Originally Posted By: Seekinganswers
Hello,

I have read many times that the M80s are very comparable to Paradigm's Studio 100s and sound very similar. I was just curious, how much of an upgrade/difference would one get from upgrading from M80s to Paradigm's Signature 8s? Is the upgrade really worth the $6000 extra? I know it would not be $6000 extra worth of speaker or omg blows M80 out of the water. I just want to hear from those who may have auditioned or maybe even owned S8s and to give their experience.



I have auditioned the two and the sound is quite comparable. Nothing blows anything out of the water here. I honestly believe that all too often when one is looking at floor-standing full range speakers and making comparisons, in this case much of that substantial extra charge comes from the aesthetics and the cabinetry which figures a lot in to the price of the speaker. No doubt the Paradigm S8s might look aesthetically more impressive than the M80s but that doesn't necessarily translate in to superior sound.

If one is interested in better looking cabinetry then order the "real wood" Vasallo series in your choice of finish and you will still have spent considerably less money and have a comparable sounding speaker.