I heard the Monitor Audio S8's today. The dealer mentioned that they are coming up with a new line and so they are offering a discount on S8's - $899/pair. Any feedback on these speakers performance? I plan to use NAD C320BEE or C352 AMP.
Also what are the comparable speakers from Paradigm or Energy and how do they compare with Monitor Studio?
The S8's with the NAD will sound very good (I auditioned them with NAD separates..ended up with Von Schweikert instead)..nevertheless, I had Paradigm Monitor 7's and took them in to do side by side comparisons with the S6's. The S6's are in a totally different league then the Monitor 7's. You can really tell a difference when you listen to them next to each other. IMO, you would need to look at Sutdio 60's from Paradigm to have a fair comparison..if you can get the S8's for what amounts to the same price as the S6's, I think that would be a very good system (and much cheaper then the Studio 60's). Good luck Shaun
Monitor Audio Rocks! I have a mixed set of new silver and older gold MA's. I am very pleased. I plan on completing my system with S8's and Sfx's, but with the introduction of the new line I am waiting to hear the RS line. I am curious about what they have changed to make the new line.
Had Paradigm for about 4 years (various models, etc and still have the servo 15) - I hauled my Monitor 7's in (version 3) to the listening room at my installer's house and did side by side comparisons with Monitor Audio S6's. Same Cables, same pre, same amp, etc. Run on NAD T973 amp and NAD T163 pre (of chich I bought!) Here are some of the difference I noticed:
Vocals - MA much more foreward and pronounced - Monitor 7's sounded like a pillow was over it
Midrange - much smoother on the MA with more punch
Bass - Quite a bit more punch on the MA
MISC - I noticed my Paradigms had some sibilace (sp?) issues (had never noticed it before, but became apparant with side by side listening)
Over all, I was very surprised and somewhat dejected at the outcome. To my ears, the MA S6's exceeded my Monitor 7's in every category - even though I had been happy with them for over a year, once I heard the differences, that was it....redid all my speakers! (ended up with Von Schweikert and NAD separates, but that is another price point and story). Keep in mind that the S6's and Monitor 7's are usually at different price points as well. I still think Paradigms are a very good value for the money and are far and above most speakers at big box stores, but there are a lot of choices out there once you get to $1k price point and above (for main speakers)...one last thing....I also listened to all the speakers with the separates and then the T773 receiver...the receiver gave me a headach after 10 minutes of listening...there really is a large difference in sound quality from separates and an integrated receiver - for what it's worth, I also listened to the MA Gold 20's - nice, but not enough difference to me over the Silver line to justify the double price (whereas the Von Schweikerts were). Good luck in your decision Shaun
TSH
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I am about to go with NAD 352 integrated, 542 CDP and MA Silver 6 speakers. The price on MAs is right because the new RS series is coming out now. Pretty good discounts available.
I listened to a lot of stuff to get to this point. And this setup for the money seemed to offer the best value. I started off with a preconceived notion about Paradigm - that is what I was going to get. I have a Paradigm home theatre setup and am pleased with it.
So, I listened to Monitor 5s, 7s and 9s. Seemed okay. Then listened to Paradigm Studio 20s and 40s and compared them with JMLabs Chorus series and there was no comparison - the JMLabs were far more detailed to my ear. The Paradigms all sounded muffled by comparison. This was with the NAD components.
Then I listened to the same components and compared Monitor Audio, Wharfedale and Quad. Quad was out of the price range. Wharfedale Diamond 9s were okay, but not in the same league.
I just narrowed it down to the MAs over the JMLabs. The MAs are more compact, a little more detailed and seem to have a nicer finish. And, the MAs are priced right now. But I could have gone JMLabs in an instant.
Wow, what a great speakers comparison we got here. The Paradigm, Monitor Audio, Quad, Wharfedale and JMLabs Chorus. I believe all the speakers are fall into our price budget.
To Shaun, thanks for your personal taste experience with the MA and Paradigm. My local store told me probably in this mid June to end of June, the Monitor Audio Silver RS will be launched. The Silver RS will be positioned between the Gold RS and Silver. If this is true, I wonder maybe the Silver series won't be phased out since it won't be replaced by the Silver RS. And I also read from one of local audio hifi magazine which was got the MONITOR AUDIO COUNTRY DISTRIBUTOR interviewed, they said the Gold series will be upgraded in the near time. So, all of MA line will be like this: BRONZE, SILVER, SILVER RS, and finally the (UPGRADE) GOLD SERIES. . Okay, I am still want to ask to Shaun. Is the NAD773 receiver doesn't match with MA Silver S6 ? But with the NAD separate amp (sorry don't know the NAD type), is it OKAY ? How about with DENON 3805 and YAMAHA 2500 ? I am not a kind of fans with NAD - since recently I have read the quality issue with NAD receiver.
Btw, for the price of MAs Silver S6, what price do u guys (Shaun and TSH) get in USD ? I want to compare with my local store also.
The NAD T773 receiver is head and shoulders above many other receivers (Denon, Onkyo, HK, etc) for musicality (IMO). Yamaha has a different sound than NAD - more....tinny sounding to me (again, IMO), but it will also depend on what speakers you have them paired with.....also, the power ratings on NAD are honest watts with ALL channels driven at the same time...the same cannot be said of some other brands
Regarding the T773 receiver compared to the T163 pre/pro and T973 amp - bass is tighter, highs more open, midrange more defined, and an over all more detailed sound with the separates - of course you would expect this as the receiver is about $1,800 US and the separates are about $3,500 US - to me, I saw more of a difference comparing the NAD receivers to other brands of receivers, then I did between the T773 and the separates - as you go up in price the differences start to become smaller, but they are still there and that was enough for me to get the separates
If I recall, the S6's were going for about $999 US and the S8's were about $1,599, but I could be off on the 8's....one more thing..if you like rock music and like to play it loud (like me!), I think the MA Silver line is pretty hard to beat for the money (certainly better to my ears then my Paradigms were...(my Vons beat them in every way, but they should for the price difference also!) Best of luck to you! Shaun
Also, I have not had any problems the past 2 years with my NAD equipment - from what I hear their quality control has gotten a lot better then a few years back....
TSH
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Posted on
In Canada, the Silver 6s are going for between $950 and $1150 CDN a pair depending on the retailer and if you are buying a package. In the US, you should be able to get them for around $800USD. This is a great time to buy them because the RS series is coming...one retailer I talked to already has them.
As for NAD, the quality of their amps is beyond reproach, I think. I know they had some issues with their receivers. In any event, I listened to a lot of integrateds (Arcam, Rotel, Primare, Cambridge) at the same or more money than the NAD 352 and decided that to me the sonic differences did not justify the extra cash at this time. The NAD is just great value.
