Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Front speakers - What to buy?

I have a fairly large basement (35 x 25) that I need front speakers for.

I currently own QS8s and a EP350, with a VP150 on the way.

My original line of thought was to buy the M60s, but considering the fact that I've set my amp to "small front speakers" for my subwoofer setup, is buying M60s overkill?

Wouldn't I be just fine with the much cheaper M22s?






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That's a fairly large room and my thought is to go with the M60s.

I would go with the 60's, Imho that room is to large for the M22's. the M60's would definitely not be overkill.

Room that big and I'd go right by the M60ti's and onto the M80ti's.

Interesting question.

Their SPL specs is almost identical - 89 dB/W/m and the M60 rated power is just slightly higher than that of M22 (250W vs 200W). The way I understand it if I listen to them at the same input signal power, at the same distance, and at the same speaker placement relative to the wall they should sound the same.

There could be some difference because of the room gain which is more sensitive to the lower frequencies which M60 is much better to produce. On the other hand, if you use a sub crossed at 80Hz this difference should be minimal.

Is my thinking too simplified?

Regards,

Gena

Moorthy, I also would say to go with a floorstanding design. Even with a sub, the 50's, 60's or 80's will give you a better blend of bass throughout that large of a room. My room is 31ft x 30ft and my 60's work nicely. I would not want the smaller 22's for that big of a room. When I had a 350, it did ok for my room, however, since I've upgraded to a Factory Outlet 500, it is like night and day.

In reply to:

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Their SPL specs is almost identical - 89 dB/W/m and the M60 rated power is just slightly higher than that of M22 (250W vs 200W). The way I understand it if I listen to them at the same input signal power, at the same distance, and at the same speaker placement relative to the wall they should sound the same.

There could be some difference because of the room gain which is more sensitive to the lower frequencies which M60 is much better to produce. On the other hand, if you use a sub crossed at 80Hz this difference should be minimal.

Is my thinking too simplified?

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Gena,

I would say you are about right on. I think the "law of diminishing returns" applies here. As the speakers get consecutively larger, they may be perceived to sound "better" or "more refined". The sub will make the biggest difference. Below is a resonse I received from Doug Schneider as a followup to his review of the M2i.

"February 9, 2006

To Doug Schneider,

I just read your review of the Axiom M2i speaker (http://www.soundstage.com/revequip/axiom_m2i.htm) and have some questions.

Do you know (have any record of) what crossover frequency you had set between the M2i and the Revel Performa B15 subwoofer you mention using? Did you simply dial the subwoofer in until you liked the sound? Was there a high-pass filter on the M2i or did it simply run full range? What was/is your listening reference level in dB? Do you have any record of what level the M2i starts to sound compressed or strained? Finally, in approximately what size of room did you performed the listening test?

I am currently designing/building a modest dedicated home-theater room and would like to choose the smallest speaker that will not sacrifice sound quality. The chosen speakers will be used in conjunction with a Mirage LFX3 crossover and BPS-S210 subwoofer. Currently I have a pair of Monitor Audio GR-60s for stereo listening, but I am sure the wife would love to see them go if at all possible. I think I’d like to hang on to them for a while.

Bruce Haugh

I reviewed both the M2i and Performa B15 on SoundStage!, and although I don’t have explicit notes from those reviews (other than what’s written), I remember quite distinctly considering all that you talk about when I reviewed them.

The M2i is a very neutral, revealing low-priced small monitor that sounds quite similar to the company’s M22ti, M60ti, and M80ti. There’s a big difference between it and the bigger speakers, however, in terms of bass and output capability. The M2i doesn’t have very strong bass, so it really needs to be mated with a sub.

Although you can run the M2i "full range" with a sub, you’ll hit output-capability limits, mostly because the bass range is so limited. It’s quite easy to make the M2i distort, chuff, and make nasty sounds at high volume levels. Therefore, that wasn’t my preferred way to listen to it with the B15; instead, I used the B15’s built-in crossover to shelve off the bass to the M2i at about 100Hz. Relieved of much of the bass below that level, the M2i was capable of greater output capability, and with the B15 filling in the bass, the sound was quite extraordinary. That, to me, is the best way to go with that small speaker….Doug Schneider"

I would say that for a larger room the M22ti matched with the proper subwoofer would likely work very well. Worst case scenario is that if after all the proper setup and tweaking the sound was still not satisfactory, then an upgrade to the M60s would still be a viable option.

I recommend the M80s. They are audiophile speakers that Axiom is selling at bargain prices! You will not regret it.