I have read in several reviews of the Axiom speakers that the cabinets are
not "genuine wood," rather, vinyl-covered something. I haven't found
anything on your site that tells about this aspect of the product. I am
both an amateur audiophile and avid cabinet maker, so such construction
details interest me greatly. Can you give any information as to why you
don't use veneered plywoods, or solid wood, without giving up any trade
secrets? Perhaps an article on different types of cabinet construction used
in the industry in general, and which are found to be better (and why) would
interest other readers besides myself.
Thanks for all the "fyi" articles on the Axiom site.
Regards,
Martin
(former native of "northern" Ontario -- South
River -- nearly 40 years ago)
------------------------------------
Hello Martin,
About 95% of loudspeakers, including Axioms, are constructed of 3/4-inch MDF
(medium-density fiberboard) because it is one of the most acoustically dense
or opaque materials available. You do not want the speaker enclosure
surfaces or material to resonate--to be set into vibration by the musical
frequencies. (This is the opposite of what takes place in acoustical musical
instruments like the violin, cello, guitar, etc., where the resonating
character of the instument's wood gives the instrument its characteristic
timbre or tone.)
If a wooden speaker enclosure does this, it "colors" the sound by adding its
own
tonal signature, which lessens the musical accuracy of the speaker. A fine
loudspeaker should be a neutral and transparent reproducer of the audio
signals fed to it. It should NOT add its own colorations, or resonances,
which in effect are distortions of the instrumental sounds it is attempting
to reproduce or mimic.
MDF is denser and less resonant than plywood or solid wood. Our basic Axiom
models bond synthetic vinyl material to the MDF that looks like wood grain.
You'll find our real-wood veneers in the Axiom custom shop, where there is
huge range of choice.
Interestingly, early in its history, in the 1980s/early '90s, all of Axiom's
speakers used real-wood veneer, but we dropped that because of competitive
pressures and lack of demand. Axiom's current synthetic vinyl-wrap finishes
are remarkably real-looking, not like the cheesy vinyl finishes of the
1980s. We do tell customers when asked on the toll-free line or in emails
what the speakers are made of. And you can order free samples of any of the
wood/vinyl finishes or real-wood veneers with grille cloth attached.
The vinyl-wrap finishes are very economical compared to real wood veneers.
It lets us market speakers of wonderful sound quality for much less money
than comparably good speakers from our competitors, some of whose products
have real-wood veneers--and greatly elevated prices. For example, Axiom's
top of the line tower speaker, the M80 v2, is $1330/pair US, including
shipping, and is comparable or superior in accuracy and sound quality to
Energy's Veritas 2.4i (a Canadian competitor), which retails for
$4,000US per pair. The Veritas is sold in real-wood veneers.
Kind regards,
Alan
