Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Axiom and SVS

Trying to determine which brand to go with, I have researched SVS theather system $1000 plus 10% discount for military members and I am seriously debating wether or not to get the Axiom speakers, however, when I come down to prices I far exceed my buget, looking into the M22 (2) Center Channel and QS4 for the rears, without the sub that is over 1k. Anyway, the other factor that I am having an issue is that SVS product show their customer their audiophile grade crossover, heavy coils, capacitors, etc. Most online speaker retailers dont and most have their products manufactured in (China) which I happen to experience with (Home Theater Direct) product line.

SVS is very respected in the Subwoofer market however I dont know much about their speakers. Any thoughts, help would be appreciated. Looking to stay with my budget in which I may be able to do $1,500 however, it would be hard for me to swallow that price at the moment. My Audio Video room size is 15x18 but the whole room size is actually 18x26

Thanks!

Are you aware that if you order your Axiom speakers from the "Factory Outlet" page, you get 10%. Also, if you order 5 or more of any items from Axiom, you get another 5% always? Yes, SVS has always been known for their subs, however, Axiom subs are no slouch, especially the EP500 and EP600. Those most likely are out of your budget. I think for speakers alone, Axiom manufacturers a far better selection with a history to match.

I haven't heard the SVS speakers but the first few reviews seem to be pretty good. At first glance the SVS system would be more equivalent to M2s plus VP100, not M22s and QS4s, so comparable price would be ~$845 plus sub with the HT "5 items" discount.

Dollar for dollar, the SVS system is a darned good deal (although it has to be in order to compete with a Hsu Ventriloquist system), particularly if you are going to be mostly using it for movies rather than music.

The SVS speakers might be a bit small for your room depending on how loudly you are planning to play, but I want to stress that they (or the Hsu, or the Axiom) will be WAY better than any of the regular HTIBs so don't let us scare you away from any of them.

In case it helps, the Axioms are manufactured in North America, up here in Canada. Axiom doesn't make all their components (nor does SVS, from what I remember) so I imagine there are some offshore components in both. BTW, I didn't actually see anything on the SVS site saying that the SBS units were manufactured in North America, so if you're trying to avoid "made in China" you might want to check.

Having said all this, if I was in the US with your budget and room size I would be thinking real hard about getting the SVS system with the 12" sub. That's a big room to fill with bass.

It all depends on what aspect of the system is going to give you the most pleasure, and that's where you want to focus your $$ -- if you're going to be playing a lot of music, particularly anything acoustic, I think you would get your money's worth out of the extra cost of Axioms and maybe even getting a lesser sub to stay in budget might be a good deal. If, on the other hand, you're into movies and care enough about bass to already know about SVS, getting "the right sub" and spending a bit less on speakers is probably the best plan.

They're both going to be pretty darned good systems. The SVS speakers might be a bit small for your room but I ran M2s and a good sub for a while and was VERY happy with the results. The only place they fell down was loud rock, where the M2s were just too small unless I was within 7-8 feet of the speakers (or turned the volume down). The SBS speakers would probably hit their limits at about the same point.

I should also mention that Axiom surrounds are often described as the best in the business, giving a really nice "big spacious sound" that regular speakers can't match, without the "blurred" placement that you get from dipole speakers.

I'm fairly certain the SVS bookshelves are made in China.

You can stay within your budget even with Axiom Speakers with the following setup:

3 x M22s for the fronts (a centre vertical M22 if you have the room will provide the best soundstage across the front with your L & R M22s)

2 x M2s for the surrounds

At the factory outlet, this will cost $837.9 (with the included total %15 off)

If you don't have the room for a vertically standing speaker for a centre channel. I would just buy a 4.1 system for now and buy the VP150 later when you can afford it (its $200 more to the total).

For the sub, I would go with SVS 20-39 PCi cylinder sub (best bang for your buck at SVS) which will give you pretty good SPL in your room size. Your total will be around $1500.

Happy hunting!

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If you don't have the room for a vertically standing speaker for a centre channel. I would just buy a 4.1 system for now and buy the VP150 later when you can afford it (its $200 more to the total).

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Or you could buy the VP100, it works great and half the price of the 150.

Might I recommend the HSU STF-2.

It is a superb subwoofer. My system consists of M22's, VP100, QS4's, and a HSU STF-2. I am extremely pleased.

Not only this, but HSU has a 20% off sale for the STF-2, which knocks its already amazing price of $400 down to a very manageable $320 with $30 shipping.

Since your room is a little big, you could go for the STF-3, which is priced at $480 (originally $600). I would jump on the STF-3. The STF-2 is acclaimed as one of the best budget subs...and if you can upgrade to the STF-3 for $80 more than the STF-2 price, that is an amazing deal.

That's what I would get.

Good luck!

I too would recommend the Hsu sub. It's pretty hard to beat, if not impossible, for the price.

Hsu will also change the tuning frequency on the STF 3 to 20HZ for an added cost of only $50. So you pretty much can get an equal to the VTF 3 for $530.