My apologies_Upgrade path from Wilson WattPuppy 7's?

Sorry Grgr4blu, as usual just plan wrong. The WP 7 is hardly by today's standards a world class loudspeaker, the Tioxid tweeter can be spiky and the fantastic paper and graphite Scanspeak midrange driver is many generations old compared to what Scanspeak is producing today.

Also if you look at the measurements you can see the famous Wilson lower mid bass hump. 

I owned the WP 5 the sevens were not much better, and as you forget in our last go around I have two clients with WP 7 so I do know what they sound like.

I am sure you will regale me with why the genius of Wilson can in a loudspeaker from 2003 out class all the modern contenders?

Sure the WP 7 would be $25k in today's money, I can make the same arugment when I purchased  a set of Quad ESL 63 in 1986 which were $3k and now the same speaker is $12k. 

Gerry should be looking at all the contenders that would make him happy, and as noted before the many had numerous issues with Wilson including the value for dollar proposition. 

As I have mentioned previously compare a set of Legacy Aeris at $25k to a pair of Wilson Maxx or Alexias, and see what you get for your money as well as technology, oh I forget moving a driver a few inches to physically time align a driver is so much more precise then using the world of dsp and room correction to time align every frequency. 

Gerry should open his mind to all the major loudspeakers and as you are a Beryilium basher read all the people who are listening to the Personas and are being blown away such as Brownsf on another post. 

The word is setup. 

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ

Audiotroy:
I know you are too busy selling to read OPs decision but he is wisely sticking with WP7s for now. I hope he will listen to trusted advisors in the future, not rank biased salesmen like you.

Grgr4blu it is not bias but reality, a 23 year old set of WP 7 is not really a competitive loudspeaker compaired with many modern designs.

Dave and Troy
Audio Doctor NJ

 

As an outside observer, I do not find audiotroy overbearing. He usually brings a decent amount of experience to bare and is polite and articulate. He doesn’t go on and on about one brand, he usually has a good list of options and even recommends things he doesn’t sell.

Not sure why all the hate, but I suppose there is the possibility I’ve missed bad behaviour.

Only an observation. I’ve never spoken with audiotroy and do not move in the realm of such expensive gear, so this is as outside an observation as you’re likely to get

@audiotroy

It is not just about competitive.

There is something to be said for designs that have stood the test of time and endured the critical listening of millions of ears. They have proven they are not simply this seasons latest passing fashion. The Paradigm Personas do indeed look technically very impressive and no doubt sound better, however, there is always a small risk with newer products - defects can develop over time and there is infant mortality on parts with a completely new ground up design. Also the appeal of the new product may not last and the manufacturer may rationalize and drop the line in favor of other products.

As you can appreciate, like a fine classic car, the Wilson WP has merits that come with having dominated or defined the high end for so long, The WP will always be a classic while the Persona may or may not become a legend.

My ATC are similar to Wilson, they come from the past - the golden age of studios and consequently they have been appreciated for many years by countless musicians, producers and engineers from Telarc to Sony to Yamaha to Mark Knopfler, Sting and Pink Floyd. They passed the test of tens of thousands of critical listeners over 30 years and like a good Les Paul - they are still bought today when building a new studio and 30 year old ATC can still be repaired with available replacement parts. There is value in that just like there is value in a classic by Dave Wilson. Wilson WP defined a sound that is a reference for many audiophiles.

That said, your comments are appreciated and your perspective is also correct - there is high performance to be had in modern designs and often for much less. Progress is wonderful.