I just purchased the Mini-Monitors last week. After burning them in for approx. 30 hours, I was amazed at the balanced spectrum and soundstage I was hearing.
My listening room is rather small (10'x11'), but even though the Paradigms might be optimized for a somewhat larger spce, they are not overwhelming at all. I auditioned NHT 1.5's at the same time, and concluded that the Mini-Monitors were much better suited for my varied music collection. The NHT's were too weak in the low frequencies, and I'm not in the market for a sub.

Overall, the sweetest, most musical loudspeakers I have ever heard in this price range. I now have a sub-$1500 system that makes all of my music come alive, with detail that compares very favorably with my Headroom headphone system. Once you optimize speaker position, the sounstage and imaging are excellent for a $350 speaker. Next step is to upgrade the CD player to a Rotel or Rega.

System Breakdown:
Musical Fidelity X-A1 integrated amp
Yamaha CDC-565 CD changer
Paradigm Mini-Monitors
Tributaries SP4 speaker cables
MIT Terminator 2 interconnects
also:
Headroom Supreme headphone amp
Sennheiser HD-580 'phones
Kimber Kable PBJ interconnect

WOW!! These guys are just perfect!!I still find myself amazed every time I sit down and listen to what these puppies can produce. I have owned Sound Dynamics, cerwin-vega, and other Paradigm products(Titans) but these truly take the cake. Better than average lows along with crisp, take charge highs leave nothing to be desired...I even found the Monitor 7 muddy and less defined when compared to these wonders!!!
Don't let the word "mini" fool you......they pack hugh bang for the buck!

My system:
Yamaha RX-V493
Yamaha CDC-765
Yamaha KX-W392
Paradigm Mini-Monitor front
Paradigm Mini-Monitor rear
Paradigm CC-350 center
Paradigm PS1000 Subwoofer

I almost got a pair of Klipsch 3.1s until I was fortunate enough to run into this guy at a local hi-fi dealer who showed me the Mini Monitors (thank you so much, DC at Hillcrest High Fidelity...). Wow. The Klipsches are great, respectable speakers, but there really is no contest (for me), in a side-by-side comparison with the Mini Monitors. We even threw a pair of B&W's in the show-down. For me, the Mini Monitors just sound MUSICAL. I don't think that is the word that I've used in the past to describe the speakers I owned (Advent, Bose)... The sound coming from these little speakers is nothing short of amazing -- almost brought tears to my eyes. These speakers made me go back to listening my old CD's as if I am experiencing the sounds for the first time.... It's like these speakers reignited some old, almost-forgotten passion...
It's amazing how a piece of stereo equipment can do that, but these speakers are really that good. For now, they are the mains in a no-frills stereo-only setup. I have grown tired of the gimmicks and booms of my old so-so HT setup. So now I have started building a new system from scratch, with Yamaha RX-V2095 (totally awesome as well) and the Mini Monitors as starting point. I can't wait till I get the Monitor 5's and the powered subs for a real HT setup...

BTW, I had read all the reviews here before narrowing my choices down to the Klipsches and Definitive Tech's. I bought the Paradigms without reading the reviews at all (because I ran into the them sort of by chance). All I can say is, believe your ears -- they are the best, most trust-worthy critics.

well, let me tell ya, these babies are at their first anniversary. What a better way to celebrate this than by submitting the following glowing review: After having bought a cheapo JVC mini component, i threw away the speakers that came with it, and got myself these Mini Monitors. They cost me as much as the entire JVC setup, but boy did they make a HUGE difference. When i auditioned the speakers in canada (Kromer Radio, Toronto, god bless ya) they wiped the floor with much more expensive Boston Acoustics. I got the Titans at first, but returned them due to bloated mid-bass when positioned near room boundaries. Always give your speakers more than 1ft of breathing room. But the Mini Monitors hit the mark "right-on". argualbly the most accurate speakers under $2000. They make me look forward to going home everyevening. Even as we speak, i am enjoing them with some Jazz/Blues. I close my eyes and they make me forget about my troubles, immersing your senses with vivid imaging and clean, clear, and accurate reproduction. Hear them for yourself, and be blown away. and now, back to the music... happy anniversary to my Mini Monitors.

I compared the Mini-Monitors to the Studio 20's, and Studio 20 V.2's. The Mini's and old S20's had a lot in commmon soundwise. The S20 V.2 had a more brilliant, open sounding high end, but the upper bass region sounded too thin. I discovered that by turning up the treble to +1 on the Rotel amp, I could make the Mini-Monitors sound like the S20 V.2, though I think the Mini's sounded better despite the fact that they are the cheapest of the 3 speakers. I auditioned them for about an hour with jazz, clasical, and rock (with female vocals).

I bought this speaker as part of an inexpensive system for my daughter a year and a half ago, and found that it sounded acceptable with the NAD receiver and Marantz CD player that made up her system. Recently, she returned from school --with these speakers. Just for fun, I substituted these speakers in my system (Krell KAV 300I; ULtech CD player; DH Labs interconnects and speaker cables; Mirage BPS 150 sub) to see what they sounded like playing with better equipment. They are not giant-killers; and there are certainly better speakers out there for more money. I would not say this is the best speaker under $1000. The B&W DM302 is probably better for serious music listeners, but not for home theater or head-bangers like Corey Greenberg. The mini-monitor has a very pronounced bass emphasis at around 80 Hz. It also produces a fair amount of distortion when fed bass below its operating range (about 50 Hz). The tweeter has a definite peak at around 5 to 7 KHz that produces a splashy, spitty sound on cymbals and vocal sibilants. (No, these are not effects of the other components in the system. My regular main speakers generate much more h.f. detail without being "spitty.") Left-right imaging is pretty good, although with the speakers pointed straight ahead and about 10 feet apart, central imaging (between the speakers) just barely holds up. There's not much depth to the soundstage. After listening for a while, the bass "boom" and treble "sizzle" get to be irritating. At this price, the Paradigm is a definite step up from the Polk and Bose stuff at appliance stores. But, at $500 a pair there are a number of better speakers out there. Try Pinnacle AC-650's or Snell K-IV's. These are fairly priced, but far from the deal of the century.

With extensive research on speakers and audio equipment for a long time, I finally came to a conclusion. The Paradigm Mini Monitor. I got these speakers a couple of days ago. These are the first high end speakers that I bought. Paying full retail price for the Mini Monitors are worth it. Bass is surprisingly well defined and deep for a speaker its size. Using the Stereophile test cd 1, Bass is flat to 50hz and extends to 40hz in my small bedroom/listening room. I have them about 5 feet apart. Soundstage and imaging are very good. Vocals are clear but sometimes they are a little bit emphasized in the lower midrange. Treble is detailed and smooth. I can hear air around voices and instruments. The "air" is very satisfiying. Upper treble can sometimes become slightly emphasized, however, these are only minor. What I really like is that the Mini Monitors are neutral from top to bottom without emphasizing too much in the frequency range. Also, with its extended bass, a subwoofer with a low crossover setting can be used (below 40hz). This results into better bass response without being boomy (the subwoofer no longer has to play the midbass).
These speakers are involving! The first time I played a track with them at home, it gave me goosebumps. It was that good. I compared them with the Paradigm Studio 20s which costs $600. I would choose the Mini Monitors over the 20s no matter how much it costs! THe Studio 20s sound too boring and too warm. The bass is also a bit boomy in the 60-80hz region which I don't like. The Studio 20's are stereophile '99 recommended but don't know why the Mini Monitor's aren't.

That's it. Right now I'm still breaking them in and hope to get better results. Overall, I have to give these speakers what they deserve, a solid Five Star Rating.

Nothing beats it for on a size/price/performance ratio. Compared to bookshelves twice it's price the high-end is a tad unrefined...but it's bass is as good as any. A Great home theatre choice if you're trying to cost down and don't care about sub 50 hz bass.

I have had these speakers for about 4 months now, and I LOVE them. I did alot of research on alot of speakers in the price range of $300 to $600 , and I couldnt find a better sounding speaker. I am putting my system together piece by piece, and so far I am very pleased with all the Paradigm products. I also have the CC-350 for my center channel and I think it is one of the best sounding speakers on the market. I haven't got my sub yet, but I couldnt belive how much bass the MM had. To everybody out there doing research on speakers and your not sure what speakers to go with, Paradigm is the way to go. I am picking up my ADP-170 in a couple of days, I cant wait.

Clear midrange that rivals speakers costing 2-5X as much. Highs are crisp and clear with very flat response, also in the midrange. The bass is not big but tight. Very musical. The Mini's can handle a lot of power. One of the dealers I have talked to saids that he has his hooked up to two Marantz 200 watt mono blocks, and they handle the power easily.

NO deep bass, but I have a sub.

Great speakers for the money. Only paid 300USD for mine. They blend perfect with my Klipsch KSW23 subwoofer, and play music wonderfully. Also Dobly Digital and DTS aren't bad one these little babies. The soundstage is HUGE for a speaker so small. Very Dynamic. They are powered by the Onkyo TXDS575 reciever. And what a perfect match.

Similar Products Used:

Bose 301's B&W 601 S2, 602S2