powerful WPC provided by a good amp such as this, might be enough power for most people. I wonder if you even need 200+ if you're not blasting these things. I like to listen to loud music..but man...

 

[Andy Bell]

Yohan,

I also have the 100s and love them. I second everything Paul had to say.

I am using the Rotel RB-1080(200x2) and am very happy with this matchup. I have no experience with the marantz amps, but my guess is that they will be just fine with the 100's. As was mentioned before you will have some great speakers and can always change amps later.

Just my .02 cents,good luck.

 

[Greg_R]

Why don't you want to use a sub for music? I'll take the Studio 40s + Servo-15 (or other quality sub) over the 100s any day...

 

[Yohan Pamudji]

Well, looks like the consensus is overwhelmingly in favor of the 100s. Wow, I thought I'd hear some support for the 80s. I guess the 100s are just that much better.

Greg_R,

I guess I should've said that differently. I don't want to use my sub for music. I have a Paradigm PW-2200 which, although is great for movies, is too slow for my taste when it comes to music. I looked hard at the Studio 40/Servo-15 option, but I can't trade up my sub, while the Monitor 9s I will trade up for the 100s. I've been in discussion with Tom V. of SVS and he says it might be a placement/calibration issue, so I could be wrong about the PW-2200, but that's for another thread.

 

[Yohan Pamudji]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I've decided to go with the Studio 100s. I can't wait till I get them!

 

[Sanjay Gupta]

I have the Paradigm Reference Studio 100 which I drive with the Denon AVR5800. The AVR5800 is rated at 170x5 w/ch and although the Studio 100s probably will sound better with some more power, I still am very satisfied. My suggestion, get the 100s and enjoy

 

[ChrisAG]

Not too much consideration has gone into the room size. Wouldn't the 80's or 60's go better in a 12 x 20 room?

My room is the same size as that, and I couldn't imagine having monsters like the Studio 100's on the short side (long side wouldn't work either, the room isn't square enough to allow the required fore-aft distance for comfortable listening). 60's would work well on the short side - have them six feet apart and three feet from the side walls.

 

[Tony Meconiates]

Chris,

good point... if I were in the same situation, I would have gone with the 60's + a nice woofer upgrade. His amp would be a perfect match for the 60's

 

[Yohan Pamudji]

Chris and Tony,
Dammit, why do you have to be so sensible?!?! And all this after I "decided" on the 100s.
One thing about the current room: it's temporary. I hope to move into a bigger house, hopefully with a space bigger than my current living room, within the next couple of years. The 100s might be a bit big for my current setup, but they'd fit nicely into a slightly bigger room, right? That's one consideration. The size issue is why I asked about the 100s' size and if it would be too much speaker for my space. What are the disadvantages of having slightly oversized speakers compared to the available room? As far as physical size the 100s are only 4x1x3 inches larger than my Monitor 9s, while the 80s are roughly the same size as the 9s. But I have a feeling the real issue isn't the physcial size. How would an oversized speaker be detrimental to sound quality? Speaker placement is very much restricted by furniture/AV equipment, so even the 9s are not optimally placed (roughly an equilateral triangle between the 2 speakers and the listening position,
10 feet each). But non-optimally placed 80s or 100s will still sound better than non-optimally placed 9s, so that's moot.
Time to wait for more info and think this over...

 

[Martin Rendall]

If you plan to keep your speakers for years to come (that is, you don't plan to be upgrading until they die), then I'd suggest getting the 100's. If you are the type to upgrade by the time you move, then go for the 80's.

FYI: I have the 100's in a smaller room, reasonable placement, connected to a 100Wpc yammie. I'd have been better off right now with the 40's. However, my planned upgrade path leads to a better room, and a bigger amp. Having said that, even with these less than ideal conditions, the 100's sound awesome. Couldn't be happier. On caveat though: I run them on small, which eases the amp load somewhat.

Martin.

 

[Mike_T_]

Martin, I have a 85wpc Yammy as well and noticed a HUGE difference when I set the 100's to large during 2 channel music with no sub.. They sound great! I still need a better receiver/amp to drive them and I'm dying trying to figure out which path to take...as far as new receiver or amp and then receiver later on..or amp then pre amp...it's tough!