Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Complete newbie

Hello all.

So I'm thinking of getting the following:

- VP 100 for my center/
- EP 125 8' Sub
- Pair of QS4 Sorrounds (2 FMSQS Stands = $280.00)
- M22ti Bookshlelves for my front speakers (2 Full Metal Bracket = $78

Price quota Total:

$1,812.60 USD

All this for a room roughly 12x12. Think I am going too extreme with this set up? I just don't want to settle for anything that can possibly restrict my "room fill" level of listening. If I can get the benefits of full environmental sounds, I'd prefer getting a cheaper combo, perhaps switching the M22's for a M2i (about $250 cheaper). Let me know what you guys think, thank you.

Also, I have no idea of the audio cables I need to purchase to get an optimum streaming from my set up to my Pioneer VSX-1015TX Receiver. If you can list me all the audio cables i need, that would be very helpful to me. Thank you all.


-Clueless Audio man.

Welcome
If you give us your room size as well as what video components you will be using, We can give you alot more help.

It's going to be setup in a room roughly 12 x 12 max.(could be less, 10 x 10 min)

Here is the direct link to the A/V reciever I am going to hook it up to. If this wasn't what you were looking for, my apologies HomeDad.

http://reviews.cnet.com/Pioneer_VSX_1015TX/4507-6466_7-31426274.html?tag=sub

Along with my new PANASONIC TH-50PHD8UK 50-IN HDTV PLASMA TV.

Will be used for Gaming/Movies/Music but mostly Movies.

Thank you so much again.

I only have a 2.1 system in my bedroom which is of similar size to your room. I have the M22's powered only by a Rotel RA-01 40w amp and it sounds fantastic. I've not heard the M2i's, but for me, I don't think I would be happy going for anything less except for maybe the M3's. I should mention though that the M3's are supposedly more laid back sounding than the M22's or the M2i's. I've not heard them either, but I believe all the fanatastic reviews speak for themselves.

You should be fine with the sub, but if you're looking to save money, this is where I would look elsewhere (am I allowed to suggest such thing here?). I've got an 8" Yamaha YST-SW215 (120W) which was less than half the price of the EP 125, and it works out great. Look for reviews online for it. Better yet, if you've got a Best Buy in your area, then check it out.

Let's pretend for right now that you are not going to be listening to DVD-Audio or SACD discs! You will need a lot of cables for that purpose! But if it's just a DVD player or a cd player, then all you would need is simply a digital optical (or digital coax)cable and you should be set! Oh yeah, and also a subwoofer cable!

I almost forgot about video cables...What kind of TV are you going to use?

Sorry, I missed your measurments in your first post Imho with your room size the Epic Midi should be a good choice, I'm sure others will chime in soon. Besides speaker wire, you will need a coax cable for the sub, then depending on yor DVD player and cable box (if you use one) you will need either HDMI or component cables for that setup.

If you are willing to pay $400 for a sub, you really should consider getting the HSU STF-2 sub.

The HSU STF-2 will outperform the EP125 by leaps and bounds. The STF-2 is even a little better than the EP175 at a cheaper price.

If you are only going to listen to music, it is doubtful you will hear much difference. However, if you want to get into movies, the STF-2 will strut its stuff very well.

You might as well consider the SVS PB10-ISD as well for the same price range, however, the SVS is not as good for music as the HSU.

HSU STF-2 $400

SVS PB10-ISD $429

You are considering getting the same system I have (save for the sub, which is up to you).

Let me tell you, every person who watches a movie in my room leaves going, "wow." You won't be dissapointed. My dorm room is 8x22, and my room at home is 12x12, exactly what yours is. Trust me, what you are considering is perfect for a room that size.

The QS4's won't sound any different than the QS8's especially in a small room where they don't need to driven to loud levels. Do yourself a favor and go with the M22's. They mix perfectly with a sub. The M2's and M3's will mix well, but won't have the bass response and smoothness that the M22's have.

It's all up to you, but you won't be dissapointed with whatever you get!


I got all my cables from bluejeanscable.com. You will need the following:

5 runs of speaker cable - I would go with "BJC Twelve White (5000UE) (White jacket, 12 AWG)" get the lenghts necessary for each of your speakers.

A subwoofer cable - Go for the "Canare LV-77S Subwoofer Cable". Get your sub cable longer than you need, just in case.

A digital audio cable - Go for "Belden 1694A Digital Audio Cable". This is the cable that carries the signal from your DVD player to your Receiver. It goes to the "Coaxial" or "Digital out" or "SPDIF" ports on your DVD player and Receiver. This allows for you to have surround sound via Dolby Digital or SPDIF.

That's it for the audio cables. If you have a TV, cable box, VCR, or other components to hook up, look to see if they have digital out. If so, then get the digital audio cable as listed above for that. If they don't have digital out, go ahead and get stereo audio cables for them.

If you want to use your receiver to switch your video for you (It's a personal preference, it can make it easier because you just need one remote to switch both audio and video) buy some Component video cables for them. Your Plasma TV should have componant video, you are going to want to use composite video for your Plasma for the best video quality. Now, for hooking up your devices to your receiver, use componant video whenever possible. If a device doesnt' have that, go ahead and use S-Video cables.

I think that just about covers it.

I hope that helps!

Oops, typo there.

A digital audio cable allows you to have surround sound via Dolby Digital or DTS, not SPDIF.

I too was going to suggest a Hsu sub. The STF-2 would definately be the way to go. The rest of your Axiom choices sound terrific. (pun intended)

I would also suggest one of the subs suggested above. You'll have a very very nice system for that size room if you do.

A213, welcome. Since you're going to be sitting maybe 7-8' away in the room size that you mentioned, you can definitely save money over what you've proposed. Use three M2s across the front and the QS4 surrounds. Consider the fine Outlaw LFM-2 sub for about $300. On the cables, you don't really have to be concerned about "optimum streaming"; they perform a technologically trivial function and are available at quite low cost from sources such as Monoprice.com and Trianglecables.com. Speaker wire is probably most conveniently bought from local sources such as Home Depot.