Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater New Axiom HT Owner w/ many questions

After demo-ing a pair of M60s, I ordered the rest of an HT system from Axiom (2 QS8s, a VP150, and an EP350 sub). I know you guys don't seem to love the Axiom subwoofer, but it sounds pretty good to me. I had to turn it down during the first movie we watched 'cause it was shaking everything that wasn't nailed down. My questions:
- what does the crossover knob control (I'm guessing the frequecies which are amplified)?
- what does that phase switch control? In what situations would it be advantageous to flip it one way or another?
- I read an article at roger-russell.com (or something like that) that stated "speaker wire" as an expensive special purpose wire is a myth. According to that article copper wire is copper wire. What matters is resistance. How about using 12 gauge low-voltage garden lighting wire to run the surrounds?

There is a post here that has info on sub crossovers.

There is an article herefrom Sound and Vision magazine on how to generally setup your home surround system.

And yes, copper is copper. Any Home Depot generic brand of copper speaker wire shoudl suit your needs. I use 12ga myself based on the lengthy runs to my surrounds (45+ feet).

Thanks for the informative links, Chesseroo. I didn't read anything about that phase switch, but I did read a lengthy argument about which sub sounds best. Seems like overkill to me. I can't even turn up the ep350 all the way. All I want it to do is accent my m60s for music and make some booms and rumbles for the occasional action film.
One more question...has anybody gone from 5.1 to 6.1 and found the added channel worth the added dough?

Sorry about that BigWill.
Here is a link to Alan's clip on subwoofer guide (also found in the Axiom articles on home theatre setup) and the phase swtich.
alans post

As for 6.1 vs 5.1, there has been some debate on the forums as of late. Very few dvds are yet encoded to playback 6 distinct surround channels so at the present time, most 5.1 encoded dvds will allow the receiver to fill in the sound for your sixth channel (in the rear).
That being said, the improvement in sound is dependant on the individual. I personally like having the COMPLETE sound around me although i do not yet have a 6th channel. I did get to test this config when i still had the M22s here as well for auditioning.

If you have the cash, adding a 6th channel now will only set you up for the inevitable future but then again, you could always wait for the future before adding it as well.

I originally had 2 QS8's. I did what Chess said, bought the third QS8, while I was dipping into the home theater pot. You will notice a major difference with DTS-ES movies. They sound great with 3 QS8's for 6.1 . If you have the room and the money, go ahead and do it now. Let us know what you think when you are done.

Thank you, Mr. Chesseroo. Alan's post and that link you supplied from yesterday have led me to rethink what that sub should sound like. I was listening to a Luciano disc (the reggae artist not the tenor) and found that the sub's placement - angled out from an interior corner - did make it too boomy. I didn't hear any port huffing, despite what that guy with the Sunfire said about ported subs. But the effect was overly lush - too much base for my taste. I flipped the phase switch and much of that disappeared, but it wasn't nearly so loud. I'll keep toying with those switches and the sub placement.

Hi Big Will,

You can try gradually moving the sub out of the corner along one wall or the other and there will be less deep bass emphasis. It's always a compromise in any room, but the ideal is to find a location where, at your listening position, you get reasonably smooth, extended bass reinforcement.

If I shift from one end of my couch to the other, there is a significant change in the deep bass from the subwoofer. The tyranny of room dimensions and standing waves at work.

Usually you can find a reasonable compromise.

Regards,

I have an EP350 and a Sunfire True Subwoofer Signature. I did get some port chuff from the EP350 in the family room, but it really depends on what you're trying to do with it. My mains are M80 in the family room, and subwoofer duty is below 40Hz. If you try to get the EP350 to do sub-30Hz stuff at high volume, you'll get port chuff. Depending on the content, it may or may not be audible. For movies with low rumble effects and nothing else to mask the port chuff, it's audible. The Sunfire replaced the EP350 because it's better matched to what I was trying to accomplish with a subwoofer in the family room. It also passed the wife acceptance test for size. :-) Some of the disadvantages of the Sunfire are obvious: cost and electricity. A not-so-obvious one is that it is somewhat difficult to keep it in place on a hardwood floor, and it reveals all types of rattles due to its power at 20-30Hz. My two trouble spots that weren't audible with the EP350 are the recessed lights and the blinds in the skylights. I can fix the recessed lighting problem, but I don't think there's anything I can do about the skylight blinds, they're integrated motor-driven remote control blinds that I don't want to remove, and they're way too high off the ground to operate by hand (probably 18' at the peak).

Right now I have the EP350 paired with M22 fronts, for music listening only (in my home office). It works very well for this purpose. It will be moving to the master bedroom soon, along with the M22's (office system is going to be replaced by M2i's and a smaller subwoofer). Here it will be doing movie duty too, but not at the volumes or need-for-rumble of the family room. I expect it to do very well, Sub-25Hz material makes our dog bark, so I'd prefer to avoid it in the bedroom. :-)