Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater Skiing Ninja offering M22v2 upgrade

I don't know how many of you are familiar with Skiing Ninja products, but their new website is up and he's released a Ninja Master crossover for the M22.

I've heard some speakers with ninja crossovers in them and was very impressed. Check it out.

http://www.skiingninja.com

But did you hear the speakers with the stock crossovers before? Was there enough improvement to warrant the price of another speaker for a set of crossovers?

It does seem like a fun project to do.

I like the Axiom sound, just as it is.

I heard the Onix Rocket RSC200 in both original (signature) and ninja forms, but not side by side. I thought the ninja version had better clarity and a smoother frequency response, but I don't know if I could say what I think about value there. I don't own one due to lack of space, but that particular center is the best in their lineup and this made it better. Some will spend to accomplish that and some won't.

As for the Reference 1's, I DID hear them side by side with the stock version, and the difference was phenomenal. The imaging was better, the bass more tightly controlled, the overall response much more linear, and the slight "edge" that the vifa tweeters can have was totally gone. The detail was still there, but so much more open and effortless. The ref 1's are a little overpriced as new, IMO, but can be found used in the $500 range, and I wouldn't hesitate to add the upgraded xo to that. Absolute no brainer.

The reality is that for some, a speaker upgrade is a more logical and cost effective choice, but for some it is not a possibility. If you have M22's and no space for towers where do you go when you get the upgrade bug? If you go towers, it probably makes more sense to look at M60's or something like that, but some don't want to. An example is one of the new projects detailed on their website. The Paradigm Studio 20 is a nice speaker, but not a bargain. I wouldn't buy one and then add a $400 crossover network to it. For those who have and love studio 20's of any generation, and don't want anything bigger, however, it may make sense to do. I have Rocket RS450's (which I prefer to the Studio 20's for $300 less) and could upgrade to RS760's or RS850's or something like that, but I don't want a larger footprint AND I don't need additional volume, so I will likely do the upgrade eventually. (other priorities are higher at the moment)

I don't have any affiliation with these people btw. I just heard the results of the product and was really impressed. They're on my shopping list, so to speak, so I've bought in.

I also think that the axiom sound is amazing as is. If there was enough improvement to be had by changing the crossover in my m80's then I think axiom would put out an M80 v3...

All companies make compromises for price at various points. The reality is that only very high end speakers will have top shelf components in the crossover networks.

People spend big money on IC's and Speaker cables to get the last ounce of performance from their speakers. Why not crossovers?

Like I said, not everybody wants to put more money into their speakers to get the last bit of performance, but the existence of an upgraded crossover doesn't necessarily mean there's something wrong with your M22's. I like my Rocket RS450's just fine (admittedly a very different voicing than Axiom products) but I'm going to save up and get the ninja master crossovers because I don't want a larger speaker in the space that I have to work with.

Naturally, when some people try the ninja m22 and post comments about them it will be easier to know what to expect from the investment. I'll admit I'm fairly curious myself.

Thanks for the input woofersus, I have never heard the vifa tweeter ever described as having an edge and if the XO took even more off of the vifa, I think I wouldn't like the result on the M22, but I am still intrigued enough to order a set anyway, just to see for myself, only problem is I am in the same financial situation as you, no more toys for awhile, hmmmm.......Christmas is coming though....

I guess I should qualify that statement by saying I've only heard vifa's in a couple of situations. I don't think my rockets are bright or fatiguing in any way (generally referred to as laid back speakers anyway) but the reference series is a brighter sound, and many found the Reference 1's to be a little fatiguing. I thought that the culprit was a touch of sibilance at certain frequencies. It's probably not the vifa x25's fault at all. In any case, they smoothed right out with the new networks.

I'm certainly interested in your impressions if you do order a set. I may be breaking out my soldering iron around Christmas as well. Need to get an amp to complete my 2.1 setup for my studio before I upgrade anything I've already got.

I think it's kind of funny that people want to deconstruct "systems" in this way.

I agree Tom, this little snake oil product will not make an m22 perform better than a tower like the m60 or m80's. Any difference would defeat the whole engineering concept of the original product. If people want to waste money on these little gadgets, useless expensive wire, I guess they have more time/money to burn than I do.