Hello everyone,
I recently decided to go with Axiom speakers, just about to order when I researched centre channel speakers online and visited a high end audio shop . I was told that that the front 3 speakers should be exactly matched, they did a demo of a b&w centre by itself, then played their matching front they didnt sound the same at all is this the case with axiom centres. This shop will split pairs to get exactly the same 3 speakers in front.
I am worried about the vp 100 or 150 won't sound the same as left and right m22ti's. Has anyone compared the vp's with the M22ti's I also visited dolby and thx sites they also suggest the front and centre match exactly in fact dolby reccommends all five match exatly

Sleepless in Ottawa Thanks to all in advance.....

It's important to have good timbre-matching across the front, but to say that all speakers need to be identical is a little silly. The overwhelming majority of surround systems use a center channel different from the mains (including very upscale brands like MartinLogan).

As long as your speakers are from the same manufacturer, and particularly if the drivers are the same, you'll get good results. Even noticable tonal shifts are unlikely to dampen your enjoyment of a movie or concert DVD.

If you're really concerned, however, you can get single Axiom speakers as well...although placement the becomes problematic.

Hi Axel,

The VP100 and VP150 are excellent speakers. Perhaps the key point is that they are *designed* for the centre channel. This means, among other things, that the dispersion patterns are intentionally designed for the speaker to be placed on its side rather than upright.

Lots of folks around here will recommend that you do as you suggest - get three M22's across the front. That would be a wonderful solution, but ONLY if you can place the centre channel vertically (which is a WAF-killer for me personally).

The other thing that sometimes comes into play (and this is another one of my personal problems) is that the centre channels are NOT ported designs. This is very helpful when the "best" placement for the speaker involves less than optimal acoustic compromises like home theatre cabinetry.

I think you'd find the timbre matching of the VP series to be more than acceptable. The VP150 is universally loved by Axiomites.

Yhanks very much for the prompt response to my question guys. The way it was put to me by the salesmean (a very respected individual in the local audio community) is that speaker companies hate to break up pairs, and that placement of a 3rd vertical speaker is a problem for some and a horizontal centre speaker is a compromise and that using 3 matched speakers for the front in his opinion was THE only way to go, I guess when I heard the direct comparison of a centre and front I began to wonder because there really was a difference the interesting part was when he took the same b&w centre speaker and stood it vertically it sounded a bit better, personally a vertically wall mounted m22ti would be a problem for me as well. I think I will take the plunge and go with the vp 150 in boston cherry with m22ti's and qs8's in the rear! Sub-Woof to follow!

By the way I just cracked the box on a Yammaha Rx-v1400 It will be a blast to hear it all up and running......

Thanks again, Axel

Axel,

It sounds like you're on your way to building a fantastic system. While it's important to hear other people's opinions on which is THE way to go regarding speaker configurations, you have to remember that you also have to live with those speakers. If I had the room for them, sure I'd have 5 M22tis all the way around. That's just not practical.

I think the Axioms might impress you more than the B&Ws did.

Thanks point well taken!

Axel, I'm in agreement with those who consider three identical speakers across the front to be ideal. Although many have used the VP100 and especially the VP150 with great satisfaction, I prefer a small vertical center to a horizontal center, at least one in the MTM configuration. Axiom sells individual speakers, and I've often suggested a vertical M2 as a center speaker to make a near-perfect match with M22s.

JohnK, this is a very interesting idea I hadn't considered...I'm planning on getting M60's do you think an M2 would be suitable as a centre or would you suggest an M22. Also how about height? Would the centre need to be perfectly aligned ( hight wise ) with the M60's or could it be placed a bit lower and angled up a bit?

Thanks, Jag

Jag, although I should note that I've never heard the M60s, the identity of the mid-range and tweeter of the M2 would certainly appear to make a good match with the M60s(as would the M22s). The ideal, of course would be to have the tweeters of all three front speakers at ear level, but this is rarely possible because of the TV. If the center speaker is a reasonable distance above the screen, tilting it slightly downward toward ear level works well and likewise if it would be placed below the screen tilting it slightly upward.