OK FELLOWS.. the time is near.. i just got the e-mail from amie with my package tracking numbers. i just about peed myself. speakers should be here by thursday/friday at the latest.
pretty awesome build time from the custom cabinet shop.. original estimate was 5-6 weeks, and it has only been exactly 28 days since i ordered. 4 WEEKS.. not to bad..
i was totally caught off guard.. i dont know if i will be able to sleep tonight. i had plans to go camping this weekend, but not any more.
i am gonna go ahead and start the set up process tomorrow. gotta get final cables, speaker wire, clean out entertainment center, etc..
ya'll be lookin for set up questions from me this weekend on the forum.. i will have plenty.. respond quickly.. whats that you say?? you had plans?? THEN CANCEL THEM.. MY SPEAKERS ARE COMING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
oops, i did pee myself
bigjohn
I'm here for ya, bigjohn. Congrats. Good luck with that sleeping thing. Remember, we're going to want pictures pdq!
Too cool John. Refresh my memory. What are you getting?
Don't forget that if you follow the tracking number at the FedEx web site, the speakers get to Mississauga (or something like that), and then for 24 to 36 hours there doesn't seem to be any movement. Don't worry they're moving. Suddenly, FedEx will post that they arrived in, and left Memphis, and will be in your town soon. Just don't be discouraged by that lull of info when they're in Mississawhatever. And keep us posted.
Man I love this. It's almost as good as when mine arrived.
By the way, Walgreens has protective underwear. I use 'em on my 91 year old mother, bless her heart.
thanks guys.. i am getting M60's, a 150, and QS8's. custom cabinets in the dark oak with burnt sienna grills. my new receiver(onkyo 701) and dvd player(pioneer 563a) are still in their respective boxes.. i didnt want to pull them out til the speakers got here.. i have been reading the manuals to prepare, but units are still in boxes.
funny jack.. they show to be in 'mississauga' as we speak. too late for the protective underwear now!!
tom- i have some spare valiums to help knock me out.
i am definitely excited!!
bigjohn
Congrads....now make sure we get plenty of pics and a LONG review of the entire set up and first impressions. We all know that this will be no problem for you John.
I just ordered my VP150 today to finish of my audio stuff and I'll be getting my TV this weekend. So I too can't wait to set up everything in my new apartment over the next couple of weeks. I'll get some pics as soon as everything is finished. Anyway, have a great weekend and we'll miss all of your crazy comments, but we know where you'll be.
You mean I got Mississauga right the first time? Without having to go look it up? Holy cats! I'll ride that triumph for a week (you'll understand why when you get old. It's called short term memory loss
).
Well the tracking will probably show them sitting in Mississauga (wonderful, Jack
) all day. But when you get up tomorrow morning. TA DA!
However, keep us posted. OH Boy!
You'll have the same speaker setup that I do. Don't over hype yourself so you set yourself up for disappointment, but I'm looking forward to hearing what you think, and PICS! PICS! PICS!
Great news. San Angelo will never be the same!!
this is san angelo.. it will ALWAYS be the same.
i already got 2-3 friends biting the bit to come audition my speakers. maybe i can start an AXIOM revolution in our little west TEXAS town. i am gonna call one of them to help run speaker wire thru the attic. i dont think my wife will be much help. but she is ready to be "WOWED". so am i.
bigjohn
I am envious!!!! But I will be ordering soon.
Semper Fi
Like a kid on Christmas Eve, you are John!
I too am really excited for you. That camping trup definitely just got cancelled. I can't wait to hear your thoughts!
Congrats!
[/jealous post]
Forgot to mention that I like your new avatar better than the old one. The new one seems brighter, and clearer. Lookin Good!
Good Deal John!
Do I forsee a bit of a cold coming on on Friday?
In your excitement, remember to measure twice, drill once...(to turn an old adage)
Pictures, pictures, pictures...get Shannon to take one of you standing next to your new friends...
You're gonna love it!
Enjoy!
WhatFurrer
What kind of equipment are you using now, bigjohn? Or are you currently tuneless?
thznks to all ya'll.. yes, it is very much like christmas..i will have pics, but not right away.. give me a week or so.
current system is a kenwood receiver and eq combo that i purchased in 1992. a basic sony dvd/cd player, and a pair of MX400 vegas(also bought in 92 when i got the receiver).. they have plenty of bass to spare, but lacking mids, and no highs to speak of. thats it.. oh, and a record player.. its an old MCS/jcpenney reject, but it still plays just fine.. if it aint broke, dont fix it!!
needless to say, i am entering the HT domain FULL SPEED AHEAD. i feel like i should get some kind of greeting card, welcoming me to the 21st century!!
hello bigjohn, meet HT bliss.. enjoy your time together..
bigjohn
Well, if your current speakers are "lacking mids," and have "no highs to speak of," you're probably going to initially hurt your ears with the M60s, because they don't lack either. Be a little judicious with the volume at first. You'll find you won't have to crank the M60s, as you did your old speakers, to hear everything. Just be patient. Give them (your ears) time to adjust to a truly accurate speaker. You're gonna hear things you never heard before. And you're gonna end up lovin' 'em. Betcha!
Wish I could be there the first time you watch a movie with a great sound track.
Just watched
The Last Samurai last night and really enjoyed it.
Better yet -- you should "cleanse your audio palette" by listening only to your car stereo with the bass turned all the way down and the treble boosted to max.
Doing that for a week will make practically ANY speaker sound like heaven.
no doubt jack.. i have had plenty of time to prepare for the 'new' sound i will be hearing. after reading all the posts, i know what i have now is oranges to the axioms apples(if that makes sense)..
i am prepared for the difference, and i am prepared to allow myself time to get acustom to the difference. give me a few days to give an honest report on my feelings about the speakers.
bigjohn
Atta Boy. Take all the time you need for your report. As you can see I figured out how to properly resize an avatar.
I don't believe I've ever seen the Ohio flag before. I like it!
Thank you Peter. I kinda like it too. It's the only state flag that is penant shaped. We like to be unique here in Ohio
You know. Only Football team without a logo on the helmet; only penant shaped flag, etc. (No cracks you bums!)
Chessaroo and Sid will recognize this baby:
Bren R.
those are two different avatars.. one is wavyer that the other.. wavyer?? is that a word..
ya'll aint a word either. neither is aint.. i am on a roll!!
bigjohn
great pic, nice BISON!
In reply to:
great pic, nice BISON!
Funny thing is... sometimes, especially when embroidered, the detailing in the ground he's standing looks like he's just left a deposit.
Bren R.
Yeah. I liked the second one better because the motion isn't quite as "frantic" as the first one. Also the second shows the true penant shape while the first doesn't. I have the Texas flag, properly reduced to the correct avatar size, in both formats. If you're interested, PM me your email address and I'll send 'em to "ya'll."
(actually, I think the correct apostophication {I like making words up, too} is y'all. Unless, of course the unapostrophised version is "ya all" rather than "you all." If that's the case, then ya'll would be acceptable
)
In reply to:
...the detailing in the ground he's standing looks like he's just left a deposit.
LOL! That's what I thought when I first looked at it. I was thinking "That devil Bren. He altered the photo so it looks like this buffalo is being disrespectful to that flag."
Congrats BigJohn. Pics? Personal review? I'm exicited as hell (ok peter-- as a school boy with a red ryder bb gun?) for you!
jr
And hell's really exciting, lemme tell ya'!
I think you'll be suitably impressed, bigjohn, with your new HT. I found that the M60s were pretty soft and laid-back with my old analog equipment from the same era as your stuff. When I switched to a new receiver w/ modern DACs the M60s seemed to "sparkle" quite a bit more.
does that red ryder have the carbine action??
i am really jazzed. i did manage to get some sleep last night. i surprised myself with that. my wife already told me she was gonna sleep in the guest bedroom in the front of the house on friday night, cause she knows i am gonna be blasting music til the sun comes up on saturday in the back of the house!
will- i think i will be very happy with the new set-up.. only a few days til i know for sure.
bigjohn
Jack - nice avatar!
btw, my understanding is that "y'all" is singular and "all y'all" is plural.
Damn yankees.
Canadian flags, money and ... speakers are just somehow more, I don't know, stylish than their counterparts in the etats unis. That Ohio pennant sure is purty, though.
Thanks Tom. It was only temporary. I just wanted to help John get a neato Texas flag. As you can see, I've gone back to my gramophone. Old guy; old player.
Yes, and a compass in the stock. Just don't shoot your eye out. ;-)
jr
Well John - how exciting is this news??? I'm a little late to the party (that work stuff keeps getting in the way) but I'm about as excited as everybody else that has posted. Beer will fix the "can't sleeps" for you, but will contribute mightily to the other problem you are having with bladder control. Solution in one word - Depends.
I would get the large box and suggest the industrial strentgh. If you think there is a problem now, wait until you actually HEAR these puppies sing to you. The bladder will not be functioning at all for several days.
There is no reason to forestall the camping trip.. In fact, this will work really well. Pitch the tent in the HT room and you can listen to the Axioms all night. Yeah, that's the ticket.
We wait.
Is tracking still showing them in Mississauga?
yes, it shows they left there at 9:16 this morning, but no receive stamp in memphis yet. i assume they are in memphis terminal, just flowing thru the system..
unless the plane flew to memphis, by way of paris!!
i will check it again in the morning.
bigjohn
LOL!
Well, with these delivery guys ya never know. They just may have flown to Memphis via Paris. Check out the condition of the boxes when they arrive. I can only guess at what they do to those boxes to cause that much damage. YIPES! Fortunately, Axiom boxes them pretty well. But nonetheless it's a low down, dirty shame.
they are getting closer.. they arrived in memphis at 11:36 pm last night, departed at 3:15 am, and were received in austin this morning at 5:55..
austin is only 4 hours from here, so they might make it this evening.. if not, i can make it til tomorrow.
bigjohn
Do not go to work today, they will come, likely in the morning, too!
ding dong.sorry, i couldn't resist
5:55 is usually early enough to get them on the truck for delivery today, but things might work differently with you being 4 hours from the terminal. Just don't know how it works in your case. If not today, tomorrow for sure. I'm still betting on today.
Tomorrow...
I live in Austin and they missed me the first couple of times...
But it would depend on how that would be handled...more than likely they truck it to San Angelo's terminal and then it has to be transferred to another truck for local delivery...
Probably tomorrow...
John, quit squirming or you'll have to go sit in the corner!
WhatFurrer
Yeah, I was just thinking about that. If there is another terminal between Austin and John's house, it's definitely tomorrow. If It's Austin, to truck, to John's house, it could be today.
STICKING MY TONGUE OUT AT ALL YA'LL..
i just checked the numbers and they show to have arrived in san angelo at 8:20 this morning, and were put on the truck for delivery at 8:27. YEEEEEEEEEE-HAAAAAAAAAAAA..
i should have some nice little gifts awaiting my arrival at home.
go ahead and put me in the corner furrer.. i will just turn on JT thru my new speakers and fall asleep..
bigjohn
Did you leave a note for the FedEx guys to leave them there for you? If not they may not deliver them until tomorrow when you are there to sign for them..
Man! They got em' on that truck in Austin and out to San Angelo in a hurry! You said you were 4 hours from Austin, They arrived in Austin at 5:55. Let's be unrealistic and say they got the speakers on the truck at 6AM , and they got to San Angelo at 8:20? No Texas county mounties on that road. Cool.
Shoot it's 10:25 now. They're either on your porch, or still on the truck for tomorrow. Hope it's the porch!
Let's hope it's NOT the porch...
I know I would NOT want my speakers sitting on my front porch all day...or even for a couple of hours...
They probably would not be there...
John...Give FedEx a call and get them to give you an approximate delivery...have them call the driver...they CAN do that...
Do not want you to lose them when they are SOOOOO close.
WhatFurrer
i just got off the phone with fedex.. i scheduled the carrier to deliver between 4-6 this evening. so i will be home, and they wont be left on the porch. and if they are early, they have directions not to leave them on the porch. i can just drive out to the airport and pick them up. its all good..
jack- they had to have flown them in from austin cause NO ONE i know has ever made it from austin to san angelo in 2 1/2 hours. now, i know fedex is quick, but they aint that quick!!
now the problem will be trying to concentrate all day while at work.
bigjohn
LOL! You've got a point. I was assuming John's wife would be present. Not that she would bring them inside. I have visions of her sitting on the porch in a rocker with a shotgun in her lap.
John's listed in "Who's Online," but he seems to be missing in action. hmmmm?
i was on the phone with fedex!!
bigjohn
I gotta say, the suspense is killing me.
No wait, it's Ray's jokes.
You know what kills me most of all? The fact that I'm not making a great living designing awesome speakers in a part of the world that many people would call paradise (in no small part because it's outside Bush's control).
That's what kills me.
John, you sadist. What did FedEx say? Are they there? Are they coming? Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat?
Peter if you figure out how to swing that let me know. I'm signing up!
jr
I thought there was some consensus that we wouldn't politicize these threads, wasn't there?
All of these stray comments impinging Bush, medical care in the US, etc..., really make me want to respond. I'm not a registered Republican, but that man is THE PRESIDENT.
You can code the computer modeling software for me.
If I wanted to get political, I'da posted something like
this.
tee hee
I don't think that is funny, accurate, enlightening or healthy for this forum. Please stop.
pmbuko, too funny! Didn't know my home state has a sub-100 average, but I guess that explains a lot.
You got it!
What should I learn C? C++? Cobol? Fortran?
I'm not a programmer, but I'd learn quick!
jr
I'd remove it but it's too late.
To explain my actions, I posted that BECAUSE it was stupid and inaccurate. I told BigWill I'd stop, but I'll tell all y'all as well. I'll abstain from politicking.
Iraq DID have WMD. They used them on the Kurds and the Iranians.
i think the general idea of a WMD is like nuclear or biological(anthrax, ebola, etc)...
the kurds and iranians were 'gassed', basically a potent mustard or seren gas.
it still kills, obviously. i am just trying to give an explanation as to the idea of WMD's.
i could be wrong??
bigjohn
Am I allowed to make politically neutral posts? Ok, then.
As far as I know, a WMD is any weapon with a blast radius (or area of effect) significantly greater than that attainable by a conventional bomb. The area of effect is often unpredictable. Biological and chemical weapons spread after initial detonation using air currents, so they count. Nuclear weapons have huge blast radii, so they count. A non-WMD has a fixed radius of effect.
Since this thread has turned........
On behalf of Canadians everywhere I'd like to offer an apology to the United States of America. We haven't been getting along very well recently and for that, I am truly sorry.
I'm sorry we called George Bush a moron.
He is a moron but, it wasn't nice of us to point it out. If it's any consolation, the fact that he's a moron shouldn't reflect poorly on the people of America. After all it's not like you actually elected him.
I'm sorry about our softwood lumber. Just because we have more trees than you doesn't give us the right to sell you lumber that's cheaper and better than your own.
I'm sorry we beat you in Olympic hockey. In our defense I guess our excuse would be that our team was much, much, much, much better than yours.
I'm sorry we burnt down your white house during the war of 1812. I notice you've rebuilt it! Nice Job.
I'm sorry about your beer. I know we had nothing to do with your beer but, we Feel your Pain.
I'm sorry about our waffling on Iraq. I mean, when you're going up against a crazed dictator, you wanna have your friends by your side. I realize it took more than two years before you guys pitched in against Hitler, but that was different. Everyone knew he had weapons.
And finally on behalf of all Canadians, I'm sorry that we're constantly apologizing for things in a passive-aggressive way which is really a thinly veiled criticism. I sincerely hope that you're not upset over this. We've seen what you do to countries you get upset with.
I think you forgot to cite your source there...
How big does a
"conventional" bomb have to be before it's classified as a WMD?
Or does it depend on who's using it?
Ah, yes. Sorry. Rick Mercer - This Hour Has 22 Minutes
criticisms noted.
maybe we shouldn't have pitched in against Hitler...at least my drive home wouldn't be so congested.
^billy
Not meant as a criticism - I LMAO every time I read it. Do you not think it's funny?
yes I do, actually - and I get a laugh everytime I see it as well...my response was a rather lame attempt at furthering the humor. Sorry - I sometimes get a bit reserved in fully explaning any political humor for fear of the partisan police, etc.
Apology accepted. I laughed so hard at that I feel I ought to send you a dollar (Canadian, of course).
I've often wondered how things would have turned out if you hadn't chipped in.
Where the heck are John's speakers now?
Why don't we go back to BigJohn's anxiety on waiting for his speakers?
So, John, what's the word, big guy?
WhatFurrer
Well, for one I think FDR would have been impeached had he waited too long to enter the war, especially after Pearl Harbor.
By now I'm sure he's kneeling behind the receiver trying to figure out what cable goes where
Love that game. Receiver resting on your knees, groping around behind the thing counting jacks with your fingers while looking at the picture of the back of the receiver in the manual and trying to flip it around in your head. Fun stuff.
I think it would behoove you canadians to remember who does actually have WMD!.
*Whistles* OK, everyone out of the pool!
As one of the culprits previously, I must request that we stay out of the political waters...
In reply to:
*Whistles* OK, everyone out of the pool!
I'll second that... or this thread will get mighty ugly mighty quickly.
Bren R.
In reply to:
I must request that we stay out of the political waters...
PLEASE! And I humbly request that we try to avoid insulting each others country. There's too much ammunition on both sides.
Well, I'm assuming John's speakers arrived since he seems to be still missing in action. Wish I could watch.
not to mention targets. And Wal-Marts.
bigjohns absence is probably explained by the tree he is sitting in at the end of his driveway with binoculars, a six-pack and a fresh (or possibly not so fresh) Depends watching for the Fed Ex truck. God help the driver - he likely hasn't seen a Texas man-mountain avalanche up close before. John may just leap from the tree to the top of the truck and rip it completely off.
i'll bite my tongue as this could get really nasty. this is a fun board and wish to keep it that way.
dan
morning everyone.. i am tired..
quick report.. i had to drive out to the airport and pick up the speakers when i got off work yesterday.. no biggie. i was just glad they didnt leave them on the porch all day. the boxes were in gr4at condition, only a few tears where the 'handle holes' are.. drove home, fast,and started busting open boxes. initial inpression, the M60's seemes small, the 150 was huge, and the QS8's were pretty big, and heavy for such a small speaker.. i assume the reason I thought the M60's were small, cause i was comparing them to my Cerwin Vegas that are twice as wide, just as tall, and a few inches deeper.. the custom finish was beautiful, i closely inspected each speaker under a bright light, and could find absolutely no flaws.. the screens look great, although, i thought they were a little flimsy.. i had already pulled the entertainment center(EC) out from the wall, but all my 'old' equipment was still in place. NOTE-you guys mentioned me "on my knees, pluging in wires".. sort of.. my receiver is held in the top of my EC, so i was actually on my feet, arms stetched up, plugging in wires.. anyway-i just wanted a quick listen to the speakers before i had to start pu;;ing all my old equip out of the EC, so i hooked them up.. i was a little baffled by the wire connections. at first, i tried to 'wrap' the bare speaker wire around the post, then screw the deal down on it.. put in a cd, it started to play, and the sound was weak, and cut off when i put some power to it.. i turned everything off, and went back to the speaker wires and undone the screw.. noticed there was a hole in the speaker connect terminal, stuck the wire in the hole, then screwed down the deals.. problem solved.. i played a few cd's.. fleetwood mac 'rumors', dixie chicks 'home', rush 'moving pictures', tool 'undertow', allison krauss 'live', and a guitar sampler. i was impressed by the clarity and dispersion of the sound. now you gotta realize, my huge hulking EC was in the middle of the listening area, along with, boxes, a chair, coffee table, 36 inch tv on the coffee table, etc.... so this wasnt the perfect environment for a test. but i could definitely tell a huge difference in clarity.. i can see how the term' bright' is used a lot. the tweeters were really kickin the highs. an elemnt i was not used to with the vegas. i had to turn the volume knob a lot higher with the axioms than i had to with the vegas to get the same amount of 'loudness', but the clearness was very good(is clearness a word?).. i only had time to listen to a few songs from each of those cd's and it was time for my son to go to bed, so shannon made me turn it down. at low volumes, it was still very pleasant. i had to shut it off, and begin the process of pulling out all the old equip, and putting in the new.. not to mention, cleaning a ridiculious amount of dust from the belly of my EC.. it had collected up pretty bad..
anyway, thats where i stand this morning.. the new equip is in the EC, but nothing is hooked up, it is just sitting there. i need to run speaker wire, make all necessary connections between comnponents, mount the QS8's, and push the EC back against the wall.. i should be done by saturday afternoon. my living room looks like a bomb went off in it.. it is a totat mess.. shannon came in from class, and just gasped.. it is really destroyed in there. but, i will get back on it when i get off work today, and make it right. i am excited to hear the axioms with a good receiver, the onkyo 701, and with the sub. and with my pioneer 563a. i think it will be spectacular.
sorry this si so randon.. i am in a hurry this morning.. be looking this weekend for questions from me as fas as with instillation, and yall have a good day. i aint gonna proof read this thing cause i am in a hurry, so it will have a ton of errors, sorry.
oh yea, AMERICA ROCKS.
bigjohn
I also had Cerwin Vega's (C-7). The M60's did seem a bit bright, but the longer I listened, it became apparent how much clarity there is and how "muddled" the sound was out of the CV-7s.
Keep the updates comin'!
So, you listened to the Axioms using your OLD equipment. I'll be interested to see if you hear any difference with the NEW stuff. Probably not, but I'll be interested to hear if you do.
Don't worry about errors, John. Just feed us the info.
John - I'm just imagining Shannon's face when she walked in to the living room, to see is totally destroyed. She was probably seeing your old speakers, your new speakers and the boxes, and was thinking, "O - sh*t!"
I know that is what my wife would say. I'm so excited for you. Mayeb you'll grace us with some pics on Monday...
Hey guys, bigjohn went to WORK today! ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!! I'll bet they're getting good value from you today - not!
Regarding the loudness issue, you will likely have no long term concerns. Your receiver will have plenty of power. Not only that, but also the *perceived* loudness of the CV's was greater because of all that bloated bass they were producing. The Axiom bass is tighter, flatter and more accurate, so you'll likely not perceive them as being as Loud. I forget - do you have a sub?
So, you've had possession of the speakers for over 14 hours now, and we still have no pictures? I thought you liked us. Sniff.
I'm excited for ya, bigjohn. Thanks for sharing your experience.
YEAH!
I'd like to see before and after pictures...in particular one with the room in disarray with Shannon looking dismayed...
Seriously, John, you've got some great times in store for you once you get it all re-assembled...
Enjoy big guy...
I know I am.
WhatFurrer
i have no before pics, but after pics are in order.. not til later in the week, i gotta get it back together and clean up.. but i will not disappoint.
i have a Vega LW-12 sub. a little boomy, but will work for now.. plus, i can adjust some of the 'boom' out.
wife and i are going to dinner after work, so that will take away from my 'work' time tonight. but i got the whole weekend, and i told shannon her mothers day gift will be to watch darla knock the pice off the wall!!
she seemed excited..NOT!! naw, just kidding.. she is cool with it. and she loves the custom cabinets.
bigjohn
In reply to:
i have a Vega LW-12 sub. a little boomy, but will work for now.. plus, i can adjust some of the 'boom' out.
Or turn it into a buzzy-flappy sound with a good finger poke. Congrats on the system - as the most congenial user here, not shy about talking about your experiences and personal life, I'm sure we'll all go on the ride with you.
Bren R.
Congrats BillJohn! Not only did your speakers arrive, but you've been awarded Miss Congeniality!
Actually ...here's a not so thinly veiled...you can kiss my ass with that crock of bullshit. Easy to sit on the sidelines...and hope noone notices.
Congrats John - glad you are finally doing the touchy feely with these puppies. Back to work? Then to dinner? There may be demerits involved here!!!
Keep us current with the progression.
I'll ask again nicely that everyone drop the politicking, there are people on both sides of this that have some very deep held beliefs.
Bren R.
My dad, a former Marine, taught me that if I ever let the flag touch the ground, lightning would come from the sky and knock me dead. I still remember the first time I let the flag touch the carpet as a youngster and looked skyward for the bolt o' juice.
I think Bren is right, you might want to leave the "your country sucks" stuff at home.
I 2nd that. If we are going to go at each other let's stick to cables and and SS vs Tube amps please, skipping politics....
jr
PLEASE!
When the forum degenerates to that level, I feel like going elsewhere...
Like John Lennon said, "Let it be..."
WhatFurrer
miss congeniality?? damn, i was hoping to win most photogenic!!
small update(notice the time).. got receiver, dvd/cd player, vcr, record player and tv all hooked up. no probs.. got fronts, center channel, and sub wkng.. no probs.. gonna run wire in the attic and mount(on the wall ray) the QS8 in the morning. i was playing with some of the surround modes and DSP modes on the receiver.. pretty neat. i liked the neo6 when listening to music, very rich sound..
i still have to make final sound adjustments and set crossover and speaker levels, but i am on the home stretch. i just hope the qs8s go up with no problem.
then i gotta clean up the living room.. my wife is already getting tired of having to walk and climb over stuff. pregnant women are sooooo grumpy..
bigjohn
Just wait till the hormones start changing again and they get less sleep from midnight feedings.
I am lucky, my sons seemed to be in tune with when I arrived home from work at 2:15AM. They would wake up around that time and I got to do the feedings.
In reply to:
They would wake up around that time and I got to do the feedings.
Did you at least shave your nip... oh, never mind.
Bren R.
Actually I used a bottle with a latex nipple because we could hear the difference compared to a rubber nipple. The latex sounded more natural.
Wonder if John made it to work this morning?
OK, another quick review.
i finally got the speaker wire run in the attic saturday afternoon, and had everything installed, mounted, and connected by saturday evening. running the speaker wire for the surrounds ended up being more complicated than i thought, but it is a clean job and i am happy it is completed.
i mainly listened to some audio tracks on saturday evening. i listened to ALL the modes avail on the onkyo 701.. straight 2 ch stereo, 2.1(w/sub), neo 6, dolby surround, and the various DSP modes. although each listening mode had its various 'good' features, i found myself prefering the neo6 mode. it gave great dispersion thru all speakers, and had a very full, rich sound. (i am not an audio expert, so the 'terms' i use to explain might not be the best).
the AXIOMS are very clear and precise.. i was listening to some bluegrass, and i literally felt as though i could hear each individual string being plucked and strummed on the guitars, banjos, and fiddles. it sounded very clean and had a snap, or pop to it.. i mean that in a good way.. the highs were very defined, to a degree that i had never heard before.. they stood out to my ears, but were still properly related to the rest of the mids and lows. i didnt think they were bright at all. i tested the mids with some good ole' heavy metal power chords.. AC/DC and metallica. they both sounded fabuolous. the guitars were very full and robust.. my old vegas had a very 'whoompy' sound on the metallica stuff, but the AXIOMS were tight and responsive.. i could hear the guitar seperation much better, instead of the one guitar sound i was used to. i cant say a whole lot about the bass from the axioms.. i listened to most music in full surround, not to much stereo direct, so my sub was supplying most of the bass. i can say that the M60's worked well with my vega sub, and i dont have a case of sub envy, at least not yet.
on sunday, i got the entertainment center pushed back against the wall, and went ahead and set the speaker distances to my listening position on my config options on the receiver. i did the pink noise calibration by ear(no SPL til wednesday), and made minor adjustments, including bringing up the two surround volumes up +3 dbs by comparison to the fronts. i will get the 'proper' calibration once i get the SPL meter. i decided it was time to watch some movies.. 'finding nemo', 'pulp fiction', and 'open range'.. i was kinda skipping thru each, going to particular scenes, but i was completely impressed. the QS8's really produce sounds that i had never heard before. they fill my room(28x26x8) completely. i found myself really having to adjust the sub during movies cause it tended to want to over-power the rest of the system.. i am sure the SPL meter will help with that. darla rocked the living room(and the neighborhood), but i actually thought the scene in the whales mouth had better LFEs.. there were a few scenes in pulp fiction, where i had to pause the movie cause i thought i was hearing other people in the house.. it was just the surrounds doing there thing in the DTS mode.. SIDENOTE- movies with the DTS impressed the hell out of me.. the sound was amazing.. i felt immersed in the movie scenes, and the details of the sounds was very surprising to me.. now, i dont know if that is the dvd, the receiver, the speakers, or a combination of all three, but i would have to say i was immensly impressed. i often found myself actually looking 2-3 feet on either side of the M60's for an actor to be standing there saying their lines.. it sounded to me like they were right there. oh, and the 150 center was awesome also. voices were clear, and precise.. not chesty or hollow at all.. dispersion was good, and i moved around the living room to check from different angles, and all sounded great.
i would say, my first impression of the axioms is super. they have detail, but plenty of guts and grunge also. music and movies both sound great, and i have much more experiementing to do. i truly feel, that not only just the speakers, but my whole system is great. the 701 has power to spare, and the pioneer 563a plays smooth/clean images. i am very happy thus far, and i expect to be even more impressewd once i listen to a few sacd's, and dvd-a's.
the only downside i could find to the axioms, is that they make it to where you can really hear the scratches on records.. they are such a good/clear speaker, that the clicks and pops on records are very obvious.. my old vegas just muddled them out. i will just have to get new records.
just for clarification.. i used home depot 12ga wire(about 100ft total), heavy duty banana plugs to connect to speakers and receiver, and ratshack fusion and gold series connectors(rca, digital, and s-video), and a 1,500 joules power strip. the fronts are approx. 12ft from the listening position, the QS8's are 11ft to the side and 1ft back, and the sub is in the front-right corner.
wow, this was longer than i thought it was gonna be. more experiementing to come, and pics should be up by the end of the week. give me some time to play first.. i am like a kid in a candy store.. only prob is, the candy store is in my living room!!
bigjohn
great to hear you are enjoying the new purchase John! Looking forward to seeing some pics of that wonderful setup.
John, you are one articulate son of a gun. That was a really good review. Needless to say, I'm really excited for you. Man! That is a BIG room! (makes sense BIG guy; BIG room.
)
When calibrating by ear, it is very common that the sub gets set too hot. That may be why the sub "tended to want to over-power the rest of the system.." The SPL meter will fix that.
You didn't mention this, and I suspect you've already done this, so forgive me if you have. Be sure to go into your "Speaker Setup" menu and set the speaker distances from the sweet spot.
Again something you already may be aware of. If your 701 is like my 797, when are listening to the "Stereo" DSP mode, you're hearing only the M60s AND your sub. If you go to the "Direct" DSP mode, You're hearing the M60s alone. I didn't figure that out until last week and I've had my Onkyo for 2 years. DUH!
jack- yes, i actually figured that out pretty quick. the 'pure direct' is the M60's only, and then the 'stereo direct' kicks in the sub. i would have to say i like the latter better.
i did go into the spkr config screen and dial in the spkr distances from the sweet spot. i found the manual to be very easy to follow, and i walked thru the set up process rather easy.
i will get the SPL meter on wednesday and do the proper calibrating at that time.. meanwhile, i will just manually adjust the sub volume to whatever i am listening to.
the two modes i found that i liked the best for listening to music were the 'DD neo 6', and the 'all channel stereo'. each sounded really good, but the neo6 seemed to put the voices in the center channel better. i just liked it the most.
it is a big room, but the system fills it well.. the loudest i got the volume to the other day was 93(i think it goes to 100).. and at 93, it was very LOUD, but still very clear and clean. no distortion. to be honest, i couldnt listen to it at that volume very long cause it started to become uncomfortable.. but it was a good test to see if the axioms could stay true.. they did!!
i am going to pick up my first SACD this afternoon.. either 'darkside' or elton johns 'yellow brick road'. i cant wait to see how that is gonna sound.
i should have pics by the end of the week.
bigjohn
Very nice write up. I can't wait for the pictures! I second that you are very articulate.
As a fellow Onkyo owner (601) I also listen to the Neo6 Music and Stereo modes the most, adjusting my sub's volume depending on the music (I don't want to be evicted).
jr
In reply to:
(I don't want to be evicted).
Don't worry about that... If you have M60s, you no doubt have enough cardboard in your basement to build a really nice condo under some bridge.
Great review!
BigJohn,
Is there a reason you do not want to go buy a DVD-Audio disc as well?
If you can find an AIX disc, get one.
Otherwise, try out Eagles' Hotel California or Steely Dan's Everything Must Go
John, for not being an audio expert, ya done good 'splainin the set up. I am really glad you finally got everything, and early to boot. The initial noticeable improvement in the audio with the Axioms almost detracts from the full experience as your attention keeps being yanked to those new pieces of ear candy that you haven't heard before!!!
Your comments about pausing the action because it sounded like someone was in the house were interesting. I still do that after 3 months. Wait until you watch a scary DVD like "The Others". It will creep you out.
I'm still playing with the levels on the QS8s. My 3803 allows me to adjust by 1/2 db at a time and I have my MX-700 remote set up to handle each speaker and the sub individually. Pretty interesting the way you can move the audio towards the M60s or back to myself by tweaking the Qs. A range of 1 - 1 1/2 db is significant.
Anyhow, you are going to enjoy this journey of discovery. It just keeps getting better. BTW - an excellent narrative on the experience thus far. When we retire, we are looking to have a great room that size or bigger, so I have a touch of envy.
In reply to:
the two modes i found that i liked the best for listening to music were the 'DD neo 6', and the 'all channel stereo'. each sounded really good, but the neo6 seemed to put the voices in the center channel better. i just liked it the most.
For those interested in how these work and why they sound different:
- 6 Channel Stereo sends the left channel to the LFront and LSurr speakers, the right channel to RFront and RSurr, and sums them for the Centre and Rear Centre, Yamaha suggests it for parties and other full-room activites.
- the matrixed decoders use common mode rejection to decide what is panned equally to both channels and feeds that to the center (and rear centre, possibly after some delay/phase tricks), then sends the remainder of the left to the left, right to the right (and corresponding surrounds with whatever tricks the manufacturer uses), this spatializes the sound better but a lot of times broken, almost static-like speech will be heard in the side channels as they cross the boundary of being "in" and "out of" the centre.
Bren R.
bren- thanks for the explanation. you mentioned that yamaha suggests the 'all channel stereo' for parties.. i found the onkyo manual to be interesting in the same sense.. it lists ALL the different listening modes and DSP's, and gives examples when they would be most useful. just one of those little xtra things i thought was cool about the onkyp manual.
ray- when i started the post, i didnt mean for it to be that long.. thoughts just kept poppin into my head, so i just kept typing. of course, my post wasnt telling ya'll nothing new.. you already know how good the speakers sound.
. oh, and 'the others' creeped my out when i didnt have surround, i bet it is a real blanket grabber with the surrounds.
AAAAAHHHHHH!!!
snippy- i have nothing against dvd-a's, im just not sure what they are.. is it basically an sacd sound, but with a video or concert to watch on the TV?? i hate being ignorant like this, but i just really dont know the difference between the two. and i went to hastings last night to buy an sacd, and they didnt have any that i wanted. i am gonna go to the mall tonight and try to find one. if not, i will just order on-line.. but i wanna hear one NOW!!
bigjohn
Do a search on DVD-Audio here. It is hi fidelity music on a DVD disc while SACD is hi fidelity music on an SACD disc. THey both sound incredible. The main difference between SACD and DVD-Audio is that DVD-A can have extra features along with the album. SACD does not have extra features, but most titles have the CD layer included, which is nice for playing SACDs in the car.
But since your player plays both, you do not really have to care about the two formats, you just need to find titles that you will enjoy.
As far as DVD-A goes, I suggest picking up Fleetwood Mac 'Rumours'. It's a good one.
John - if you want a real treat, get your hands on some concert/musiv DVDs. They will blow you away. A few suggestions.
Eagles - Hell Freezes Over
Fleetwood MAC - The Dance
Norah Jones - Live in New Orleans
Diana Krall - Live in Paris
Also, most folks don't consider their libraries. Our county library system has 5000 DVD titles and double that for CDs. They will send from other branches to your branch. Great opportunity to try out a wide range before buying. You can likely get into the library catalog on-line.
Eric Clapton - Live at Hyde Park.