Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater And so it begins

For those of you not keeping track of me like I am-you know who you are-I'm moving from my entire adult life of aparment/condo living to a home without walls shared with picky neighbors and floors that double as someone else's ceiling. The move happens in a couple of weeks and I'm really excited.

I started out sure that I was going to go to magnolia hi-fi and buy a couple definitive tech speakers and a center for the front and use my current fronts as surround and rear channel. I talked to the sales guy and he was helpful I guess. He suggested I bring in a CD and spend some time listening. Good advice.

The next day I brought in a CD with some tracks I know. Charlie Daniels, Blue Man Group, Rhapsody, Rush, Propeller Heads-you get the idea, a mix of stuff. I have very broad tastes. I listened to the definitive tech speakers they had and I wasn't impressed. The didn't sound any better than my current set hooked up to my entry level sony deck. I left the store.

Across the street is a boutique shop. I wasn't sure if they had anything in my price range, but I figured I'd at least listen to some really high end speakers to see if I just didn't get it. Armed with the same CD I entered the store. The salesman at least knew how to give a product presentation, going over the features, educating me on brands that you folks talk about that I'd never heard of before like Paradigm and B&W.

Both the 400$/pair Paradigm and B&W bookshelf speakers sounded amazing! Finally I was hearing what I expected out of high end speakers. The guy put on the Monitor 7 floor standing speakers and I REALLY liked them.

The next day I went in and was ready to buy the whole shebang-but I really can't buy any speakers until I move-or I'll just move them twice. Rotel 1067, Monitor 9's, and whatever the rest of the paradigm set was for a 5.1 setup. I asked him about multiroom and he told me you could only do it with a separate amp. Mistake #1-he could have moved me away from the rotel. Then he tried to get me to buy some fancy speaker wire. Compared the wire to tires on a car and oil in a car. He loved his analogies. He played the game of showing me something really expensive (40k cables!?>!?!!?) then showing me something also overpriced but much cheaper to avoid sticker shock. I told him that I'd live without $200 speaker cables-but even their 12g was 1.50 a foot. Oh well, I knew what I wanted all I need was a date to go back in and buy it.

So to the internet I went reading everything I could about paradigm speakers when I stumbled across Axiom. The idea was compelling-mail order speakers, sound unheard, but with a money back guaruntee. I started reading reviews and they were being compared to the paradigm studio series speakers-which I also heard, and liked, but not an extra grand a pair liked. The Axioms were about the same price as the monitors and the whole system was a bit cheaper for the Epic 80/500. I looked at the other internet brands and ascend and aperion also look like good buys and would probably satisfy me-but I like the look of the axioms and the content on the webpage is very helpful. I still haven't read it all but I'm becoming much more knowledgable about this whole audiophile thing .

Well I still can't order the speakers for another couple of weeks-two days before I close on the house so they arrive about the day I get in :P. I did, however, find a HK 635 (HK was recommended by forums and the axiom customer service) on Ebay for 500 bucks. Just got it today and it makes a big difference by itself in my condo. Of course this could all be in my head, but I somehow doubt it. I'm writing this listening to Rush in surround sound and everything is well balanced. The highs are more pronounced-although the bass does seem a bit flat these are small speakers and I'll have a subwoofer soon enough.

Here's the future home of the M80s:



In the next year or two I'm going to replace the slider with a wall and wall in the back of the room.

Very good, DW; I'm sure that you'll enjoy your new home and new speakers. That bare room is just longing for those M80s!

Congrats on the new place. How big is the room? Looks nice and cozy.

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I asked him about multiroom and he told me you could only do it with a separate amp. Mistake #1-

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Actually DW, this depends on the point of view.
If you use the Rotel 1067 for a 7.1 system then yes, you would need a second amp for another room. If the salesman knew you were only considering a 5.1 setup, then indeed the remaining two channels can power the multiroom config.

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their 12g was 1.50 a foot

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You know this isn't that bad. Granted you can find cheaper prices, but many of the boutique stores i've seen tend to start around $2-4 /ft for wire and rarely sell anything 'generic'. Even the Axiom wire goes for over $1/ft Cdn. I've found local pricing on 12ga wire for as low as 20 cents a foot, but the sheath was a cheaper plastic, not nicely flexible or finished so i went up to 50 cents a foot to get what i preferred for aesthetics.

I'm excited for you! Once you get you're setup completed, I honestly think you're gonna be blasting those speakers like it's nobody's business...just because you CAN!!! Congrats on the new home!

That room looks like it's got great potential. I really think you'll like the M80's. I happen to work next door to a high end audio shop and have gotten a chance to listen to B&W's a couple times myself. I can't say that I didn't like the B&W's, but I thought there was something lacking. I'm really confident that you'll enjoy your M80's. I'm completely happy with my decision of getting my M60's and don't regret it one bit (except now I want the M80's!).

Enjoy!
Mary

Good on you, DW! We need more Axiomites in the Evergreen State.

80's are going to totally rock that room. Whoo Hoo!

Like Tom Petty said, The Waiting is the Hardest Part.

Congrats on your new home! M80/VP150/QS8 system would be awesome in that room of yours. I can relate to what you're going through right now. I was pretty much in the same shoes a few months ago.I was moving from an apartment to my own house and had been looking for new HT system a few months before my moving date. I was considering either Aperion or Axiom. I don't there's anything wrong with Aperion but I'm glad I chose Axiom instead.

Actually DW, this depends on the point of view.
If you use the Rotel 1067 for a 7.1 system then yes, you would need a second amp for another room. If the salesman knew you were only considering a 5.1 setup, then indeed the remaining two channels can power the multiroom config.

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Right, but he could have steered me away from the Rotel and he could have advised me that multiroom is difficult to maintain.

Curses. My HK is already dead. I guess it's going to be re-refurbished. I'm going to let them send me another (I think) and if the next one fails I'm back to trying to decide. Has anyone used the outlaw 1070 to drive the m80s? That company is spunky-I wouldn't mind supporting them if their gear can do the job.

Cool, I'm going for the yamaha 2500-I found a new one-hopefully I choose the right e-tailer.

Well, I chose the wrong e-tailer. They had a good rating on all the multiple listing sites-but when you read the actual feedback comments it becomes very clear that the positive feedback is a bunch of bull. Just about every negative comment indicated that items sold as new were opened, often with a different product inside-sometimes with a different TYPE of product inside. I got lucky and cancelled my order in time. After this and the busted H/K which I'm stilling waiting on the RMA for I'm no longer interested in dealing with trying to find a bargain on a product that is a couple years old. I'm back to the outlaw. I have two options that I'm considering:
1. Get the 1070 and save for two monoblocks. Down the road replace the monoblocks with a multi channel separate and then further down the road replace the 1070 with a dedicated pre pro. Short term this is a cheaper option and I can definately afford it. Long term I'll probably be ending up spending more money-but I might be able to get cooler equipment going down this path.
2. Get the 990/7125. It will be a long time before I would plan to change anything in this setup-the 990 would be the obvious first thing to be replaced-but I've had my current av receiver for 5 or 6 years and I rarely think 'gosh, I need a new one'. Long term this is probably going to cost less, but short term this is a big initial investment.

Regardless I'll be getting the epic 80/500 still.

Oh, and the buyer for my current place fell through. I don't have a date for moving again I really want to get the speakers now, but it seems to me a foolish move to ship them just to move them-and it isn't like I'll be able to enjoy this setup in a condo.

DW, it would be useful to name the seller as a possible caution to others.

Regardless of that, the idea of the Yamaha 2500(or 2600) for your M80s was excellent and still something that you could consider.

butterflyphoto.com was the seller.

If I saw the yamaha at one of the big places I'd consider it-but my long term plan is to go to separates. To be honest by going with companies like Axiom and Outlaw I also get the benefit of supporting companies that choose a business model that forces them to produce products that they are passionate about.

That said, if you know someone that wants to part with a 2500 for 500-600 bucks you let me know

damn, I found a new one on ebay from a guy with 10k good feedback.

damn decisions.

I've bought a lot of things from E-bay, and have had good experiences. Just stick to highly rated sellers and read the comments and stuff, and you can get some really great deals.

I think the rule of thumb for discount merchants online, is to avoid stores that have one the word "camera" in their name, and are based in Brooklyn, NY. You'll find that their websites are all the same and they are like one big company. That being said, before I knew to be wary around these places, I bought my RX-v2400 brand new from one of these places and got an excellent deal and it was delivered ontime as promised. I didn't know about the bad rep of those places until afterward.

There are some great retailers out there though that are highly rated and have great reputations (Vanns.com is one of them).

I would recommend you look around before pulling the trigger. You'll end up with something nice- whether it's a Yamaha or other brand, there's always great deals out there.

I've bought a ton of stuff online in the past and nothing has been like this. Anyway I did finally settle on an account on ebay with 99.7 postitive-and the neg rep was generally minor stuff, like people not living in the shipping area. I went through a dozen ebay stores before I found the one I settled on, and yes, there are a lot of them in new york, aren't there? What the hell? Almost bought one from LA-they had good feedback and the negatives were kinda silly, but they put too much 419 scam language in their listing. "The lord bless your family, it is written ye shall save' wha????

Oh well, I'm sure the Yamaha is a great unit, and I'll save up for a separate amp over the next year or two-once the wife forgets that I've done this.

Well I got the yammie today. Took the HK to the shop. HK was really slow at returning my e-mails so I figured I'd just get it fixed and keep the unit I prefer-and give the other away as a gift. I move next week, and I'm going to have to wait to get the Axioms until I sell my current home (paying three mortgages doesn't allow for droping big bucks on speakers). It was supposed to be sold already but the buyer backed out. Sigh...