Since nobody answered my previous post, I would like to share my personal observation/opinion which might be helpful to other PDVD members.
Paradigm vs. B&W
I've finally auditioned Paradigm Monitors 7 & 9 side by side with B&W 684 at the Paradigm Shang showroom, all of which are floor standers. Both speakers have different characteristics and sounded very different. Paradigm, a Canadian-made speaker, sounded a bit bright. The highs and mids are clearer and crisper than B&W, a British-brand China-assembled speaker, which are considered warm sounding. Because of Paradigm's characteristics, I can hear some cymbals which are not clearly audible in the B&W 684. The monitors sounded rounder and louder compared to the B&W 684 at the same volume, as expected because the Paradigms have higher sensitivity (94db for monitor 7 and 96db for monitor 9 vs. B&W684's 90db). By the way, the receiver used was Denon 1508. [As an afterthought, I wonder if the Denon 1508 receiver used was too underpowered for B&W 684 thus making it sound a bit inferior compared to the Paradigm monitors. I read somewhere that B&W are notorious in dipping ohm resistance in demanding scenes.] Since I only auditioned it for not very long, I could not tell if the bright sound would still sound nice after a prolonged listening. I've read somewhere that bright speakers could cause fatigue to the listener after prolonged exposure to too much high pitch sounds.
Cost-wise, the monitor 7 system (Monitor 7, CC290 and ADP190) is in the same price level as B&W 685 bookshelf system (685, HTM62 and 686) while monitor 9 system (Monitor 9, CC290 and ADP190) is in the same level of B&W 684 system (684, HTM61 and 686). Monitors 7 and 9 sounded almost the same to me, the 9s have larger soundstage which would be ideal for mid to large rooms.
Both Paradigm and B&W speakers sounded great. Their difference is not readily discernible unless you pay really close attention. So at the end of the day, it's all a matter of preference.
