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Towers vs. Surrounds
#992 01/18/02 06:54 PM
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I'm a first-time poster. I listen probably 80% home theater, 20% music. My music tastes lie towards the classical and jazz bent.

I live in a po-dunk town with no high-end audio/home theater shops. Most folks around here think good speakers are what you buy from Wal-Mart as opposed to what's available from K-Mart. But, alas...not me. So I'm relegated to researching on the 'net and mail-order.

As it so happens, I was able to pick up a Sony SA-WM40 sub at the local furniture store for a great price...$89. Seems that it had been in stock for soooo long the manager was willing to make a deal. "None of my customers want this high-quality type of speakers, you know," he says to me. High-quality, my old grandma's eye. None-the-less, I snatch it up, based on the reviews on this site and others. I know it's not a great sub, but it's better than what I had. This leads me to...

I'm in the market to upgrade my Audiofile Home Theater brand speakers. I've got a set of their M6.5's running through a 12" passive sub as mains, a TV4.5 as center, and three SAT4's across the back in a 6.1 setup with the Sony sub mentioned above running off a Sony ES STR-DA5ES receiver. The Audiofile speakers seemed like a great bargain at the time I purchased them, 8 year ago, but the company is long out of business and I'm hankerin' for something better. I've got to keep it under $2000 and thought I'd stay with the new Sony SA-WM40 sub for now and up-grade it later. I'd prefer to purchase the mains, center-front, and surrounds now. I'll add a center-back later as well.

My HT room is 15x22x8. The TV is sitting in the center of the 15' wall. I figure I have room for towers in the front and either towers or bookshelf speakers in the rear. As it turns out, the wife has placed three six-foot bookshelves right where the surrounds and center-back need to go. Currently, I have the three bookshelf speakers sitting on the top of the bookshelves. Works fine. But I do have space, along the two side walls, to place tower speakers and still have the center-back on the bookshelf. I don't know if it's worth the extra money to use slightly smaller tower speakers as side surrounds or to stick to bookshelf/surround speakers. I'm open to suggestions and advice as to the two combinations I've listed below.

I've been drawn to the Axiom line, based on so many good reviews on the 'net. I can't audition them, obviously, so I'd have to buy them blind. I've priced out a set of factory outlet speakers (I've got three small kids, so nicks and scratches are inevitable). I've thought a good setup would be M80's for mains, M60's for surrounds, and a VP150 in front. Later I'll add a VP50 or VP100 for the center-back. Or I could drop the M60's and replace them with QS8's for the surrounds. This also drops the price and would allow me to pick up the center back now, instead of waiting. It'd sure be nice if Axiom offered a single QS8 for center-back use.

I can't decide which of these options I want...towers for surrounds or bookshelfs/surrounds for surrounds...what to do.

So here I am in a quandary. I've got the money burning a hole in my pocket, I don't know if I should pay the extra for tower surrounds as opposed to bookshelf/surrounds for the surround speakers.

I find many Axiom reviews on the net and everyone seems to love them, but I can't seem to find any comments about using smaller towers as surrounds.

So...here I am looking for advice.

Thanks for reading this long diatribe and I hope for you all to straighten me right out...




Re: Towers vs. Surrounds
#993 01/18/02 09:45 PM
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my oh my ... Did I write that? you sound so much like me it's scary. Except I was thinking the 60's for the front and 22's for the rear. This way I can get the 150 center and I have an offer for a very good price on a Polk sub PSW650 ($455.00). I'm fairly new to this A/V field and I don't know weather I should go with the 80's in the front and the QS8's rear or the above way. I have a split level so the rears would be on the upper level behind the couch or I can easily mount the QS8's. I just "ASSUMED" that the 22;s would sound better. Is this a right? I'm lookin to stay under the 1800.00 (US) price cuase I'm getting either the Onkyo 797 or the Denon 3802. (and don;t let me start asking questions about the choice ... lol)
I'm going crazy cause I have the cash but I don't want to do something I will regret because I can't hear the system before hand. So I'm doing my reasearch to try and find the best options for me. I wish you better luck than I had. It seems this is the only board that will at least answer some of your questions.

PS I also listen to about 80/20 HT over Audio



Re: Towers vs. Surrounds
#994 01/18/02 11:21 PM
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Actually, Walmart and Kmart have the most spacious listening rooms I have ever encountered!

There systems seem to have a killer sound, that literally "grabs you by the throat".

Sorry, couldn't resist! ;)

Regards,

BBIBH

Re: Towers vs. Surrounds
#995 01/18/02 11:43 PM
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i suggest you give the audio shop in canada a call. i can't remember the actual web site, but do a search for axiom, canada, ottawa, audio shop and you'll find it. the net is very helpful, but i found actually talking to a person that sells them very helpful, plus great prices.



Re: Towers vs. Surrounds
#996 01/19/02 12:42 PM
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Ian Offline
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I will be able to answer two at once with this post! Unless you have some good distance between your listening position and the surrounds, I think you will find the multi-directional surrounds to be preferable. You do not want your surround channels to call attention to themselves and the QS8s will accomplish this even given the generally close proximity of the surround channels to the listening position. This will be especially true for home theatre. We do sell the QS8 as a single for use in a 6.1 system. The cost is exactly half of the QS8 pair price. These are some great systems that you are putting together.

Ian Colquhoun
President & Chief Engineer


Ian Colquhoun
President & Chief Engineer
Re: Towers vs. Surrounds
#997 01/19/02 09:15 PM
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The main couch in this room is 11 feet back from the main speakers; the surounds are likewise 11 feet behind the listener. What do you consider a "good distance?"

Also, how would a QS8 sit on a bookshelf? Is there some type of stand available that would raise the bottom driver a few inches above the shelf?

The wife is not keen at all in any attachments going into the walls; I'm pushing her interior style opinions with any speaker as large as the M80 as it is...I'd rather not pull the tail on the cat any more than I have to.



Re: Towers vs. Surrounds
#998 01/20/02 06:26 PM
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Ian Offline
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11 feet back is a good distance. I think you can easily use direct radiating surrounds that far back with great results. Currently there is not a stand to hold the QS8s of the shelf but there is one coming out later this year.

Ian Colquhoun
President & Chief Engineer


Ian Colquhoun
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