Anyone using a 990 with a Paradigm Studio setup care to comment on how these speakers match up with Outlaw gear? I find my Rotel 1066/1075 combined with Paradigm Studio 40's to be harsh and fatiguing to listen to in 2 channel mode. I was ready to pull to the trigger on a new 990/7500 combo, but I'm concerned that my problem here is the speakers and not the Rotel gear.

As a matter of fact, I've got Paradigm Reference Studio/60v2 mains, Studio/CCv2 center, and Studio/ADPv2 rear surrounds (side surrounds are Axiom M3ti's due to side wall speaker mounting challenges) all driven by a Model 990 feeding a pair of M200's for the mains and a Model 750 for the center and all four surrounds. I've been very pleased with the overall system.

For what it's worth, my wife and I listened to a co-worker's Rotel 1068/1075 setup driving B&W's and found that system harsh in comparison to ours (enough so that as soon as we got in the car, she commented on how much more she liked our setup). At the time, we had a Model 950 processor - the 990 is a nice sonic improvement over the 950, so I would expect the contrast between the two systems to be even more noticeable now.

Hey Mr P.,
I myself am running the 990/7125 combo w/ ref studio 60's/v3 for mains and cc-570v3 for center. I have them set up as small w/ the crossover @ 40Hz for both. But some times i have change the mains to 'large' for 2-channel.
I love the sound and i don't find myself asking for more.

Hi Mark, I have a set up very similar to Gonk.studio 6s,Center CC,Atoms at the back, and Mirage omnisats at the side.I may as well run down the rest of the gear so you see where I’m coming from.SMS-1, 2 Cambridge subs and a single SWS 16-46 for that bottom octave and the booms and bangs,Outlaw 950,Outlaw 990,EAD Theatermaster 8,Outlaw 7100,Accurus 150, Aragon 8800,Denon2900,Panamax 5100,Panny AE700,my Onix SP3 will arrive Tues. bias is music 70% HT 30%.I am currently shopping for new speakers, Gallo Ref 3s are the frontrunners as of today. The 990 is good news –bad news. For HT it is as good as any product of it’s type at any price.Music,well it depends.If your listening runs to Greenday and The Boss; pull the trigger on the 990 and don’t look back.Diana Krall,Jennifer Warnes,classical,you will be very dissatisfied. The only mode that is bearable is plain Stereo.All other modes are harsh,edgey,ect.The 950 is going on ebay tomorrow.The 990 is staying because of it’s HT excellence and upgradeability. I had pulled the EAD off the line in hope of a one box solution.It’s back on do to it”s superior sound in the stereo domain, and the tube pre-amp is on the way.As to the Studios.I love these speakers and they have given me 10 years of listening pleasure,but it is time to move up.You know how that goes.The harsh sound is the 990 combined with the metal tweeters.As you can see I am a believer in the Outlaw product line,and I wish I could be more positive regarding 2 channel.Good Luck

pizzapro,

You may want to play with the SMS-1 or your crossovers on the 990 or your room acoustics. Wow, that's a few things to play with I know. I have Klipsch speakers (horn tweeters - considered quite bright by most) and the 990 sound absolutely incredible with 2-channel. With the SMS-1 you really have a lot of control with how well the bass and other channels integrate (one of the most important aspects of sound in my opinion). Out of curiosity, what are your crossovers set at? And how flat is your sub response as plotted by the SMS-1?

I listen to 80's rock and a lot of jazz such as Nora Jones, Sara Vaughn, big band, etc. and it all sounds really good. I prefer Upsample mode followed by Stereo, and don't really use bypass as the bass seems too heavy in that mode. I am left wondering if you need more power to drive your speakers and if that could be causing the harshness. Are you usually listening at higher volumes?

Hey pizzapro,

I'm curious to know if you've compared the 2-channel CD sound from your Denon 2900 using the analog connections with the 990 using it's DACs.

Pizzapro, thanks for the info. I'm curious to know if your opinion of the 990 in 2 channel mode changes when you get different speakers. I'm beginning to think that my Paradigms with their metal dome tweaters are the biggest contributor to harshness I'm hearing.

Hey Pizzapro,
Like Gonk and a few others .... i'm running paradigm ref. studio 60v3 as mains w/ 990/7125 combo(Outlaw i/c) and DIY speaker cables (Belden 1624P)....
Thanks to the Outlaws i'm back into 2 channel land. Love brass and drums. Blew the dust off Best of Chicago remastered ... smookin'! As you know ... well recorded brass will expose flaws in the upper mid range-tweeter really fast. then spun crystal method ... nothing harsh at all.
IMO .... the 990 is great for 2-channel: Jazz, latin, electronica, etc.
I'm w/ Doug917 and wandering if it is in the setup?

Pizzapro:

Agree with all above. Setup can also mean speaker placement from rear walls and side walls, toe-in. What is opposite where your tweeters are facing? A window? Open wall?

I've got Axiom M80ti's and those are comparable to Paradigms definitely. I don't find them harsh and fatiguing at all. I've got my 990 mated to a Sherbourn 5/1500A and it's more power than I probably need. Even in two channel listening, I still cross over to dual SVS's - I don't run the mains as full ever; just my preference.

What kind of amp are you running with the 990? Did you keep the 1075 - if your speakers are set to large, you can add to the treble fatigue potentially if your amp is not up to snuff because so much of the power goes to drive the bass.

Hi guys,thanks for your suggestions.Im glad you are having good experiences with your 990 and I assure you I am not disappointed in the product. Expecting state of the art 2 channel at this price point was wishful thinking on my part.I am very picky about my music listening and even small nuances are noticed .To answer some of your concerns; my room is fully treated ,corners are trapped,ceiling treated ,diffusers at the rear,first reflections absorbed and eliminated. My two channel amp is the aragon 8008 a very powerful(tested at 230 watts per Ch at 8om,458 at 4om,and over 700 at 2om).It easily controls my speakers or any others for that matter. A great amp.To bad Mondial went under.I have spent many hrs playing with my SMS-1.My FR is +or- 3db with the exception of a 5db dip at 113hz.I am very happy with my systems bass response. I have spent countless hrs working on speaker placement. Toe-in Toe-out ,wall distance ect.I have moved every piece of furniture out of the room and replaced them one at a time while conducting listening tests after each move(my wife thinks I am crazy).I have replaced speaker wires and interconnects 3 times(currently wireworld)looking for a little more perfection. John the first thing I did was compare the dac performance of the denon vs the 990.The Denon is just more musical in my system.Notes are fuller ,rounder and more appropriately sustained. The decay on piano is more like the real thing.One of the great audiophile discs of the last 10 yrs is Jeniffer Warnes “The Hunter”.On tract 2 of this disc a triangle is tapped 20 times in succession .The 990 resolves this delicate sound as well as the Denon EAD combo but the sound is harsh and disappointing. The denon is uncolored when combined with the EAD.With the 990 music is simply not as pleasurable an experience. If I were not aware of how this music should sound I might be satisfied with the 990 as a 2 channel processor ,but I am not.That is why an integrated tube amp will be here Wed. And why I am looking for new speakers.The search goes on.