Trying to keep the price about the same, so I'm considering these two systems. I have to get a receiver as well, so a Denon 2808 would be likely if I got the M80's. Otherwise I've been looking at the Onkyo 605, or the Yamaha RXV3800.

I've always been a fan of 4 ohm speakers, but I'm wondering which would make a bigger impact, the 500 sub or the M80 towers. Thoughts?

Tough one. I have the M80/EP350 combo, and it's fantastic, but I've never directly compared it to M60/EP500. My friend has that setup, but audio memory is so bad (and we listen at vastly different volumes), it's hard to say.

How big is your room?

Room is 18x12 with 8' ceiling. It opens on the one side to another area about half that size as well.

Sounds a bit smaller than my room. How loud do you like it?
My gut feeling is that you should go with the M80s if you prefer more detail, with the EP500 if you prefer more bass. Not to say that the M60s are a slouch in detail or that the EP350 is a slouch in bass!

I am thinking you could go with M22s and an EP500 or 600 and the Onkyo or Yamaha, depending on which one has the features you want. I think the Yamaha at the price you mentioned in our PM's/email is a great deal.

Johnnie, are you planning on ordering from the Factory Outlet? If so, the extra 10% may help your decision.

keep in mind that you can save a lot of money if you buy your denon from 6ave.com

I think the 3808 is about $1098 shipped and the 2808 is about $849. 6ave is an authorized denon retailer as well.

I have never heard the m60's but have the m80's and am VERY glad I got them. I also own an ep500 though and am VERY glad I bought that. Of the two, I think the m80's are my favorite... I could settle for less sub but wouldn't want to settle for the M60's(after hearing how much I love the m80's). However, I am thinking about purchasing an ep800 when it comes out so I guess I wouldn't really want to compromise on either.

tough choice! Either way I think you will be pleased. Want kind of sound system do you currently own?

Is the 3808 still $1099 from 6ave? I have seen reports it is $1199 and even as high as $1299 on other forums, not that either of those prices isn't good, much better than MSRP.

It was $1099 a few weeks ago....

I haven't check to be honest... I just knew that they had before offering that price for so long and I assumed it was the same. They may have raised their seling price $100 since the MSRP went up $100 on denon's website with the addition of the new feature pack upgrades.

Not as of my purchase... but maybe it will change as they receive more stock or something.

Of course, I haven't connected to the network yet to get my update, which should be free...(I hope!)

Don't make me come to your house and go all Borg on you. Connect to the network! Resistance is futile!!

I'm predicting that some time in the next few days, I'll be posting questions about how to download the update.

And Murph, I'm getting ready to host you and your wife for a fun-filled three days of the New Hampshire Networking Festival... taking place right here in Concord!

My room is similar to yours and I got the epic 80 350. Never looked back! Those M80 sound amazing. They could ALMOST make due without a sub (at least for music)... These speakers really do put out great range from lows to highs.

The 350 is way, way powerful enhough. I listen to not so high volumes (my wife doesn't like it too loud...) but its often enhough to shake the whole house.

As for the amp, I couldn't be happier with my Denon. I'm suhre the M60 would be powerful enough for your room, but the M80s are such great speakers and IMO your main fronts are the most important part of yout setup.

Ah yeah, I got the factory outlet and someone at Axiom told me that they have a rule: if the "imperfection" is visible from more than 5 ft away, they don't sell them. I have to say they stick to their words as the few ones where I did find the "imperfections", you really have to look close to see. So it's a great deal.

Mostly music = 80/350
Mostly Movies = 60/500

Good call Fred. Can't say it more succinctly than that, and I agree with the summary.

It took me 2 years, but I finally posted an answer as concisely as johnk.

I think it is still M80/600 for either, oh wait that wasn't an option.

If you're gonna be like that, you might as well go right to 80/800.

but the 800 isn't an option for anyone .......yet. So there.:P

Thanks for all the responses. I'll make a decision after hearing the M80's this weekend

I'm in Canada so I'm not sure 6ave ships here... will have to look. My present system is a hodgepodge of garbage that isn't worth discussing. This is my first foray into true home theatre, although I've always been somewhat of an audiophile. And nothing will be as loud as the 1500watts in my car

I'm kind of in the same boat, except i'm only looking at the floor standers.

JC, from Axiom, said the 60's would be perfect for me (1980 cubic feet, Denon 2307ci, primarily movie use).

Being me, I want the best. But If I can save $300 +, that would be great. I don't have a sacd or dvd-a player, so i'm thinking I won't really notice the improvement in detail in home theater use (i do have a ps3 for blu-ray movies).

sorry to hijack.

I think with the BR HD audio tracks the detail may be missed, not that the M60s really lack detail you just have to play them louder to hear it, or so I noticed in my experiments with the M60/M80.

I ended up with the Epic 80 / 500 and a Denon 3808. Picked it up for $1298 CDN at Soundsaround. Not a bad price.

So much for my budget though

Thanks for the demo, Jason!

C$1300 is pretty good. Hard to get that price? They have much stock?
Hoping to get to Cowtown this year (alternator allegedly on it's way).

Good call, the exact system and receiver I have (and was over my original budget as well).

You won't regret it!

Heh... gotta wonder if anyone comes here and actually sticks to their budget.

Budgets are for chumps!

I didn't even need speakers when I came here. Now I'm in for about $3k!

Thats probably why axiom hasn't minded giving away some stuff to the "shareholder in the making" peeps. If you think about how much stuff you have convinced people to buy beyond their budget in 10,000 posts I am sure that it works to their advantage

Hehe, same here. Was budgeting for M60's and QS4's... Well, that worked out well!

When it comes to speaker budget, I think even if you went a little over, you're going to be really happy with it. I kinda figured they'd wear off over a year, but I'm still stoked when i find a really great game or film that lights them up. Because so much revolves around your main system, you can benefit ALL the time.

Relish!

You are most welcome, it was a pleasure to meet you!

You did get a good deal on that 3808, I trust my advice helped with that purchase as well?

I was just over at icehawk27's yesterday and finally had a chance to hear the EP500, I think you will be liking the entire system.

Did you go with the FO?

Did you hit the hot tub and listen to the Algonquins while there?

'Budgets are for chumps'... haha, that's a good one!

Yeah budgets get bent in Hi-Fi all the time because when you;re into Hi-Fi, more likely than not you're also into having the 'latest & greatest' thing to hit the scene. And we all know that 'the latest & greatest' stuff is going to drain our pocketbooks!

After the fire I started thinking about what I wanted to get to replace my previous HT system. Well I had checked out some Cambridge Soundworks towers that I was really interested in that cost $2000 for the set, but the bass cube I was looking at only cost $1000 bucks. But when I checked on them they no longer make those speakers. So when I ran across Axiom & started checking their stuff out, the $1200 tag on them actually surprized me!

The bass department was a lil different though. As I have zero'd in on the EP800, I will be spending upwards of $2300 on a subwoofer. So I went from my original budget of around $4700 for the Cambridge Soundworks rig in a 9.1 speaker set-up, to around $5500 (they still don't have an advertised price for the Epic 80/800 rig yet) for the same thing at Axiom.

But from everything I've been reading over the internet these last few months, that extra $800 will be money well spent.

No, saving that for another time.

More on the actual topic, I noticed John's M80s in the warehouse last night, shipped via air and the boxes had just a couple of small tears.

[quote=JohnnieMo]I ended up with the Epic 80 / 500 and a Denon 3808. Picked it up for $1298 CDN at Soundsaround. Not a bad price.

Not a bad price at all! I called and they told me it was 1750$ That's a huge difference! To late on pulling the trigger again... Anyone know where I can find one at a good price? thanks!

I'm in Canada as well. Ontario/Quebec region.

I was just in Soundsaround on Boxing day and my nephew bought a 3808 for $1387, they were adamant that was the absolute lowest they would go without bundling it with another product. You have to be there to deal with them otherwise they quote floor pricing.

Oh Well, can't fly out there to haggle... lol. Guess I'm stuck paying floor pricing. sux. but that's part of living in the boonies.

It's at Crutchfield Canada for $1749 with free shipping. You could try calling them and negotiating a cheaper price.

Jason - your advice was fantastic. I just told them I knew a guy who got one a year ago for $1250. They said it never could happen. Then they asked if I'd buy warranty and such, I said no. We talked to a manager and they offered their "Big 4" price (Big 4 is a massive sale they have every year). So that price was $1298. I agreed to also buy a power regulator (Pure AV) and an ipod dock. Those were both half price too. All in all I got the entire package, tax in, for less than the sticker of $1750.

They seem to have lots of the 3808's in stock. I think the key to bartering with them is to actually be prepared to buy if they give you the offer. If you are just kicking the tires, you're wasting their time and yours.

Just watched Dark Knight on BluRay. My god.... Sounds amazing!! I couldn't believe the frequency response of the EP500. From 12 feet away it was shaking the cushions on my couch at like 20Hz.

Does anyone know if the PS3 supports True HD sound? I'm not sure if it has to do anything other than pass the 1's and 0's to the Denon...

Good stuff JonnieMo. It always feels good to get a genuine deal, and from what I have seen thats a good deal.

And now for the standard close...

My god man!! You bought an Axiom rig, you're posting here and there are not pictures? We must have pictures!

Yes, the PS3 decodes Dolby TrueHD internally and passes it along as multichannel linear PCM.

If you mention "I'm an AVS member and want the AVS price" that will short circuit the 'for what price?!?' discussion.

PS3 decodes all HD codec so you're good to go on that front.

John, Glad to hear you are enjoying your system! I happened to see your M80s in the warehouse on the 23rd, so I knew you were going to have some fun this Christmas.