Okay, so I looked through the owner's advice search database and came up with nothing... now, i'm sure I'm doing somethng wrong because there surely has to be a forum dedicated to the epic 80s no?

I'm looking for a place I can go to get info on setup, and especially what type of receiver people are using with this epic 80s. I need to know because I would like to buy one this week. I've done so much searching online about the different receivers but it's just too much info!

I'm looking at onkyo and denon mostly... in the $800 - $1500 dollar range.

Thanks guys

Welcome majik,

There are many people that frequent this message board that have the epic 80 setup (or very similar). I do not own that line of axioms so I cannot help you on this one. Be patient, there will be many people chimining in soon with excellent advice for you.

I have heard great things about the epic 80 setup btw. I hope you take the plunge:).

Cheers,

Dr. House

Any forum will work, this one will do just fine. People typically post questions in the "advice for axiom owners" or the "home theater" forums... unless of course the question is 2 channel in nature, and then it goes into the stereo forum.

I have m80's vp150, 2 QS8's and an ep500. I use the denon 3808 and it drives the m80's and all other speakers just fine. A lot of other people on the boards use a 3808 as well. I bought mine 1 year ago from 6ave.com for $1098 shipped. You can call them and ask what special price they are offering for the 3808 (you have to call as the website reflects the $1599 MSRP price. I have heard of people having problems with some onkyo mopels.

Probably the most popular reciever is the Denon 3808 ($1200 US) most other Denon models will also power a 4 ohm load reliably.
The new Onkyos like the 805,806 875,876 etc should handle a 4 ohm load. Also the Sherwood Newcastle recievers are recomended. Other factor to take in to acccount are the size of your room and the volume level you listen at, the larger the room and louder the volume requires more amp power.

There seems to be some issues with the Search function.

There aren't any specific forums for just your setup... we're all kind of mixed up here. But, feel confident... there are many users of the 80s here.

You kinda asked the same question here regarding receivers and got some great advice...

by the way, I just noticed that denon's website shows the MSRP for the 3808 at $1699 and claims that it comes with the feature upgrade for "free". Wasn't the MSRP of the 3808 $1599 before?

Thanks House! (can I call you House? lol)

i already have taken the plunge, I put my first payment on it and plan on paying the rest this week. I just want to get some info on the peripherals...

I have an onkyo 605 and was told by the guys at Axiom that I can go with monoblocks, I have to get another receiver anyway as I will be putting the 605 with my streem speakers in my training room. I still might go ahead and add the monoblocks to the new receiver anyway. CHOICES, CHOICES!

hey.. I already answered this guy!

guess you didn't beat the price increase after all?

You may find you don't need monoblocks, most new AVR's should drive any of the Axiom speakers, including 80's, with ease. Axiom speakers are very efficient and will give you loud levels using minimal wattage. With that being said, I do use mono's to drive my 80's with my Denon 2805, but I have a HUGE room and like it loud and clear, or so some will tell you.

Like, most of the Midwest.

Ditto SirQuack's comment on possibly not needing separate amplification. You'd be surprised what the M80s are capable of with "only" a good quality receiver driving them. The 3808 drives my M80s to levels that would make your ears bleed and they sound clear and precise all the way up. (my room is ~2500 cubic feet and I sit roughly 10' from the front speakers).

Jason

My room is 2600 cubic feet and I sit around 8' away. Good to know the 3808 will work for the HT experience with these speakers.

hehe.. yeah, you're right you did... but I'm the type of guy that hesitates, does more research, gets more advice then gets confused about it all, all over again!! Sorry 'bout that. Oddly enough, I was the same way in University... i would do so much research to do a paper that I wouldn't know what to keep and what to discard! Next thing I knew, it was the night before due date and I had to get a 15 page paper done!

So it's decided, I'm going with the 3808 (but what's this I hear about some people having trouble with the upgrades? should I be worried about this?)

I also read today - I'm sure it was here in the Axiom forums, I think, I dunno (hehe) - that some 3808s reset on it's own?

Whatever, I'll cross that bridge if/when it comes. I'm going to take the plunge or I'll NEVER buy one!

The Denon 3808 will be more than capable in driving your M80's, VP150 and QS8's.

Cheers,

Dr. House

Good to know! I have parties here and when I do we like to crank 'er up and git r done! I'll just try it with the 3808 and if I feel I need more power/clarity I'll go ahead and get a couple of outlaw monoblocks.

Majik - the only problem I've heard related to upgrades have to do with your router settings on your local network. I haven't heard of any problems with the 3808 itself. (and if so, none that we haven't been able to help solve here)

As far as the 3808 resetting, there were two people who suspected that happening (one was me). In my case, I believe it was chalked up to paranoia, I haven't been able to confirm it actually happened. In the other case, a hard reset (reinstallation of all base settings) fixed the issue.

Go for it, you won't regret it!

Jason

Jason - I just took a look at your HT build pics. Nice! Where did you pick up your rack?

Two more questions:

how big is your HT room and What did you use for window treatment (are they acoustical curtains or simply darkening curtains

If you throw a lot of parties and have a lot of people in your home petting and prodding at your system, I would take advantage of Denons max volume setting feature which enables you to set the max volume according to what you want. It is an excellent feature in these sitiations because it gives you the control and prevents people from damaging your awesome speakers.

P.S - You know how it goes down at parties

Cheers,

Dr. House

I've never heard of that feature... Nice!

Peter: Did you hear about that feature? Peter? PETER?

I have an ancient (by modern standards) Onkyo. Stop reminding me!

But you can justify it to the wife: Our child wouldn't be hard of hearing now!

House - I sure do! that's why I've got a little setup that keeps every one out the "dj area" and only one dj in my house... and that's moi!

But thanks for the tip, I'll definitely use that feature... Prevention is always better than cure!

Majik

I'm the kind of person who owns things until they break. So it's up to God/fate to determine when I upgrade.

A little "accidental abuse" could put your fate back into your hands

You're saying I should leave the remote within reach and/or leave the plexiglass anti-child protective barrier off more often?

That could work for me, too... hmm...





Yes, luv, it's a joke!

Ha ha! Your wife reads the board so you have to self-censor!

My wife never reads the board so I don't ever have to mention how wonderful she is.

I used this guide (halfway down the page) to help me with my setup when I had a 3801, but now Audyssey on the 3808 takes care of a lot of the setup although you might prefer not using Audyssey after running it. I don't use it and have recalibrated everything manually because I wasn't happy with it as other people aren't, although people are having more success with it after the update, but they might be crazy . I would recommend setting it up manually after running Audyssey and then see which setup you prefer.

Thanks for the comments.

I picked up the rack from Studio Tech. The Model is the StudioTech PS-6. If you're interested, be sure to run a google shopping search as you can find it for close to $200 if you shop around.

The drapes are from Bed Bath & Beyond and are double-lined curtains to better block light and deflect heat. Unfortunately, they didn't completely black out the sun from outside (but were the best of 3-4 that I tried from there) so I put in Roman Shades underneath the drapes.

The total package of drapes & blinds was one of those surprise budget items... I ended up spending a lot more than I expected to spend to keep the room dark. But hey, if you can't do that, you rule out half the day for movie watching, unacceptable!

In the end though, I am very happy with the look and the function. (Ok fine, I admit it, my wife helped me pick out the drapes)

I guess that is why they are charging for the upgrade.