Many of you seem to forget about synergy. Not any speaker goes with any amp/pre. You have to search for a balance which takes effort sometimes. Personally I find my Paradigm 100.2s to sound best with McIntosh - one of the smoothest sounds I have heard in any system. However, they were harsh with my previous Krells so be careful when you make generalizations based on a single audition.
Something wrong with the Studio 100 v.2?
Through many listening secessions over the last 5 months, I've tried very hard to love the Paradigm Reference Studio 100 v.2. But the sound I heard did not align with much of the articulate and glowing praise found here on Audiogon. Nonetheless, I was determined to buy a used pair here on Audiogon, but couldn't find a realistic deal (shipping is usually a killer). You may be wondering why would I buy 100’s if the sound were unsatisfactory? Simply, I'm unwilling to spend the money required to buy a full-range speaker like the Natilus 804 or Proac 2.5, both of which I've listened to extensively and like very much. Also, I have a 6-month-old daughter and don't want to be paranoid about her banging into $3500-$4500 speakers when she begins to walk about.
So I went back to the dealer yesterday determined to buy a new pair of 100 v.2. But after listening to a variety of material for about an hour, I was again disappointed. What I heard was booming, bloated, poorly controlled bass and a compressed sound stage (front-to-back). And after about 45 minutes, serious listener fatigue crept in as well!
Here's my question: Is something wrong with my dealer's setup? If not, am I being totally unrealistic in my expectations of the 100's? What am I missing here? Are my ears broken? Help!
Here's the dealer's current setup: Denon DVD-3800 (also used Sony 9000ES), Anthem AVM 20 v2.08, Anthem MCA 50, Audioquest Coral or Anaconda (couldn't quite see), unknown speaker cables.
So I went back to the dealer yesterday determined to buy a new pair of 100 v.2. But after listening to a variety of material for about an hour, I was again disappointed. What I heard was booming, bloated, poorly controlled bass and a compressed sound stage (front-to-back). And after about 45 minutes, serious listener fatigue crept in as well!
Here's my question: Is something wrong with my dealer's setup? If not, am I being totally unrealistic in my expectations of the 100's? What am I missing here? Are my ears broken? Help!
Here's the dealer's current setup: Denon DVD-3800 (also used Sony 9000ES), Anthem AVM 20 v2.08, Anthem MCA 50, Audioquest Coral or Anaconda (couldn't quite see), unknown speaker cables.