Can't give you a comparison to the Paramours as they were the only amps in the room. Acoustics, preamp used (for the paramours - the SEX is integrated, but can be set up for use with a pre-amp), and speakers could make for a tremendous difference for comparisons purposes. The SEX that Doc had set up with headphones was heavily modified and playing original source tapes. I believe that the one in the Vivaldi room was stock. I'm pretty sure I asked that question. It was playing vinyl through a Seduction phono amp. I think I remember the turntable as a BIX, but I could be mistaken. Both systems sounded very nice. Now I may sound a bit flaky about my memory of the exact circumstances, but the fact that I listened to over 60 rooms of music and remembered these in a positive way says something.