Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners Upgrade my QS-8's Question

Bob, replacing QS8s with QS10s is really a no-brainer. It's a night and day difference for both music and movies. I've used them with M3, M5HP and M100...all v4.

I suggest you trade in both pairs of QS8s for a single pair of QS10s for side duty. When you get them, you can experiment and if you find you still need rears (which I very much doubt), you can keep one pair of QS8s or buy another pair of QS10s.

With your M100s, if they are v4, you really don't need sides for music (movies and concerts for sure). The mids and highs are very dispersive and should envelop your listening position with crystal clear sound. My M5HPs do that also but in a smaller sort of way...which I actually really enjoy!

Your room is smaller than mine and my M5HPs fill it and there is no need for M100s. In some ways, the M5HP image and sound better. Maybe it's easier to focus images with fewer drivers and smaller cabinets. Keep that in mind because when Axiom introduces active M5s, you may want to strongly consider trading in. I know I will be based on what I know of them so far. Of course you won't have the dynamic capability of the M100s but do you really need it? I know I don't and I'm in a larger room.

I'll also say what Axiom has accomplished with the v4 is simply amazing. The M3, M5 and M100 all soundstage very similarly which is wide, deep, tall with images you can see on well-recorded tracks. The differences are dynamic capability, quality of sound across the spectrum and degree of dispersion. The M3's lows are not as tight and the mids and highs are not as clear as the M5 and M100. The M100 has clearer highs, lower bass reach and is more dispersive with its more numerous driver complement. The M100 highs are truly better. In Holly Cole's Train Song, the faint bells are more present than the M5 and moreso than the M3. Even though the tweeters are the same across the entire line, the cross-over design differs to the point where the differences in the highs between the M3, M5 and M100 are clearly audible. The dual tweeters in the M100 may have something to do with it as well. While it sounds like I've knocked the M3, it's not like that at all because they sounded better than my M80v2 in my large space and filled it to boot! I would take them over the M80v2 any day. I had them 12.5 feet apart and I was sitting 12 feet away and the soundstage was amazing. There is nothing wrong with their design like the M3Ti which I had the misfortune of hearing.

The M100s are for the 1% who need it loud and want the ultimate. The M5s are Axiom's gift for the masses who want audiophile-grade speakers for Best Buy prices. Craig Chase is very right to say that M5s with a sealed Axiom sub can go head to head with a $10K pair of speakers. In my living room, I don't even really need a sub with them or the M3 but there is definitely a more tactile feel with a sub (which is why I bought an EP400).

Axiom really needs to be very proud of the entire v4 line and it is a big line for every taste and budget. Who else has that in this industry? As far as I'm concerned, Ian is a living legend.

Mojo
Thanks for the reply. What are your thoughts I was thinking of adding two EP 500 to the mix.

The sealed v4 subs are amazing. I can't say that about the v2 because as a lot around here know, I really struggled with the 600v2 to the point where I was going to burn the damned thing in my firepit. Ian being a very generous human being kindly allowed me to trade it in for an 800v4 whose settings I haven't touched since I set it up a year ago and provides me nothing but sheer joy. I don't even think about the 800 the way I was constantly nagged by the 600. It just provides clear, transparent, permeating bass as called for!

As to whether you need two or one, I just don't know. I have one 800 for my 4,200 cu. ft. space and that works very well for all my listening positions. It's at 1/3 gain on the rear knob...LOL...it's over-kill even for my large space. Even with that 1/3 position, Audyssey turned it down by 2dB. No one complains. Not even me when I sit off my MLP and that says a lot because I am very picky. One 500 will easily fill your space.

BTW, I'll just throw this in for your consideration. I had an old EP400, the one with the triangular port (v2?). I placed that in my 4,200 cu. ft space and it was better for music than my 600v2. It filled my space just fine. Movies just didn't have an impact though. When I get my v4 400, I plan on trying it in my large space. The v4 is sealed and it has a re-worked amp that Andrew slaved on for 2 years. I think it's the same amp as the 500/600/800 but it has less storage capacitance. The 400 is about the same price as the 500 but it's smaller of course.

Also you may want to consider wireless. It's the same price. I'm trying to find out from Ian if the wireless is as high fidelity as the wired. It should be but I want to make sure.

P.S. I may have made a mistake going to with the EP800. I think an EP500 would have been just fine. I do like the shaking though...LOL! According to Ian, the 600 is "good enough". The 800 is like the M100...the product that only 1% needs (maybe wants is a better word).

Bob, as I said above, I had QS8s in the rear that never did anything for me. Today I put up 2 x M3v4 in the rear. I can't say they made an astonishing difference but they definitely filled in the back. I'd bet if I had my QS10s just a bit further back, the M3s wouldn't make as big a difference as they do now. Given your sides are more forward, you might want to consider M3s or something similar in the back.

Mojo, how far are the QS10S from your listening position? My couch is right again wall.
Are the M3s on wall?

Sorry...I forgot to include the distances. 7.5 feet on right and 8.5 feet on left. They are not on wall. I have both ports plugged to avoid bass boom.

Bob, my lady BFF and I were watching Resident Evil from Amazon Prime tonight. In the scene where the Red Queen was explaining to Alice and friends the goings-on in the hive, her voice was appearing centrally above me and to my left and right either at the plane of my head or slightly forward with just the side QS10s on. When I turned both rear M3v4 on, her voice also filled in a wide area behind my head. The effect was pretty cool but I wouldn't really miss it if it wasn't there. By the way, it sounded as if I had Atmos speakers above me. I never got an effect like that with the QS8. Also with the QS8, her voice would not have sounded as room-filling but rather puny and off to the sides.

Mojo,

They are here and installed and let me say WOW.....

The QS-10’s presence is huge...

Put M5’s on stands to bring ro ear level as best I could....imaging is great with a slight toe in to cenetr of room...tested Holly Cole sounstage CD and Hans Zimmer live in Prague.

Ran my Yamaha YPAO to get them set...sets all speakers as large along with my VP-180 center... may make manual adjustmenst later

You are all set for an amazing Friday night!

Dang... that's a nice system.