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Paradigm Persona series

I'm beginning to poke around and gather opinions and information about a "super speaker" to replace my aging Thiel 2.4s.  I like the idea of bass dsp room correction and I am a bit of a point source type imaging nut (thus the Thiels).  So among other choices I've been looking at the Paradigm Persona series specifically the powered 9H with room correction for the bass.  However I'm skeptical of the "lenses" i.e. pierced metal covers on the midrange and tweeter specifically because of Paradigm's claim that such screens "screen out" "out of phase" musical information.  The technology in the design seems superlative but I just can't get past the claim re out of phase information and the midrange and tweeter covers.  What could possibly be the science behind this claim?  It just seems like its putting a halloween moustache on the mona lisa given the fact that the company is generally a technology driven company.
pwhinson
brrgrr
163 posts
 
Just purchased an Accuphase E650 for my Personas....works very well....lots of power for the mids and tweeters, and the powered woofers take care of themselves....very smooth.
ahofer
225 posts
 
In the end, after two listening sessions, I was pretty sure that I would find the 3Fs fatiguing in long listening sessions.  What was intriguing was the way I could hear the wood and bow of the viola in one of my audition tracks.  But in my own listening the Harbeths were even more revealing, with a much less fatiguing sound, solid bass and a stunningly realistic sound of voice and small ensembles.  So Harbeths it is for me.

chacun à son goût
contuzzi
413 posts
 
ahofer: what was the exact audition track?
jafant
18,842 posts
 
pwhinson

Much Thanks! for the follow up. I believe that your system has plenty of warmth and the mid-range was perfect ( not too forward nor too recessed). I will say that the 9H throws a larger mid-range to my ears.
Happy Listening!
steve59's avatar
steve59
1,650 posts
 
I couldn’t convince myself to buy the 9h even at the sale prices. Instead I bought a used pair of DSP8000’s.  The correction available from the speakers is limited in comparison to what the 9h offers, but is clearly useful and the more popular user adjustable speakers become hopefully the more available and cheaper. Not set and forgot, but adjusting on the fly for different recordings is really easy to get used to and I hope paradigm extends arc to more models 
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