Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Stereo Ref Mons +Sub vs. Towers for Best Stereo Music System

Hi,

As I indicated in a previous posting on 'Stereo or Surround for Music Only Room' , I have the opportunity to create an area devoted to critically listening to music. I'm interested in creating the best possible stereo system for music only. The question that arises is would I be better served by getting a set of high end towers, or by getting a set of Reference Monitor type of bookshelves and a really tight sub-woofer. I'm looking for the maximum detail, best widest and deepest soundstage, and that ineffable factor that one might call 'musicality' .

What would you suggest and what experiences have you had? My previous posting has more details about the room and my 'needs'.

Thanks

EAR,

I've heard high-end towers capable of plumbing the depths quite tightly and gracefully. They are the Revel Salons. They cost upwards of $10k/pair however. If I had the money to spend and a place to put them, they'd definitely be in the running.

Oh, and I'd definitely not rule out Magnepans, either.

I really like the sound of my M60's for stereo music and would recommend these or the M80's as the way to go.

I've done back-to-back listening of these configs in the same room and with the same material: M22/Hsu STF-2 (stereo), M22/VP100/QS8/Hsu-STF-2 (5.1 surround), M60/VP150/QS8/STF-2 (5.1 surround), M60/VP150/QS8 (no sub, 5.0 surround), and M60/VP150/QS8/Hsu VTF-3R (5.1 surround).

All were very good. In general as you move up, things get progressively better. However I was surprised at two things (1) the magnitude of improvement moving from the M22/VP100 to M60/VP150, and (2) the loss when I got rid of the STF-2 sub briefly (despite having M60s) when moving to the VTF-3R.

My experience (Axiom only) is that M22s plus a sub are very good. If all I had was a 2.1 config with two M22s and an STF-2, I'd be satisfied. But M60s plus a sub are better -- significantly improved upper bass and lower midrange, in general more punch. M22+sub vs M60 with no sub is close -- it would depend on your taste (HT vs music, amt of bass desired, etc).

In general if your budget and space allows I'd recommend towers plus a sub. I know many say larger towers don't need a sub and maybe that's true for certain music, and with larger towers. However I sure like my VTF-3R (and before that the STF-2) even though the M60s have pretty good bass.

For music: Towers without sub over bookshelves with sub -- that's been my experience. I currently use my M60s without a sub for music, and activate the Hsu STF-2 only for HT.

I know others prefer sub for music -- I am sure it works for them. For me, despite finding a good position, a low xover, and adjusting levels relentlessly, I still spent more time listening to the sub (or wondering if I was listening to it) than relaxing and enjoying the music. And my wife despised the sub in all configurations. As the towers in question become better and more full range than M60s, I can't see changing my mind.

My .02.

No mention yet regarding budget...but for about 2x the cost of M60's you might want to check out the Monitor Audio silver S8's for comparison. I love my M60's but after reading a different post recently, I decided to check out the M.A. s8's and they are in my opinion a very good speaker with excellent clarity and good crisp bass. I auditioned them alone in 2 channel stereo and was quite impressed. I came immediately home and set my M60's to "large" (I normally have them configured to "small") and turned off the sub. I then listened to the same CD and found that the M.A.s8's did sound a little better than the M60's alone, but at TWICE the price! When I reconfigured back to my normal setting of "small" + the sub and listened again, I smiled with satisfaction! M60's + sub run $1200 - $1300. The M.A. s8's were listed at $1600. I'm still happy!

In reply to:

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Oh, and I'd definitely not rule out Magnepans, either.

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WOOT!!!!! Someone other than mwc and I actually said a positive note about Maggies.

Someone take a picture!!!!

Hey, I love those things (as does Peter) I just can't get them into my house...

Another fan of Magnepans (hey that rhymes )

However, in my brief audition of the 3.6R, the associated equipment alone cost around $85,000 - two $20k VTL monoblocks per speaker plus an expensive tube preamp (I forget the name). They better sound damn amazing for that! (the weird thing was that the source was just a $200 cdp)

I wonder how the M22's would sound with that kind of amplification behind them...