Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater VP160 upgrade advice

Hi there, I currently have the VP150 and looking to upgrade to the VP160 as I've read that it's a significant improvement in dialogue clarity, off axis performance and overall a better match for my M80s. I noticed there is a VP160 HP available through the pre-owned store for about the same price as a B-stock VP160. The specs for the HP edition of the VP160 say that its rated 6ohm while the regular VP160 is rated 8ohm. My current receiver is a Denon 3808 and it powers the center and surrounds (QS8). Will it be able to provide sufficient power for the VP160HP and its new bigger drivers or should I stick with the VP160? Price wise I would prefer to get the VP160HP as it's a better speaker and less expensive than the regular VP160 (the pre-owned part doesn't bother me much).

Just looking to get some thoughts from people.

Thanks for your help!

Yep, go for it, that is a very good price especially for an HP unit and I am sure the folks at Axiom have made sure it is functioning as it should be and because it is, in essence, a full range speaker, you will notice a substantial difference in performance over the 150. Before I moved to the VP180, I had a VP160 that in many respects I wish had kept because of its design, it does have somewhat better off-axis performance than even the 180 and it will blend fine with the 80's.

I can only add that I've been a very happy camper since replacing my 150 with a 160!

Your Denon will have no trouble powering the VP160HP. Go for it.

Great upgrade! Go for it.

I went from a 150 to the VP180 and love the difference.

Ditto on the 150 to 180. Amazing upgrade. After all, most of the movie sound comes from the center channel, and it is usually the most neglected speaker of the "front 3."

Thanks for all the advice, just placed my order for the VP160HP, super excited to heart in action! Hope it's as much of a difference as everyone says haha!

Any thoughts on placement? My current VP150 is shelf mounted above the TV, but I don't think the shelf will be sturdy enough for the weight of the VP160 so I'm thinking putting it under the TV. Can the speaker cabinet take the weight of a plasma? It's a 55" panasonic, it's not overly heavy. I'm assuming I'll need some sort of wedge on top to level out the screen as the speaker appears tapered to the back.

Ideally you want the tweeters of your LCR speakers to line up, or as close as possible. Tilting the centre channel upwards slightly can help as usually people have it set up under the screen/TV. Axiom speakers are tapered cabinets so placing your plasma on top of the centre channel would be a no-go. Even if they were parallel I wouldn't do it anyway(if it were me).

If you don't mind me asking, why wouldn't you place it under the TV? Do you think it would impact the acoustics of the speaker or would be concerned with the cabinet being able to handle the weight? Or just that the TV might fall off?

I think I will eventually wall mount my TV, but not something I could do right away, so just curious if putting the TV on top of the speaker would be good enough as a short term solution.

My concerns, in decreasing priority would be:

1. potential damage to plasma TV due to vibration from sitting on a full-range speaker

2. TV sliding off somehow (wedge failure)

3. scratching the finish on your new VP160

Any of those would suck.

I have to agree with bridgeman, its a speaker not a tv stand . Go to the Brick or get some milk crates, cans of stew etc. Do like my kids do and call DAD LOL. Gl and enjoy your new CC

I was one of the few that had my T.V. In one of the box ends when I first got my 160. If you go through the search pane tv on Vp160 it should still be easy to find. though I quickly went to get a T.v. mount stand you'll need a large one as the 160 is large , the box end with foam was great for a month or 2.

Thanks for everyone's help! I will probably wall mount the TV (always hesitant to attach things to a wall, never know if I can trust the studs and the mounts, the TV is about 70lbs so hopefully it's not too heavy).

In any case, I also saw this online at IKEA (a shelf height extender). Any thoughts on putting this over the speaker and the TV on top? It seems perfect for the VP 160 ( if you don't attach the back panel the dimensions are spot on to fit the speaker inside).

http://www.ikea.com/ca/en/catalog/products/50279815/#/70263856

Width: 31 1/2 "
Depth: 11 " (don't attach the back panel and the speaker should fit for depth, or can even let it protrude a bit with the back panel on)
Height: 13 3/4 "

VP160 Dimens. H W D (inches): 11.5" x 30" x 13.9"

Will this mess with the acoustics of the speaker by putting it into a cabinet of sorts - I would think not, especially if the back panel isn't on? I'm just trying to find the simplest way to get everything set up and avoid wall mounting if I can. If it's not recommended I will wall mount the TV.

Thanks again!

That could work except for the height(add some strips or feet to the unit). Leave the back on for strength.

The VP160 is front ported so any "shroud" around the speaker should be ok sonically as long as the baffle clears the leading edge of it.

If you're handy, you could make your own as well.

I had a VP 150, nice speaker. Don't miss it. I now have a VP160 in one system, a VP180 in another. They are both GREAT speakers. You cannot go wrong with either.

Your Denon will drive either with ease, power and grace.

Go get you one!

VP160 came last night! Woohoo! Thanks Axiom!

Haven't had a chance to listen to it yet, but I did unpack it and put together the shelf/height extender from ikea. The speaker just barely fits inside width wise. What I mean is that the horizontal panels of the speaker are touching right up against the uprights of the shelf. Just wondering if this will cause an issue with sound coming out of the speaker? The front of the speaker clears the edge of the cabinet a good 4-5inches so that shouldn't be an issue. As advised earlier in the thread I left the back of the shelf on for extra support.

Thanks for your help!

Congrats! It is a great speaker. As for the "snug" fit, just watch out for rattles for the most part, and like you said, make sure that the speaker front sticks out a bit so that you don't get boundary issues with the sound waves and the shelving around it and you should be OK.

Now go get that sucker hooked up!

I have my 70" wall mounted and no issues. Get a good sturdy wall mount that supports the TV. What I did because feel safer is, I got a 3/4" sheet of plywood. Not particle board or chip board, Plywood good one side. I bought it at lumber store half sheet $17. 2 ' by 4'. I marked out the studs found the Centre, I was lucky hear beacuse I did rip out the wall as had a leak needed fixed. When I put the sud back in I found centre and started there. I then screwed with a Number 4 3" screw the plywood into the three studs. I then took 4 1.5" lag bolts and lag bolted the mount to the plywood. That thing is not coming of the wall with a wrecking bar