I've spent months researching - and a ton of time on AVSForum. A good friend of mine who's very knowledgeable suggested looking at Axioms (I was ready to pull the trigger on B&W 6 series).

I've sent PM's to the three people listed in the hearing things section, but haven't heard back from any of them yet...hoping there might be someone else in this area on the site. I'm looking at the M60, VP150, adn QS8's. Thanks in advance.

Major,

You have a very wise friend. Another option would be to PM Amie or Andrea (screen names) at Axiom, they sometimes have additional options that aren't on the list.

Major, I'm not on the axiom list but if you can't get hold of anybody I'd be willing to let you demo mine. I live in South Austin and I have M60's, VP150 2xQS8's and an EP500. I'm pretty busy with work these days, but I can work something out.

Here's a couple of pics of my setup:

I don't think I have seen your system, very nicely done.

I realized that I hadn't actually posted any pics of my setup .

I've put a whole series of the room before and after in the axiom community.

Red room! Red room!

My wife loves red . Now it looks a lot more bright red on the pictures than it actually is.

All I can say is WOW....WhatFurrer was kind enough to let me stop by his place today and hear his setup (M60's, VP150, and QS8). I was just blown away. The speakers sound unbelievable - and pictures don't do them justice. I'll be calling tomorrow to put my order in for my set (as soon as my wife tells me what finish she likes best). I was very impressed with the quality of the vinyl (warm cherry is very, very nice looking). I can't wait to get these now. Axiom rocks!

Yes, the 60s are nice...but the 80s are even nicer . They are absolutely heavenly.

And IMO, are worth the extra $

Major,

How big is your room and what are your listening styles/habits? The m60's are awesom speakers and I owned them for years. Depending on your budget, you might consider the 80's as they aren't that much more, and do provide a little better bass and a bit more detail.

Don't get me wrong the 60's are awesome, and if I never would have gotten a case of upgradeitis, I would still be totally satisfied as I would not know any better. However, for my larger room, the 80's do a better job to fill the space...

What are you going to be driving the system with again? Are you ordering from the factory outlet to save 10%?

room is 13x19x10 and I have a new Sony receiver 5300ES (have a friend at Sony so it was less than ½ of retail). I know this won't be able to drive the M80's so pretty much have to go with the M60's. WhatFurrer cranked the M60's up a bit - still nice and clean and was barely able to hear anything he was saying at the same time.

I'm glad you were able to demo them! Sorry I haven't contacted you sooner, it's been hell at work here...

Anyway, whatever speakers you get you will enjoy tremendously!

That little bit of extra openness you heard from the 60's at that higher volume is what the 80's sound like all the time. They really are worth the extra money.

I think your receiver should be able to drive the M80s, The ES series is way more robust than the STR line up. I have tried my 12 yr old STR-D915(prologic reciever) with my M80s and worked ok till I went beyond anything I would call normal loud levels. Not quite the same ooomph as my Denons but it did OK.

Hopefully if pickupmykeys gets his FO speakers in a short while, he would be willing to get together for an A/B listening session with the 60s and 80s.

just placed the order - talked to Brent at Axiom (had also talked to another rep the other day). Both said without question the M60's were the only way to go (that was on room size alone, not even mentioning the Sony receiver. Got the high gloss cherry finish. CAN'T WAIT!!!! I hope by some luck they're done much sooner than 4 weeks...this wait is going to kill me. I'll be sure to post some pics once I have everything set up.

Bah..room size shroom size, the M80s work great no matter what. I have mine in a room only 12x16 and I sit 6-7' away, they are awesome.

But the 60s are great too and the HG makes them even better!
Congrats!

Jason, are you trying to say shroom size doesn't matter?

It just came out that way, I don't like shrooms. I would imagine the larger the better?

Just add a little butter, mmm mmm goood. "Bob's not here man" ha ha lol

Hi all, if anyone is still monitoring this thread, I'm also in the Austin area and looking to audition. I'm about to send out a few PMs to people listed on the boards, but I thought I'd check this thread as well since it is relatively recent and it looks like there are a few of you not listed in the audition group that might be willing to host.

I'm getting close to pulling the trigger on the Epic 80 system I'm actually on the fence between the M60 v. M80 as well, so hearing the feedback here is interesting. I was generally of the opinion that bigger is better, but it's interesting to hear that the M60s were recommended over the M80s given the room size. My room is 13 x 19 x 9 and I'm planning on M60 or 80, 4 QS8s, the and the VP150. I already have a very nice sub that I'm going to make due with for now, though a future upgrade to 7.2 is definitely not out of the question. (for now though... the budget says 1 sub only) :-)

If anyone in the RR / Austin area would be willing to host an audition, please PM me.

Thanks in advance!

Jason

Welcome Jason,

What will be driving the system?

Thanks for the reply. Right now I'm looking at the Onkyo TX-SR875, though it also is something that I have to buy new, so nothing is set in stone yet.

I've recently read about some audio dropout problems between this Onkyo and DirecTV's HD-DVR, which may cause me to seek out something else. Whatever I buy though will be beefy enough to drive a 4-ohm load. Suggestions are of course welcomed! (budget is about the same as the Onkyo, < ~$1300.

Jason

I would suggest the Denon 3808. Many of us here own one and it is a great receiver and Denon is one of the recommended receivers to drive the M80s, which it does with out any troubles; as loud as I can stand it any way.

Thanks Jason, good suggestion. That one is definitely in my top list of choices. The reason I'd ultimately chosen the Onkyo over this receiver was the better video upscaling in the Onkyo (Reon), and the fact that the Onkyo was a little cheaper, despite what seemed like superior video processing.

While I'm waiting to set up my audition in Austin, I'd be curious to know why you and others chose the Denon over the Onkyo.

Jason

Axiom doesn't recommend Onkyo units driving the M80s.

Very interesting, I wonder why. Thanks for the update. I'll give them a call directly today to talk about it.

The previous power supplies are not strong enough in the older Onkyo's to drive the 4 ohm load of the m80s at loud volumes for any length of time. The newer ones you are looking at are supposed to have better power supplies to drive the lower resistance in the M80s. I have read a few reports of the Reon and lip sync issues with the Onkyo's but that was when they were first released and I would think it has been rectified by now.

Thanks again for the suggestions, the Denon 3808ci is definitely my new favorite after reading more about it. I would still like to have the better video scaling, but the ethernet port is a very nice trade off.

Back to my original topic.... one more plea for any Austinites on the board for an audition... Anyone out there?

Thanks.

Jason

Where in Austin do you live/work? I can't promise anything since I had a car accident last Friday and I'm still sorting out the whole mess...

Yikes! Hope everything is okay. . .

Hey, thanks so much for the offer, especially in the midst of what has to be a total PITA. I'm in NW Austin, Parmer/Mo-Pac area. I work from home and have a lot of flexibility in my job, so I'll try to make just about anything work with your schedule. I'd even drive you somewhere for lunch after the audition if you're up for it.

Feel free to PM me to set up the details if that works for you.

Thanks again for the offer.

Jason

Luckily nobody got hurt but the car is totaled and it was my only means of transportation so a few things had to be reorganized in my budget.

back on topic: myrison you've got a PM!

Hey Sky,

Glad to hear you are ok, hope you work things out.

myrison,

I'm up in the RR area as well...let me know if can't get down to Skyhawks'.

I think WhatFurrer contacted myrison already

Thanks guys... I actually just got back from WhatFurrer's... I'm still in awe. The plan at this point is to put the order in this afternoon.

Ok, so what was the order?

Don't forget to mention Steve when you order. That way he can get credit for the audition.

Mention Peter, too.

Sorry... don't get it... I'm sure there is a joke here, but I've missed it.

When you place your order, you are supposed to mention that you did an audition in Steve's home, that way he gets a referal check. Peter is just trying to sneak in on some free green.

Aha... thanks. Got it. Yes, a joke over my head.

Just posted separately in another thread.

Thanks to all of you guys for the advice. I cannot wait for these to arrive!