This review is late, but I'll put it out there for the benefit of others in the speaker market. I own the S8 v2 fronts and Signature Servo sub. I drive the speakers with ARC tube gear: REF CD-7, REF 3 pre, and VS 115 amp (115wpc). The ARC gear drives the S8 speakers plenty loud, to the point my wife says it's either her or the stereo -- uuhhm, I need to think about that???
I strongly suggest that anyone in the market for speakers give a serious listen to the S8 V2 or V3 speakers with the Be tweeters. To the extent that concerns have been raised that the S8 is bright -- that's not my experience. Could be because the ARC tube gear meshes well with the S8.
Oh . . room placement is very important. The speakers should be aimed at your ears. I even lifted the back of the towers a tad, just to get a little better response from the Be tweeters.
I also agree with the comments about the S8 NOT being a forgiving speaker. It isn't!! Frankly, I'm frustrated by the crappy source material out there. I've picked up a bunch of Deutche Grammaphon CDs for classics, but even there, some of the DG CDs are made from old masters. Some leave a lot to be desired. I recently picked up a London Decca CD featuring Jean-Yves Thibaudet (sp?). WOW!! Just ordered some new CDs from Stereophile. I hope they're good.
So . . . IMO, the bottom line is the S8 V2 is one terrific speaker. It works well with my ARC tube gear. At the expense of waxing philosophical, speaker choice is like fine wine -- what one person likes, another person thinks is swill. But I strongly suggest a listen. One caveat -- and this goes for any speaker. Dealers audition what they sell. Check the Paradigm web site for a dealer near where you live. You may have to visit a couple of dealers to make a fair choice, so bring good quality source material with which you are familiar.
Enjoy the music.
Happy New Year!
I strongly suggest that anyone in the market for speakers give a serious listen to the S8 V2 or V3 speakers with the Be tweeters. To the extent that concerns have been raised that the S8 is bright -- that's not my experience. Could be because the ARC tube gear meshes well with the S8.
Oh . . room placement is very important. The speakers should be aimed at your ears. I even lifted the back of the towers a tad, just to get a little better response from the Be tweeters.
I also agree with the comments about the S8 NOT being a forgiving speaker. It isn't!! Frankly, I'm frustrated by the crappy source material out there. I've picked up a bunch of Deutche Grammaphon CDs for classics, but even there, some of the DG CDs are made from old masters. Some leave a lot to be desired. I recently picked up a London Decca CD featuring Jean-Yves Thibaudet (sp?). WOW!! Just ordered some new CDs from Stereophile. I hope they're good.
So . . . IMO, the bottom line is the S8 V2 is one terrific speaker. It works well with my ARC tube gear. At the expense of waxing philosophical, speaker choice is like fine wine -- what one person likes, another person thinks is swill. But I strongly suggest a listen. One caveat -- and this goes for any speaker. Dealers audition what they sell. Check the Paradigm web site for a dealer near where you live. You may have to visit a couple of dealers to make a fair choice, so bring good quality source material with which you are familiar.
Enjoy the music.
Happy New Year!