Anyone heard the new paradigm signature series?

Wound up making the huge mistake of following the salesdude to the downstairs audition room this week. That's where he fired up the little S2s. And that's where "the plan" (and speaker budget) started down the toilet. I originally had no intention of ever considering Signature stuff, but now I don't know... The downstairs room is the one w/ B&W and other big boys, and as salesdude said "B&W should be afraid, very afraid". I'd kinda have to agree w/ him that Paradigm apparently took direct aim at B&W and didn't miss their target.

I simply can't give you a detailed B-vs-P comparison because I was running short of time and I'd also had no intention of entering this particular audition room (mostly 'cause it's where they have most of their higher-end stuff - which to me is just twelve steps down and that much closer to Hell ;~). That should also help provide perspective for any of my comments, 'cause I definitely have to consider budget these days (tuition payments, etc.) and that kinda has to limit what I can even consider. That said, I am now seriously confoosed/bummed 'cause what I heard was absolutely wunnerful - and absolutely outta my budget. I honestly caught myself just grinning at a couple of passages - the soundstage from the little S2s was that impressive to me. The overall detail, the amount and quality of sound coming from those (did I say beautiful? they are) little boxes sitting in front of the row of big boys (B&Ws, etc.) was spectacular.

Take all this spew with a grain of salt, 'cause I sure didn't have careful and extensive A/B time and any subjective comparison would be made on just shaky memory. The S2s obviously really got my attention - and I hadn't really even been looking at them. I'm impressed, though, and I just liked their sound so much that they could be my newest fanatasy speaker - the one that you really want but that's just out of reach. Very tasty - and these were just the little S2s...

How's it going eh....Thanks for your response ya Hoser....Now my curiousity is peeked even more....

Heard them, demoed them, listened to other speakers, including B+W (at a different dealer).

Bought them (S8).
They replaced a pair of Vandersteen 2CE.

Very happy so far two months into ownership.

Thanks for your input...If anyone here is in need of some light hearted humour I have just what the doctor ordered...just go to the cable section.........I know why esoteric cable sounds much better...The cables are made with.."magical acoustic spirits haunting the molecules of cooper".....That's right, while the cooper is still in it's molten state they initiate a primative spitual ritual dance known as the( letsfoolstupidpeople dance).....this takes place over several hours which is usually good enough to last one fools life span....

Awesome speakers...you gotts hear em...

I am going to disagree with Mr hosehead. At my store we carry both companies and even have them next to eachother. The best Paradigms still sound muddy, they do put out a good amount of sound, however if its quality you want i would have to say that the B&W's would be a better choice, but then again it does depend on the type of music you like.

Disagree away - no problemo! I'm probably frickin' deaf by now so who knows what the heck I was really listening to...

Actually, I do know. And I very briefly listened to some B&W's in the same room (the one that's nearer to Hell). They were OK. Not drooling drop dead I-gotta-have-these, but really OK. I could live with them - they were very tasty. It's just that I was just blown away by the soundstage and the quality of the sound from the little S2's - no real comparison, but then not a totally fair test 'cause I wasn't in total control of all the parameters. I can't guarantee that the electronics weren't juiced in favor of the S2's 'cause I didn't have time or access to crawl through all the parameters.

I was probably responding more to my original scepticism re: the Signatures than any absolute superiority. The little S2's just oozed more quality than I ever expected. Again, B&W's aren't exactly chopped chicken liver and they sounded fine. If I could have a set of both brands (S8's for this part, please) for about 5 years I'm sure I could come up with a more definitive review...

Any individual preference will depend on their gender, age, musical preferences, acoustic environment, history, etc. etc. I just liked the S2's a whole lot. But I'm probably frickin' deaf by now, so YMMV...

So would anyone like to settle this once and for all? Just send the B&Ws and S8's to me & I'll write a comprehensive, well-researched review. In ~5 years.

Don't worry Mr. hosehead, I will agree with you for a couple of reasons. 1. Bookshelf speakers (good ones) really can amaze people because of their size and ability to simply disappear from the room. It is harder for a large speaker to do this, however a large speaker can reproduce bass, real bass while a bookshelf needs a good sub to do this with music. 2. Most dealers have no idea how to setup a paradigm speaker system, especially the nicer studio 100s and the S8s. These speakers are power hungry and most Paradigm retailers do not have the proper equipment to make them really shine. Matching the speaker with the appropriate amplifier is crucial to proper speaker performance. I have not found a Paradigm retailer yet to get it right.