Hello everybody.

I am finally able to start my home theater.

For the receiver, I got the Denon AVR-890. For the speakers, I deceided to go with Axiom. The system I am trying to build will hopefully be my dream system and I hope will last me a long long time.

At the moment, I can only afford the fronts but eventually it will become a 5.1.
To give you a bit of info, my room is at the moment 20ftx10ft with hardwood. The system will be used as much for music as for movies and I listen pretty much to everything from orchestra to vocals to pop, rock, rap, house ...

I am currently debating between the M60s and the M80s. Originally I was going for the 80s but after reading a few posts on this site, I am not too sure.

Some would think that the M80s would be overkill for a room this size. The thing is that I might not stay at this place forever and one day, budget permitting, I would like to go to a bigger place.

Some say that if we pair the 60s or the 80s to a sub, we can't tell the difference. Well, I intend one day to get a sub. Does it mean that the 80s will loose their edge over the 60s since the low frequencies will be taken care of by the sub? Will I gain anything by getting the 80s? I don't mind spending the extra $$$ if I am gaining something as I am trying to get the best sounding system that I can.

Like I said, I am trying to build my dream system that will keep me smiling for many years so any advice or opinion will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

bdpf

Welcome to the forum

I would head over to the Hearing Things forum and look for someone nearby to ask for an audition. This way you can hear the M60s/M80s and decide for yourself which ones to get. Barring that order up the M60s and give them a try, if you are not overly happy order up the M80s, you will only pay for the cost difference between the M60/M80, Axiom covers the shipping as long as it is with in the 30 day trial period.

Ideally if you can swing it, order both, compare them and send back the set you don't like.

As you live in Toronto a drive up to Dwight would be my suggestion. You can listen to both and let your ears and budget decide.

You should call Axiom and make an appointment before hand, if you want to audition at the plant. Let them know which speakers you are interested in.

Either M60s or M80s would work for you but you may have to address the hardwood flooring situation with a decent rug to help with reflections(I am using an 8x11 wool rug in a similar sized room).

Hi bdpf,

And welcome to the Axiom forums.

In addition to the excellent suggestions already made, I'd point out that in the double-blind listening comparisons I do at the Axiom plant, the M80s have audibly deeper bass and more overall bass output than the M60s. They are also ever so slightly smoother on some vocals (mainly operatic solo and massed choral recordings) than the M60s but I'd point out that I'm very fussy and critical about midrange stuff. You would be unlikely to notice the subtle difference on some vocals unless it was an instantaneous comparison between the 60s and 80s.

And the M80s are not too large for the room size you mention. Our Axiom listening room isn't much larger. Since you won't have a subwoofer for a time, I expect you'll really love the powerful deep bass from the M80s on their own. And you can tell the difference between the 60s and 80s with a subwoofer because of the slight midrange differences.

Your Denon 890 will drive either the 4-ohm M80s or the M60s with no stability problems.

Regards,
Alan

Thank you guys for your advice. Eventually in a few weeks, if I can't make up my mind, I will probably take a day off and visit the Axiom office.

Adrian:
Regarding the reflection problem, what do you mean by that? How will the sound be affected by that? Will the speakers sound unclear or muddy? Is the rug really necessary? Trying to convince the wife to put a rug won't be an easy task Isn't the Audessey Multi EQ suppose to help with this type of problem?

Alan:
Thank you very much for your input. I am glad to hear that the 80s will still have a slight edge over the 60s even paired to a sub.

If possible, I would like to have more comments from people that have owned or heard both speakers and the reason why they have picked one over the other?

It seems that the more I read, the more confused I get. I've read from a few Axiom owners that even the M22s paired to a sub will sound very similar to the 80s which, to me, is very surprising specially considering that they cost 1/3 of the price. If this is true I might also consider them, which make my decision even more complicated but considering the price, it's very tempting considering that even if I would go with the 80s, I would still probably buy a sub in the future for movies purpose. The only thing that turns me off is that they are bookshelves. I would rather have floor standings and these M80s sure look damn good but does looks justify the price tag...

The M22's+sub are almost equal to M80s+sub, but as Alan mentioned the M80s do have a bit smoother sound to them and better mid/upper bass. This extra mid/upper bass was what made me go with the M80s over the M60s and M22s as my main listening speaker. The M60s+sub sound nearly identical to M22+sub, IMO. The 60's do not seem to add as much mid/upper bass to the equation as the M80s do, but they do offer more than the M22+sub, but this is all only based on A/B testing. I highly doubt anyone could tell much difference with out A/B tests. YMMV.

Re reflections, you can do some experimenting once you get your speakers. Run your Audyssey program and listen to your system for a while to accustom yourself to the sound, then you could try placing a blanket on the floor in front of the speakers and see if you notice any improvement in them. Every room is different in regards to size, shape, wall/floor coverings, furniture ect, as are people's listening levels....Audyssey will certainly help, but you should feel free to experiment a little too.

More importantly, do you want to belong to the club with the coolest secret handshake and decoder ring or not. M80s all the way!


I agree completely.

The M80s on their own have stunning bass.

I also agree that the best thing to do is go for a drive and listen for yourself. It's a beautiful drive in the winter and a really fun day.

[quote=fredk]More importantly, do you want to belong to the club with the coolest secret handshake and decoder ring or not. M80s all the way!

ha ha ha! I think that might push me over the edge

Thanks all for your support and advice. Hopefully I'll be able to make my decision soon and finally become a happy Axiom owner, I just don't know of which speaker yet

Happy new year to all!

Cheers,