Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Stereo A Slew of 7 Speaker Auditions

The Veritas are indeed way overpriced, but they do sound very, very nice. They're so overpriced in fact, that when they're unloading stock at the Good Guys, they're marked down 50%. At that price they're worth looking at, but not at full retail.

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The only thing that I noticed...maybe because it is due to room dynamics is that the bass can be overpowering and floppy at times.

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The room we heard these speakers in was rather small (standing space about 8x8) and had real wood (old) floors. If anything, the bass we heard was most likely enhanced somewhat (loose floorboards and all). It would have been nice to have heard the Monitors in another, larger more typical room.

I never thought i would find a speaker so close a match to the Axiom sound. I would have no concerns about mixing and matching components of Axiom with Monitor Audio.

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marked down 50%. At that price they're worth looking at, but not at full retail.

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Oh i would agree. At 50% of their price they would be very attractive but still cost more than many would want to spend.
I still wouldn't buy them at half price mind you but only because i've found other brands/models that i prefer more in both sound and aethestics.

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Mind if i charge the standard $40 for the extended version?

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Only if you sign my copy.

Hmm, we may have to work out something with jbzngowest about Fedex shipping possibilities if this gets real popular.
Ha.

I too was impressed with the Silver S8's. Good Guys has an open box for $1000 US. What do you think?

Are the price differences really that great from Axiom to Monitor Silver Series? Look at these price quotes from 800stereo.com:

• Monitor Silver Series speakers at 800stereo.com

You have to add in shipping, of course, and the X-factor of dealing with an unknown online retailer (no minor considerations). But if you have a local dealer, you can clearly get well below the MSRP. It looks like in street price, the Monitors are just about $200 more than Axioms, comparing S6's to M60s and S8's to M80s -- certainly not double the price. (They are not even double at full MSRP, by the way, and of course at a dealership you should NEVER pay MSRP for nice speakers, unless you also like to pay sticker price for your car.)

Birdman

Assuming they are an authorized dealer and that these speakers are not some kind of B stock items, then yes, the prices listed at those places are excellent.
In such case, Monitor Audio would have been my choice over the Axioms two years ago.
However, such was not the case here in town and i highly doubt it would be much different anywhere else in Canada.The prices we received we most likely the MSRP or possibly even inflated beyond that. Hence the prices i quoted are just the prices that the audio vendor gave to us. Usually they are always willing to strike a deal but that typically knocks off maybe $200 on a pair of $2000 speakers for a Cdn price of about $1800 or approx. $1360 USD.
It would still be cheaper to buy them in the US but only if you lived in the US. Otherwise as you say, the shipping (and duties) would put the price up considerably again.

I do find it annoying that i could have potentially had a speaker i liked even more but for only a small price premium. Something to consider in the future i suppose. With a new young one on the way, they will need their own system at some point....

Hmm, i wonder if 800stereo ships to Canada?...

"With a new young one on the way, they will need their own system at some point.... "

Or alas, more likely they will destroy yours. The 3.5 year old has learned to turn the volume down instead of accidentally cranking it WAY up (a habit only moderately less annoying since she won't let me listen to anything at decent volume), but we're entering the "crawl, walk, grab grill" phase with 9-month-old #2. Fortunately if memory serves this will not last more than 6 months or so. Except #1 was a girl, so I have a feeling I have no idea what to expect this time around. Made me think more than once of wall mounting my M60s.

Birdman

PS - Yes, your audition made me wish I'd tried out some Silver 6s or 8s just for fun, though I'm still very happy with my purchase as it all worked out.

Location is certainly important while the kids grow up.
Our HT is in the basement which has a door (also useful in containing our cat).
The child will not have access to this room for quite some time.
That is a plus.

You really should go and take a listen to the Monitor Audio Silvers just for fun anyway when you have the chance. Their sound is so similar to Axiom it is almost scary. I wish i had the local prices here like those listed in the US.
Larger stores = larger price benefits
Around here it is mostly small, private shops that carry the swankier brands of audio. I was surprised to find that Parasound Halo amp at one of the 'box' stores recently. I highly doubt you will see Monitor Audio speakers in Future Shop or Best Buy anytime soon. I would be curious to see how they would get priced though.