Paradigm vs Vandersteen

In addition to Swampwalker, I think the Vandersteens are going to be more enviroment affected. I think the Vandy has the ability to sound better than the Paradigm's.. I have heard both at different times and it never would have been comparison I would have been drawn to make. Two very different theories. Richard Vandersteen's concept and a large companies speaker. Paradigm put's out a great product for the money, I think they are somewhat under priced for thier quality.

I won't weigh in on the sonic differences, as they are so pronounced that one usually can figure out if they want chocolate or cheese. But the sensitivity issue is real, the Paradigms being roughly 6db more sensitive will require approximately one fourth the wattage for a given loudness level. As Jim Thiel, another 6db crossover champion pointed out, "Watts is cheap.", but then again, he gets manufacturers accomodation.

I have the 2ce sigs and I have heard the paradigms but in less than ideal conditions to be fair. For Jazz, you will love the vandys for the timbre and naturalness with the right amount of detail which won't give you a headache after long listening sessions. The paradigms seemed too bright for my taste.

IMO the Vandersteen's are a much better speaker. As Swampwalker said "Very different sound" I use to own Paradigm Studio 40's v.2 and ended up getting rid of them due to their hot upper end. I do beleive that Paradigm is a above average value but, one must carefully choice what equipment to match with them. My neighbor has the 2CE sigs and if it weren't for the low WAF I would have a pair too.

both are well designed and highly listenable......the vandy more laidback, the studio...well,more like a monitor style with gobs of detail. both speakers play all music catagories well,with the paradigms having the edge on classic rock. both speakers play well with a wide variety of components. ifyou have a dedicated listening room(without kids or cats) the vandy.....otherwise the studio.