Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater 9.2 vs 7.2, any difference

Hi,

I am setting up my new play room in my new home, and while I was doing some background work, I found some talk about the Audyssy DSX. It seems to be a fairly new development and the information seems to be a little sketchy as to the benefits of the so-called 9.2 setup.

My current system is 7.1 and I am planning to go 7.2 in the new HT. I am now considering adding two more channels to get the 9.2 setup. Another alternative would be to go for a Dolby 9.2 which is easier for me to do with the shape of the room and the layout of equipment. A third alternative would be to stay with the measly 7.2 .

So, these are my questions:

1. Has anyone tried a 9.2 setup? Did people appreciate the difference between it and a 7.2/7.1?

2. Audyssy or Dolby 9.2?

3. Will the QS8V3 be a suitable match for my M80ti & QS8V1 with regards to a 9.2 setup? i.e. can I use the QS8V3's for the "height" or "width" channel?

There really are not a lot of movies out there recorded in 7. let alone 9. channels. Using PLIIx and newer decoders can matrix using those channels though. Adding a .2 versus .1 can help you even out the low sub frequencies in a room if placed correctly.

My setup it 11.2, however my Onkyo only supports 9.2 either wide or height but not both at the same time. My room is 13x21x8-12 foot vaulted. Using wide speakers in the narrow room makes a huge difference in the width of the front soundstage and helping it blend with the surround speakers. However, if you have a room that allows placing your mains far enough apart wide speakers won’t help as much.

IMO height speakers, DSX or Dolby aren’t as impressive in my room as the wide speakers. This is mainly because the wide speakers come into play during almost every scene where as the height speakers tend to be more specialized only really kicking in during certain scenes, mostly those with all-round ambient sounds like wind, rain , echoes and some music. I also think that having a vaulted ceiling helps add to their effect.


I really can’t tell any difference between Dolby or DSX height speakers. I almost exclusively use DSX because I find the wide speakers add more in my room and there is no Dolby wide setting on my receiver.


I have a pair of QS8v3 in use with my other v2 speakers and can’t hear the difference. Since they mostly produce ambient sounds I doubt any difference is going to be noticeable even with the “ti” versions.

QS speakers are the best for height channels. OTOH M2 speakers are a perfect match as wide speakers for the M80s. The QS8 don’t work very well as wide speakers compared to the M2s or M22s. Also I think the M22s are overkill as wide speakers, no need to go any larger than the M2s.

I've been using 7.1 with Dolby IIz height channels since last spring up to a week ago, then 9.2 with either Dolby or Audyssey height channels. I really like height channels, and the 9.2 system has better sound quality than my previous 7.1 system. (Next week, I'll have a chance to hear 9.2 Audyssey with width speakers, when my new speakers arrive.)

Most importantly, you get to buy 2 more speakers.

Axiom should give those 9.2-11.2 Onks away.

Bucking for a position on the customer council?

busted ... again

Thanks for your help gents.

I am going to the building site tomorrow and will check what possible placement options I can have. At this stage, I can add a conduit for the placement of speakers for both the height and width effects. If that is possible, then I will do that and then decide whether I would like to add the width or height.

Width make more sense to me because it is a long room and looks like it will benefit from the width aspect more.

I take the issue for the bookshelf versus surround. It makes sense and I will amend my initial plan accordingly.

However, the M2's will look puny next to the M80ti. So for cosmetic reasons, I will probably go with the M22 instead.

Will see.

I'll put my order in for 3008 and 2 M2's please.

What customer council?

(That's only partially a joke.)