Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners Experience with Dahlquist DQ10s and Axiom M80tis?

I just bought a pioneer elite vsx-45tx receiver (100x7) I am trying to decide on speakers to go with my system. One thought is refurbing a set of dahlquist dq-10s I have around. Another is buying a pair of monitor audio s8s... And yet another options that I have just found is the axiom m80ti... Any comparisons? Since this is a 4ohm speaker will it work well with my reciever?
Thanks
Jeff

Jeff,

your pioneer should have no probs with a 4ohm load. that's why you paid a few g's for it!

I think the dq 10's are an older model from dahlquist that I don't kow. I have heard the QX10's, and they're pretty good. Warm vocals, deep bass... but not the transparancy or clarity or highs the M80's have. Nor the neutrality.

the M80's are probably also the least expensive ones, which is always a bonus

The QX series is in no way related to the DQs which are the original companies speakers. QX is some other company that bought dahlquist when they went under. At any rate, no my reciever is not able to push 4ohms. Pioneer said it would be a bad idea since it was designed to push 6-8ohms... Looks like no m80s for me...

Jeff, for legal reasons(e.g. if you would happen to burn down the city)Pioneer can't officially recommend the use of 4 ohm speakers. In the real world the 45TX does fine with 4 ohm speakers.

Right. It is unwise to eliminate the M80s from your list solely because of the concern for the Pioneer 45TX. Trust us -- the receiver will drive the M80s without a hitch.

Is there anyone using a 45tx to push m80s?
speak up!

Jeff

I guess he doesn't trust you sushi.

He'll learn...Sushi knows all.

Although I can't think of anybody off the top of my head with the particular combination of the 45TX and M80s, judging from the third-party measured impedance/phase curves of the M80 shown below, I don't foresee any problems. In fact, combined with its high efficiency, the M80 is one of the most "benign" 4-ohm loads I've seen -- my Hales are much wilder.

lol could you explain that last post sushi? Im a newbie...
Thanks
Jeff

The top graph shows the impedance values (electrical resistance for AC current) of the M80 speaker when driven at the frequency designated in the horizontal axis. You see from this graph that the actual impedance value of the M80 never goes below ~4 ohms (the minimum in this case is between 100-500Hz). This shows that the "nominal" 4-ohm rating of the M80 is very honest -- many "4-ohm" speakers, including my own Hales, actually go down to 3 ohms and 2 ohms in certain frequencies, presenting a tough load for the power amp (my 45TX receiver still doesn't have a problem, though).

The bottom graph shows the "phase angle" of the AC current flowing into the M80 when driven by sine-wave voltage of the designated frequencies. Zero phase angle means that the current is in-phase with the voltage, showing that the speaker is behaving as a simple resistor at that frequency (a resistive load). When the phase angle swings positively, that means that the current flow is "delayed" as compared to the voltage swing, an indication of a "inductive" load, which most speakers behave like because the voice coil is in fact an inductor. A negative phase angle, in contrast, is a "capacitive" load (a condenser-like load), which is sometimes tough on the amplifier when the negative phase deviation is large. Anyway, the M80 shows very mild phase angles, pretty much always between 0-45 degrees over the entire frequency range. Again, this is one of the most benign loads I've seen.

Bottom line: From the amp's perspective. the M80 is one of the easiest 4-ohm speakers to drive.