Axiom Noob here. I'm looking to set myself up with some HT speakers that will eventually go in my basement HT. The room is 16x20x8, but the area where my TV will go and I plan to mount my speakers is really 10 ft wide and 20 deep. The seating area will be 12-15 ft from the screen.
I'm thinking of using the M22's mounted on the front wall and probably QS4 or 8's. Any thought if this is adequate and what center and sub to use??
Probably gonna be 60-40 HT vs. 2ch music.
Currently my TV is upstairs in a 10x16 room and we plan to move it down in the upcoming years. So far I have looked at Klipsch RB-52, NHT Classic Three and PSB image B25 based systems, but only heard the Klipsch, NHT Four and PSB T45 as dealers didnt have the bookshelves setup.
Anybody got any suggestions or experience with room that size?? Thanks, Al
Hi ctown,
With a seating distance that far back, I'd tend to recommend floorstanding M60s, especially if you really want to blast it with 2-channel music.
The M22s with my EP500 sub will produce peak, unstrained levels of 96 dB to 100 dB SPL (that's very loud, but not as loud as some rock 'n' rollers demand) at about 10 to 12 feet.
I'd suggest the VP150 for the center, an EP350 or EP500 subwoofer, and the QS8s (you could do QS4s at the rear for the extra channels in 7.1).
As to brands, the Axioms will be clearly superior (in another class entirely) to the Klipsch and the NHT, and will outperform the PSBs. The Axioms are comparable to the expensive Stratus line from PSB.
With the QS8s, you may find yourself listening to 2-channel processed through ProLogic II in 5.1, as the ambient extraction abilities of PLIIx are remarkable, producing a much more realistic listening experience (depending on the recording) than 2-channel playback.
Regards,
Alan, thanks for the response. I would love Floorstanding M60's, but the limitations of my room really dont allow for it.
My TV will go in a 6ft wide x 20" deep cove where there is no room, nor would I want to hide M60's in there. On either side is 18" of wall(where I want to mount M22's) before openings to 2 other rooms.
Adjacent to the Rt. Front of the Ent. Unit(recessed cove) is a stub wall that is 5 ft away and its somewhat of a high traffic area down to a game room,office, mechanical room, bathroom. So it would only really leave approx 3 ft space between the M60's and stub wall. I'm sure my kids will run into them there, not to mention they would look out of place there.
I hear you and thats why I was wondering if M22's will be adequate. I'm late 30's and like big sound, but dont necessarily need to crank the metal any more. Listening tastes are more Seger, Stones, Clapton, Tragically Hip, Mellencamp, along with some jazz/Blues like Coltrane, John Lee Hooker, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Junior Wells, Nora Jones, etc. The odd time I may feel the need for some AC/DC or Zeppelin, but its not the norm.
Are the M22's too small?? Should I look at some other kind of room configuration?
Thanks, Al
I forgot to mention, I am using a Pioneer VSX-1015 amp.
Thanks, Al
ctown,
Alan's definitely not lying! The Axiom's will surprise you with how good they sound over speakers like Klipsch.
Although of course Alan is the expert, I have to second his opinion on the M60's, especially since you are using the Pioneer amp (it would have a hard time driving the M80's to good levels). M22's would be "thin" sounding in a room that size. I used to own M22's, and although they were some of the best speakers I have ever heard at that size and price, they just didn't fit my room, and I needed the $$$ to upgrade to M80's, so I sold them and my M3's. I still miss them...
But I digress. M60's, to me, are definitely your best choice, matched with an EP500 sub.
Thanks Ravi. I dont doubt that M60's would be better, but they would really not fit well into where I want to put my projection TV.
I'm gonna try and audition some M22's first, as Jakewash has graciously offered to let me come by and listen to his. I'm hoping they will be enough for me matched with a EP350 or maybe 500, but they may end up sounding "thin" like you think they might.
As an Axiom noob, I think this is so cool that other owners offer auditions of speakers from an internet direct seller. There isnt any Kool-aid being passed around....is there??.
Quote:
I'm gonna try and audition some M22's first, as Jakewash has graciously offered to let me come by and listen to his. I'm hoping they will be enough for me matched with a EP350 or maybe 500, but they may end up sounding "thin" like you think they might.
I don't think "thin" is really a word I'd use for M22s backed up by a big Axiom sub... especially in a smaller room like yours.
Quote:
There isnt any Kool-aid being passed around....is there??.
If there is, I didn't get mine. Rockadile Red, please! 
Bren R.
Welcome CT. I found your room description and where you are planning to put everything a little confusing. Could you post a diagram? It'd help folks provide you advice.
No need to worry the M22's are not thin. With a good sub they are great, even with out a sub they sound better than most bookshelves, with a sub they rival good floor standers.
Here I am again, pushing the M22's cause its what I own. I havent heard the M60's and I'm sure I'd love them but my M22's and EP350 can fill my room with loads of clean crisp sound without taking up to much room (as allowed by wife).
Come to Merritt and have a listen.
The room is 25x25x10 with a bar and divider wall running halfway thru it.
Thanks for the feedback. I'll try and post a room diagram after I get my scanner problem figured out.
Thanks for the offer to come to Merrit and check it out, but maybe I'll wait until the summer. I'll be in Kamloops in 2 weeks, but kind of on a tight schedule as its a work trip.
I'm getting more confident that M22's should work in my space after feedback from you guys and JC at Axiom, but still will be great to audition some myself.
Interested to see if they are not as harsh/bright as Klipsch, yet cleaner sounding than the NHT or PSB I have heard.
thanks again.
Quote:
T
I'm getting more confident that M22's should work in my space after feedback from you guys and JC at Axiom, but still will be great to audition some myself.
I took my M22's to my brothers,and his room was something like 20x25 with 9' ceilings. I do remember it was just under 5,000 cubic feet. In my opinion the M22's filled it well with the 2807. It convinced my that my next attack of upgradeitis should be cured with a larger axiom subwoofer, instead of larger mains.
hth
Randy
Quote:
Welcome CT. I found your room description and where you are planning to put everything a little confusing. Could you post a diagram? It'd help folks provide you advice.
Paul, I have my scanner working and have scanned a room diagram, but see nowhere in the forum am I able to post any attachments. So I guess I cant post it.
I'll just have to rely on the feedback here and an audition of some M22's to make a decision. Basically the room is 16x20, so around 2500 cu. ft. Kind of sounding like a yes so far.
I've demoed Klipsch's higher end line compared to B&W (603/4, 703), Energy (Veritas 2.4i), and Axioms. I don't know the exact model that you have, but all of the Klipsch speakers I've ever heard seem overly bright with a hollow mid-range with strong, boomy bass. Not terribly pleasant to my ears.
I suspect you will find Axiom's to be significantly different. On their own,M22's don't have the presence of large, floor-standing speakers. They do have a great, even, smooth response and with a good sub sound lovely.
My listening room is about the same size as yours, and the m22's work quite well. A good quality sub is extremely important. I was hell-bent on upgrading to m60's recently, but was convinced by many here that the best choice was to get a better sub. Made a huge difference in the overall presence of the sound in my den. I stil think that *eventually* I'm going to want M60's, but the sub made a huge improvement.
If you're going to make sure you have a nice sub, the m22's will work well. Without a sub, they will be lacking and M60's would be a better choice.
I see that you mention mounting the m22's on a wall. Have you taken a look at the W22's in the architectural series? They are a more fitting choice if you're talking about wall-mounting your speakers.
My room is 12X28 and the M22's fill it nicely, from a very poor location. Stop working for a day and drop by......
Quote:
My room is 12X28 and the M22's fill it nicely, from a very poor location. Stop working for a day and drop by......
OK, what works better for you tomorrow.....before noon or after. I was up by the Peter Lougheed yesterday, but too busy to bug you.
PeterC, thanks for the feedback, I was listening to the Klipsch RB-52. I've kind of ruled out Klipsch and if I go M22 will look at least at the EP350 sub. Have you heard anything from Ascend acoustic?? I see some guys on AVS saying the are a great speaker as well.
Before noon, just give me call.
Its not all that hard to find better speakers than axioms, but it dam near impossible to find a better value.
Free shipping, no tax if you are in the states and anything in the same price range is not likely to sound near as good.
Oh yeah, and perhaps the best customer service of any company I've dealt with.
Quote:
Its not all that hard to find better speakers than axioms, but it dam near impossible to find a better value.
Thanks, I agree. I auditioned some speakers at Jakewash's yesterday and they were clean, clear and transparent with adequate bass. Some Bob Marley, U2, Neil Young all had noticeable bass which was due to the recordings, while some Seger, and other Blues and Latin music was not as heavy as they are not bass heavy recordings.
The one thing I did notice was the clarity of the sound. The live recording of Segers "turn the page" was so clean and crisp and while listening to something from Beuna Vista Social Club I could clearly notice the percussion from the bongo drum and string bass that I had not noticed before. (on my old Bose 201's) It was pretty cool.
Rockin' in the Free World sounded good, but it was a bad recording from a live performance from Neil Young....I wanted to see what a bad recording sounded like.
To make a long post even longer, I think after my credit card bills finish rolling in this month...I'm gonna order up a pair of M22's to start building my system around.
The Axiom fit nicely between the sound of the tinny and bright Klipsch and the NHT which were warmer, but seemed to get muddied more at higher volumes. The PSB Image I tried were nice, but the store wouldnt let me listen to it at any louder volumes because they couldnt talk on their phones over the music (that was sketchy).
Thanks all for the feedback. I'll know better when they get in my house in a month or so.