Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Stereo New Poster, Future Axiom Owner

Greetings.

I am in a position financially to finally buy a nice home audio system for my apartment. My best friend and roommate in college (about six years ago) had a B&W speaker setup with Yamaha electronics, and it seemed very good at the time, but I never really took the time to evaluate his setup. His audio system is the only one I've ever experienced, so I began my research at the B&W website. I was looking at their 704/703 speakers (at $2200/3000 per pair, respectively) and then started reading reviews at Audioreview.com. After reading several reviews of B&W's speakers, I simply clicked the "Review" button at the top of the Audioreview page and selected Floorstanding Speakers. I was immediately overwhelmed with what seemed like hundreds of different speaker companies, each with dozens of speakers in varying price brackets. How is one supposed to research such a range of speakers? Fortunately for my sanity, I came across some reviews of the Axiom M22ti, and my curiosity was piqued. I ended up reading plenty of reviews of many Axiom products, and my search has brought me to this site.

My objectives: Clarity, above all else, but within my price range. Clarity and affordability. I am looking for a speaker setup that will give me accurate musical reproduction. I am the kind of guy that wants to hear every detail in the recording. At the same time, I can only spend so much, and B&W's top-range Nautilus is sixty-thousand dollars.

I will be using these speakers primarily for music, but I am also a self-titled film critic. Even though my audio setup will mostly provide musical playback, I still want to enjoy the full experience of the Movies when I play a DVD.

My budget is $4000-5000 USD. This must include the entire setup: Speakers, reveiver, source, cables, etc.

My listening room is 19Lx13Wx8H. Due to the floorplan of my apartment, the main front speakers will be firing across the 13W dimension, and the speaker/couch setup will be at one end of the 19L dimension, not in the middle. I have absolutely no idea how this will affect acoustics. At the opposite end of the 19L dimension my listening chamber also opens into a kitchen, which adds another eight feet onto the lengthwise dimension of the listening area.

After reading many reviews as well as threads on this forum, I have narrowed my search down to a few options:.

1. Epic 60.350. $2340 USD

Pros: Price, performance.

Cons: "Only" a VP100 center channel. "Only" an EP350 sub.

2. M60s, QS4, VP100, HSU VTF-3 MK3. $2448 USD

Pros: Cost-effectiveness, with what appears to be an awesome sub for the money based on this forum's recommendations.

Cons: "Only" QS4 surrounds, "Only" VP100 center.

3. M60s, QS8s, VP100, HSU VTF-3 MK3. $2560 USD

Same as option 2 with better surrounds.

4. M60s, QS8s, VP150, HSU VTF-3 MK3. $2713 USD

Same as option 2 with better surrounds and center.

5. Epic 60.500. $3010 USD

Pros: Better center channel, awesome sub. This looks like an awesome setup.

Cons: Cost. Is the extra money REALLY worth the the better sub and center? The VP150 seems like the obvious choise for large rooms, which mine is not. The EP500 looks like a sweet sub for fast, accurate, clean bass; is it really THAT much cleaner than the EP350? The price difference is significant (for me).


These five options represent a variety of quality at slightly different price points. I'm really leaning towards options 1, 3, or 5. They each offer the same mains and surrounds, but they differ on the centers and subs.

Option 1 clearly has the best price, but it offers the sloppiest bass. I want clean, accurate bast for my music pleasures. Will the EP350 offer enough of what I'm looking for? Is the additional cost of option 3 worth the increased bass depth and clarity? And what of option 5? It supposedly offers the the tightest bass along with the sweet surrounds and center channel, but is the sound quality better enough to justify the extra cost?

Thus is my quandary, and I haven't even gotten started on the electronics!

I'll leave my Receiver/Source questions to another post. For now, help my pick out my speakers. I'm currently leaning towards the Epic 60.350, but I certainly haven't ruled out other options as long as they fit my budget. Keep in mind, my budget is $4000-5000, INCLUDING the Receiver/Source/Amp/Wiring.