Paradigm Special Edition SE 1 Review

The Paradigm Special Edition SE 1 bookshelf speakers that we got this month looked like they were designed to be mere mediums that don’t interfere with what is being sent through them; their goal is to remove themselves from the music and let the music speak for them. All they needed was to be heard.

Out of the box

Neatly packaged

Technology

The drivers for this pair have come directly from the Reference Studio series, which we’ve reviewed in the past. They use Paradigm’s 1-inch tweeter made of gold-anodised pure aluminium or G-PAL, which is a combination of metals to increase rigidity while minimising mass. The cavity where the tweeter sits in is a die-cast waveguide that covers the top of the tweeter with a phase-alignment bridge to improve driver integration and a smooth frequency response.

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Simple to set up

Paradigm claims that this pair can go as low as 70Hz and as high as 20kHz, creating a frequency range that would seem a little challenging to reach considering the relatively small-sized cabinets the drivers come housed in. Nevertheless, the things that bookshelf speakers can do these days is nothing short of remarkable, so let’s get down to the business of AV MAX.

Performance

Drivers are straight out of the Reference Studio series

A sweet sounding deal

I could hear the flutist take a breath in several points while listening to the ‘Perfume OST’, and that’s a remarkable feat if you consider the entire 80 piece orchestra behind him/her coming in the way. Speaking of an orchestra, there’s plenty of clarity in this pair to give your ears a clear picture of each of the sections. You can hear their position in the orchestra while also being able to separate the violin sections from the viola sections, for instance.

Verdict and price in India

Paradigm’s Special Edition SE 1s are priced at Rs. 36,900 and have taken the best stuff from the Reference series while keeping themselves as compact as possible. They don’t go as deep as some other bookshelf speakers that I’ve had the chance to hear this month, but what they lack in bass depth, they more than make up for in power handling. They have the remarkable ability of maintaining sonic clarity even at the highest levels, be it alternative rock or electronic music. I found this pair a pleasure to look at and an honour to listen to. AV MAX is a special interest audiophile magazine that focuses on reviewing high-end AV equipment like amplifiers, stereos, floorstanding speakers and related news