Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler Deep Dive M5

Very interesting and great writeup. The 3 bulk commercial box cables I sent are:

Red- Belden 18/4 securex Fire Alarm Cable made into 12/2 Licorice cable
White- Prima 16/4 Speaker Cable paired into 13/2
Gray- Belden 10/2 speaker wire from Blue Jeans Cable

I would like to hear what you think about a bi-wire setup with the gray on the woofer and white on the Mid-tweet on your M5HPs with jumper removed. That is how I’m running mine right now and liking it.

My takeaway was similar in the bass. The red cable was horrible. Honestly, I should try a single run of the red and see if it is better as 15/2 (18/4 paired down). But system sounds too good to muck with now.

So does this mean we are both crazy?! Or....

That's really interesting that we both came up with the sort of the same thing. I expected to hear no difference and when I did, I thought oh shit how am I going to explain this? Then I realized I don't have to explain nuthin'. It just is...you know?

It looks like Axiom ripped me off. I only have one set of binding posts on the M5. I don't have multiple binding posts on anything...except the actives of course and I'm just not going there.

I suppose now we can start speculating about why the sound is the way it is. Is it cables, is it ears-brain or is it crappy speakers and amplifier?

Not the gear. It has to be us. The Horror!

Thanks for being open minded enough to test. I hope others read this and question the doctrine provided by other sites and forums. They may not always be all encompassing as they purport. In this case, Im beginning to think the pliability of the individual strands makes for a better termination with some cables vs others.

We see issues with terminations in the electrical industry using FLIR thermal image scans as part of service maintenance. On the speaker level of power, minor losses at terminations may be a bigger factor than what the cable actually is.... need to test.

Would be interesting to do the test again after doping the termination with conductive compound. Maybe I will mess with this in the future. I usually treat my cables and tighten with linesman pliers. May have made a difference. Not sure. I just did it to never have to mess with again. That red cable was plain awful. Maybe Ox-Guard would prove it is termination related.

Slimpikins gutted his Model T wiring and put in his own. He used the KnuConceptz I referenced above but 10 gauge. I use that on my actives. He soldered every connection. He swears they sound better.

I have to wonder if I could pick out differences amongst my three cables if I had a higher resolution set-up.

Maybe. I should mention moving the speakers around so they coupled to the room better and adjusting toe in was a much bigger change. (Other than the Licorice cable)

These little M5HPs set up right in this room light up the bottom of my feet with pleasant pulses. But not boomy at all. When I head to the kitchen down the hall I think, “shoot that is loud, I sit in there?” But then back on the couch I think “Oh yeah! Im sittin here!” Dangerously good perhaps. Lol.

Did I mention I like ‘em?

You'd like them doubly more if you get another pair and stack them upside down on the current ones.

Maybe.......

Want to tune the new subs in the basement first. Not shipped yet.

Major renovation. Removed my front wall today.

Sonic Holography upgrade. More later.

I want one. To cover my TV.

Jeez those speaker shipping bags on cinderblocks are homely! lol.