I have first generation atoms. They have provided me with many years of enjoyment. Really excellent all around bookshelves. Clean singing highs, and great bass performance for such small speakers. You'll be surprised.

Mine are well worn in and really sing...

Sound quality way beyond what their size and cost should allow!
Diecast aluminum woofer basket
All the money went into improving the sound

Modest bass extension and volume capabilities, but way more than you'd expect.
Spring clip wire connectors
Unflared port opening
Fixed grill cloth
Foam woofer surround

I had the original Atoms, which I've since given to my brother (and I miss them!).
To get such a full-bodied sound and such volume out of a tiny, cheap box was and
is amazing. The Atoms are so much fun to listen to you don't really miss what's
not there - deep bass, the last word in transparency or treble extension. They did
the important things right, like a flat and uncolored midrange. An outrageous
value.

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Beautiful spacious sound, great midrange, solid build quality, made in Canada (not China), cost

Fake wood finish .. but what do you expect at this price. The quality is in the driver and tweeter.

After on of my 16 month old twins decided to put his fingers through the woofers on my old Infinity Studio Monitor SM105s (from the early 90's), I knew it was time to look for new speakers. Yes, I know I can replace the foam but I decided to find something smaller. My wife and I recently purchased a larger HDTV so we wanted something small and mountable to fill the front stage.

I've been a huge fan of Paradigm products for the last 7-8 years. For several years, I've owned an amazing and very powerful PW2200 paradigm sub that matched my infinity speakers quite well. The Infinities (back then) were decent speakers. The put out spacious highs and very good mid-bass (10 inch woofers). However, they always lacked the bottom end which my paradigm sub easily handled. I picked up a pair of Atoms a few years ago to take care of the rear channels.

I suggested another pair of Atoms for the front but the wife still felt they were a bit too bulky. She was thinking about something very small. I didnt mind purchasing smaller speakers as long as they had clean highs and solid midrange. This was the problem. Everything I listened to sounded terrible or was lacking midrange. I listened to a set of Infinity Bravos and was very disappointed. It sounded like music being played through an empty tin can. I went to my dealer to take a listen to the Paradigm cinema series. The highs were excellent but they were still lacking in midrange (because of the driver size). I was worried that my system would be missing a huge midrange between the speakers and my sub. The dealer kept suggesting the Atoms. He told me that he sells "Definative Technology" speakers at 3 times the cost of the Atoms but don’t compete. Finally, I had him switch to the Atoms on display (without a sub) and they instantly filled the room with beautiful sound (highs, mids and even decent bass). Since he offered me a deal I couldn’t refuse on last year’s version 4, I didn’t resist. I asked if he would help me deal with my wife. He agreed to sell me the speakers but stated I was "on my own" with the spouse.

I trust my dealer greatly and he has never steered me wrong. He made a comment that in the 20 years he's been selling audio products, he has never ever heard a better sounding "bookshelf" speaker than the Atom.

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Incredible depth of sound.

Lacks low end base, but thta is easily compensated by the addition of a sub.

The Atoms are still the best speakers I own. I mistakenly thought I was getting better speakers by spending $600 for two floor standing speakers and another $350 for two satellites and a center channel speaker. I used those speaker to replace the Atoms and Paradigm Micros which I was using with a sub and no center channel. After several months of adjusting the speaker settings on my stereo and never being completely satisfied with the sound, I pulled out the old Atoms and hooked them up to the stereo's second speaker channel. I could not believe what I had been missing. I compared the speakers directly and could instantly hear how much clearer the Atoms were. I watched parts of a movie I had viewed the night before without being able to understand much of the dialogue. Through the Atoms, I could hear everything I was meant to hear in the movie. I then compared the speakers listening to a variety of music. Again, the Atoms were much fuller and added a certain depth to the music that had been missing. I am now searching for a good deal on a Paradigm center channel speaker and am preparing to sell the speakers on which I wasted $950. I was considering paying $2,000 or up for speakers that will go into a theater room I am in in the process of putting together. Instead, I am going to simply use six Atoms and a Paradigm sub. For speakers costing less than a grand, the Atoms can't be beat.

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BASS!!!! Detailed and forgive old recordings, and show of the good ones.

they are only 80 watts for suitable amplifier range and operate at 50 wats, but you wont notice that.

Wow! is the best explaniation to say about these speakers. They are driven by an onkyo tx-sv727. These speakers greatest strength is their bass!! No need for a subwoofer, these pups can handle it on their own. If you are looking for a speaker, stop and buy these! They are forgiving on old recordings, but will show off on great recordings. you can't go wrong with these

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PRICE and size. Did I say price? Easy to listen to. Wonderful mids and highs! Brings out fine details. Surprising amount of bass. Sounds great with all music styles and recordings. You’ll get more out of these little speakers than just ‘good speakers at a good price’, you’ll find yourself actually having fun!

Cons: I gave them to my parents. At this price it doesn’t seem fair to criticize. So I’ll say none. Though placement is critical. I had “mine” about 18” from back wall and 7 feet apart, isolated on top of my Monitor 11’s. If you place a tuning fork on a bookshelf or table it will resonate. If these speakers are placed on a bookshelf male voices will become hollow and have a chestiness quality. It will also add false bass and muddy the sound. Get stands or place them in the open isolated from the surface and you will be rewarded!

GIANT KILLER!! If you’re reading this, then you’re thinking about getting them. Stop thinking about it and buy a pair! Shopping for my parents, and having experience with Paradigm speakers, I knew I was going to get them either the Atoms or Titans. Even after reading all the reviews I could find, I was not prepared for the sound I would hear from these small boxes! I borrowed a pair from the local dealer to try at home. My living room is approx 16x19 with 11 ft. ceilings and a very open floor plan. These little Atoms filled my room with full, rich, and incredibly detailed sound. Who said they don't have enough bass?! These speakers are truly amazing. A good sub or the Titans may be in order for loud hard hitting rock. But you WILL be surprised at the amount of bass. For home theater you will need a sub anyway, so that could be the ultimate in price/performance. Knowing my parents would be playing mostly older 50’s and 60’s recordings like Otis Redding, Percy Sledge, Wilson Pickett etc, I was afraid the age of these recordings would be exposed and come across thin and bright. WRONG! The Atoms are forgiving, and let the original intentions of the recording come across warm, clear and clean, not even close to being too bright or forward like Paradigms can be sometimes. It was rich with lots of crisp detail and the horns on Otis Redding’s ‘I’ve Been Loving You Too Long To Stop Now’ had a wonderful mid-low bite to them. And these are the older recordings! Playing newer, better recorded material is where they truly leave you in awe. I fell in love with these little speakers and couldn’t wait to get home from work to play them. It’s truly amazing that they can get this kind of sound out of such small boxes. And at this price you can sit back, close your eyes and lose yourself in fine music reproduction, just like real audiophiles!

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Paradigm Micros, Mini-Monitors, Monitor 5, Monitor 11

- Detailed bass response that defies the relatively high cutoff (70hz?). - Smooth, warm, very non-fatiguing sound. You can listen to these all day and night. - Dynamics are well represented at low to moderate levels. - Play well with non-bandpass subwoofers, especially 8" or 10" front loaded models. - Incredibly affordable for what they deliver. - Smooth high end, again, never fatiguing to listen too.

- Lack upper midrange presence, sometimes you have to listen in for vocals or some guitars that are further down in the mix. - Placement plays crucial role in low-mid and bass response. Poorly placed will result in chestiness and/or boominess. - Rear port design difficult to place well in smaller spaces these speakers are destined for. Also can smudge the bass image due to phase issues between port and midwoofer. - Cabinet resonances audible at high volumes. - Power compression at upper limits, but hey, that is expected in speakers in this size/cost class.

Ok, for those of you who might have seen my other reviews, you will know that I like small speakers. I like big speakers too, but as an apartment dweller, and after years of location recording I find the utility of small speakers unbeatable. Needing a stereo pair for the un-surrounded Yamaha surround receiver in the living room, I debated heavily between pressing my trusted Hafler M5 monitors into service or getting new speakers. Having seen many glowing reviews of the Atoms, and actually having a local dealer (jealous, aren't you?), I decided to give them a try. I have about a dozen hours into these speakers now, plus some break in time. They have been A/B'd with the Haflers (similar configuration, but designed for nearfield studio monitoring), some RCA Pro44av's(i.e. modern Minimus 7), and a brand new pair of KRK ST6 studio monitors. Now, when doing an A/B between these and a competent studio monitor, you'll instantly want to shove these back into the box. The first impression is a lack of upper midrange accuracy and detail. In fact, before they start to break in a little this is more than somewhat true. But then I decided get my head out of such an emotionless, technical comparo and spend some time with them just -listening-. Now, I'm not a true blue "audiophile". I have ok hearing, reasonable expectations, and the salt of many years of professional work. I can tell the difference between so-so gear, good gear, and truly great gear. And while I don't believe that there are BIG differences between competent electronics these days, I do know that there are BIG differences between speakers. So much so that the technical tidbits (freq response, phase response, time alignment, power compression, etc.) become secondary. I feel that speakers are, more than any part of the signal chain other than microphones, the most subjective and emotional component. And rightly so. The acoustic to electrical and electrical to acoustic interfaces of a sound system are -that- critical, and there are soooo many variables that you just can't be dry and emotionless about the subject. So, back to the Atoms. I've listened to everything through these now. Bluegrass (Bela Fleck), jazz fusion (Jaco Pastorius), classic rock (The Who, David Bowie), world music (the new Brazilian CD by Yo Yo Ma), even some chill out trance and a childrens' CD. And, just as many of the other reviewers have said, you just get to the music with these. No hype, no excuses, just an awful lot of musicality for such modest two-way boxes. While they lack the upper midrange honesty I'm used to, and their imaging is a bit undefined at times, these speakers are so -listenable-. I just can't stress that enough. Now, for $200 US you don't get perfection. They are less than accurate through the mid band, tending towards a warmer sound. While fine at low to moderate volumes they can quickly get squeezed in at higher levels. Also cabinet resonances come into play at loud volumes. I can't help but think that the plastic rear panel, while well engineered, is in the end a compromise. Some plots of these speakers I found online support that (go see the review links from Paradigm's website). SUMMARY You may not immediately take to these, al l the praise you've heard aside. Give it some time, let them loosen up, sit down and really -listen- to them. And then put the box out in the garage with all the other equipment boxes (you -do- save your boxes, don't you?). I seriously doubt you will want to part with these little gems. Emotional? Yes. These are not brutally accurate studio monitors. They are, however, a fine pair of speakers for reproducing music to be listened to. Enjoy!

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Excellent sound for the price. Better than it has a right to be. An overachiever.

None at it's price point.

Having read a review in a '97 issue of the late lamented Audio magazine, I was intrigued by Cory Greenbergs remarks. Especially when he put them up against a pair of NHT's flagship 3.3's and how well they aquitted themselves in the comparison. I finally picked up a pair in 2000 after much contemplation. These were woth the wait. Having used an Advent sub/sat system for 6 years the Atom's were a revelation. Out of the box they clearly superior to the Advents (they were nearly double what the Atoms cost). They kept getting better as they broke in. Smooth midrange and detailed treble. The CMC tweeter has a refinement not seen in its price range. Bright but not fatiging. The low crossover point keeps beaming at bay. Bass while still smooth is this speakers achillies heel. Best supplimented with a powered sub. Imaging and soundstaging, while not up to to it's bigger brothers in the Monitor or Reference lineups, is quite amazing and really betrays its price point. I can just imagine how they would sound hooked up to a tube unit. If you are starting out in the audio game or want something for a small apt this is for you. This is the "Audiophile on a tight budget" speaker. The Canadians know what they are doing.

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The Atom conveys the musical message better than far more expensive speakers I have owned. It works as a bookshelf speaker -- i.e., on an actual bookshelf. Good speaker for a small room.

At this price, none.

I enjoy listening to this speaker, which I use as an actual bookshelf speaker -- i.e., on bookshelves -- more than any I've used before. It conveys the musical message on a CD better than a more revealing speaker, as a more revealing speaker lets recording flaws, particularly those in the lower treble/upper midrange, get in the way of the music. Not to say you don't hear what's on the CD -- you just don't hear so much of it your ears bleed. Nothing distracts your attention from the music. I've owned speakers by B&W Matrix, Spica, Spendor, Magnepan. Except for the Magnepan, the Atom is the only one I've been able to live with without wanting to replace it. Long story short, I love being able to listen to music instead of equipment. I got a really good deal, incidentally: $150 for a pair of shielded v. 2 Atoms, shortly after v.3 was released.

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Excellent value. Mids and Highs are a lot better than you could expect from loudspeakers at this price. If the audiophiles were told these were $500 a pair,they would take then seriously.(Auidophiles are a strange group,anything under $1000. is looked at with contempt).

Can soud a bit compressed if pushed too hard.(But then I know of some $500 loudpeakers that will do the same thing).

having been a Paradigm user in the past,I was kinda unsure if these would do the trick for me as main speakers. They actually sound quite good,even if you don't consider the price as a factor! I have certainly heard a lot worse for a lot more money.Great midrange,as well as a smooth treble response.To be fair though,I will probably get the Paradigm Mini Monitors when funds permit.

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