ok. Here's the situation. I've pretty much narrowed down my choices for setting up some HT. I've decided on Axiom or Ascend, but am leaning towards Axiom b/c everyone talks about how great their sound is for HT. This setup will be primarily for HT. I do have some fears however. I know Axioms are a bit forward sounding, but this may be the reason they sound great for HT. But my listening area may be a little lively and I'm afraid that it may sound a little bright, so maybe a more laid back speaker would be better? My listening area is 16x16, but it has a vaulted ceiling that goes up to 12 ft or so. This will probably cause more reflections in the sound. The room also opens up into the kitchen which is a pretty large space as well, 20x14. It also vaults, but only to about 10 ft in one spot. Before I go to the trouble of auditioning, I was wondering if anyone has used Axioms in a similar room. I hate to go to all the trouble of demoing and have to pay shipping charges back from the States. I've been looking at the m60's, vp150, and QS8'S for surrounds. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
A little more info on the rooms interior would be helpfull, ie. hardwood flooring etc. but I think the Axiom brightness stems from their clarity but it can usually be dulled by a treble adjustment if needed. I personally don't find them bright at all when I had them(M22s) in a room with laminate flooring and a huge 8'x5' window right beside them.
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A little more info on the rooms interior would be helpfull, ie. hardwood flooring etc. but I think the Axiom brightness stems from their clarity but it can usually be dulled by a treble adjustment if needed. I personally don't find them bright at all when I had them(M22s) in a room with laminate flooring and a huge 8'x5' window right beside them.
Thanks for the reply. I did try looking for someone to help me audition, but there wasn't anyone in my area, except 1 guy and he hasn't been online for over a yr so doubt I'll be able to get up with him. My room has carpet and 2 windows in the back of the room, so I guess it's not as lively as hardwood floors would be.
Have you tried PMing Aime or Andrea. They can usually find someone close by that might not be on the board.
But your house doesn't sound much different than most around here and as you can see we all like the Axiom sound.
What you could do is try the M60's and if you like them order the rest and if it is within the 30 days I believe they still honor the 5% HT discount, if you end up not liking them, the shipping charge would be alot less. Some have bought M3s or 22's just to hear the Axiom sound and then ordered up the full system after. Once again if you really don't like the sound then the shipping is less and if you do then you have a really nice set of bookshelves for another room.
With the exception of carpets vs. hardwood, my room is about as bright as it gets. And I love my Axioms in this room. If I turn it up too loud, the sound gets very messy but this is of no consequence in practice because I only need half watt or less nominal per channel in this room for 85dB.
Nice room! I actually wish I had that kind of room to work with. Mine's in my living room and can't be closed off. I'll try PMing and see if there is someone in my area. If not, I guess I can try ordering a pair. The vaulted ceiling's are what concern me. A lot of reflections.
Hi SoundMan;
We actually have an a-frame house and we've never had a problem with too many reflections, for what it's worth. By the way, just to clarify, our return shipping depot is in Michigan, and then we collect things from there - no need for you to return things to Canada.
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Hi SoundMan;
We actually have an a-frame house and we've never had a problem with too many reflections, for what it's worth. By the way, just to clarify, our return shipping depot is in Michigan, and then we collect things from there - no need for you to return things to Canada.
Hi Amie,
That's good to hear.I sent you a PM about shipping charges and trying to do an audition with someone in my area. Thanks for all the help thus far.
Soundman, I have M22's and QS8's in my approx 12x20' living room setup (also have a HSU sub and planning on VP150) which is hardwood floor next to a 4'x10' picture window.
Bright is not a word I would use to describe it. Clean, clear, detailed are more accurate words to use. Everybody has different tastes, so an audition is probably the best, but go listen to some Klipsch and you will probably hear bright or shrill speakers...the M22's are much easier on the ears than those.
Good luck with your quest.
SM, this is really a function of room and personal preference unfortunately.
I have a large family room (approx. 18x 16) with raised ceilings (10'), hardwood floors, no soft or heavy window coverings and the remaining walls are bare or wood panel covered (near the fireplace).
It opens off the side into the large kitchen and eating area (approx. 18x18), again with all hard surfaces.
EVERY speaker i've had in this area sounds unflattering though it has been awhile since i had my Axioms up in this room. I presently use Tannoy Definition D700s for this area which are larger than my M60s.
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SM, this is really a function of room and personal preference unfortunately.
I have a large family room (approx. 18x 16) with raised ceilings (10'), hardwood floors, no soft or heavy window coverings and the remaining walls are bare or wood panel covered (near the fireplace).
It opens off the side into the large kitchen and eating area (approx. 18x18), again with all hard surfaces.
EVERY speaker i've had in this area sounds unflattering though it has been awhile since i had my Axioms up in this room. I presently use Tannoy Definition D700s for this area which are larger than my M60s.
So, was there a reason you took the M60's out? Or did you just like the TD's better?
I cant recall my dimensions but I have a large living room thats open up through the second floor, so over 20'. There is stairs and an overhead catwalk in the rear so that also probably helps reflections. There are some fake beams up on the ceiling there that may be helping things a little too, dunno. I'm also open into the kitchen area on one side. Not sure about your detail but we have the same basic shape.
I do not find the M60s bright in this area and am constantly impressed to death when I put on a CD that is actually well engineered.
For stereo only, I'm thinking they sound better than the M60s in my 5.1 HT room in the basement which is the square room from acoustics Hell. Mind you, they still impress everyone who listens down there but if I try to do a comparison, I seem to like stereo better up in the bigger room. At least what I can hear over my panting from running up and down the stairs over and over.
In the large living room, you probably have some favourable reflections that lend to a feeling of spaciousness for your stereo sound. I bet when you turn up the volume you also get some image broadening and if you turn the volume up too much it starts to get muddied.
"Yes" definitely nice imaging and "yes" the loudness seems to make things more forgiving for the sweet spot where imaging is concerned. I'm not an ultra-loud kind of guy so I have yet to notice muddied music from my axioms (with the exception of some realllly poorly recorded CDs that now p___ me off.) I admit to trying deafening loudness levels just to see what they could do when I first bought them but my ears gave out long before the volume knob did and I was really only trying to hear if there would be distortion.
Sooner or later I'll post some pictures as it is an interesting room and the pets actually haven't wrecked anything yet.
I have a room similar to your dimensions with a vaulted ceiling and kitchen off to the side. I currently have the M22’s, VP150, QS8's, M2's, SVS PB1 sub in a 7.1 setup and all connected to an Onkyo TX-NR900 receiver. I use this setup for 70% home theater and 30% music (some DVD-A). I love the sound and clarity from the Axiom's and they do not have a problem filling my room with sound. I recently got the upgrade bug and will be getting the M60's within the next week to replace my M22's so I can get even more out of the room.