Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners M80 & Pioneer 1015 - they seem to play nicely!

There has been some question as to if the 1015 can handle the M80 4 ohm load.

I just upgraded from the M60's to the M80's in a 5 speaker Axiom system (M80 (2), VP150 (1), QS8 (2) )

I am running the m80's via the Pioneer VSX-1015 with the bi-amp option. I have read many posts about bi-amping, and it's questionable benefits, but I figured that since I was not running a 7.1 system, and I have the option to do bi-amping with my 1015, I figured WHY NOT!. Also, there have been no posts (that I can find) that say that bi-amping has a negative effect, so I bi-amped my M80's. (I had the M60's also bi-amped, just FYI).

Well, I received my M80's last night, and I listened to music and watched Dish TV for about 2 hours or so, and the Pioneer 1015 did just fine.

Now I did not actually stress out my system, but I will be doing that this weekend, maybe watching DOOM or War of the Worlds. I do have 3 hours of Sci Fi to watch tonight, that should put some stress (if that is the correct word) on my system.

Also, while I will listen to the music/dvd's at my maximum normal volume, I will NOT be trying to knock the doors down, entertaining my entire neighborhood.

I will report back more details monday.

(BTY, my initial impressions were that the M80's DO SOUND BETTER than the M60's. Fuller, more detailed, crisper might be adjectives that I would use.)

Great to hear from another 80's owner, the posse is growing

I am waiting to hear how your weekend goes with them - I also have have the Pioneer 1015 and was wondering how it would do at 4 ohms......... Please let us know...

I have a general question, how does the avr know what to drive the speakers at. 4,6,8? My old avr had a switch in the back that I could pick 4 or 8 ohms.

No switch necessary. The Ohm rating is the electrical resistance of the speaker connected to the amp. It is what it is. If your amp is designed to handle 4-8 Ohm speakers, then it will work either way.

All the switch does (when used in the design) is to limit the current available to the speakers, so the amp cannot overheat. An amp that has been designed to handle 4 Ohm loads appropriately shouldn't have any heat problems.

Some have reccommended running the switch at 8 Ohms even with 4 Ohms speakers attached, as to not limit the power to your speakers. You must verify however that your amp doesn't get too hot in doing this. Make sure the amp has room to breath with nothing on top of it. Check it after a movie run at the full volume level you would use. It's okay to be warm, but not dangerously hot.

Most higher end amps don't have the safety switch as they don't need it due to the more robust design and heat dissipation.

Well, I listened and watched my Pioneer VSX 1015 and my 5 speaker Axiom system with the M80's all weekend, and had no problems.

No dropped audio, no receiver shutting down.

And, I played the system at what I would consider my maximum listening level. I DID NOT try to entertain the entire neighborhood with my system.

Now, the M80's were Bi-amped, and that might make a difference. Also, I used 10 guage Belden Cable, so there was very little extra resistance via the cable.

So, I hope that this info helps some people decide on the M60's vs the M80's.