Hello All,

For those of you that upgraded to the VP-180:

Do you feel it was worth it?
No regrets?
Big difference when compared to the VP-150?

I've only had my Axiom system for a week now and could still make changes. Upgrading to the VP-180 would cost me $287.00 at this point - versus waiting a year or two and then having to fork out $695.00.

The VP-150 is nice but I find myself having to turn up the volume quite a bit when watching TV (to hear everything being said). Do you VP-180 owners watch TV now at the same volume you did when you had the VP-150?

If I upgrade I guess the only problem (if there is one) would be the amplifier. I have a Denon 4310CI that supposedly runs 130W per channel for the front three channels. I don't think there would be a problem if I run the front three speakers as "small" - right? Could the Denon handle it or would an additional amp be required?

Anyhow, I know there is a thread about the VP-180 but don't recall reading anything about volume levels - and would rather not have to read 80-something pages, again.

Thanks for your assistance.

Tico, I haven't heard anything but glowing reviews from VP180 owners, but note that many people that use ANY center channel speaker bump up the volume a couple of dB over the other speakers' levels to improve intelligibility.

I think you're Denon would be fine. How big is your room?

I can't comment on the sonic qualities of the VP180 other than the fact its driver complement is to match the M80. Some advantages this will provide is better power handling, lower distortion and the ability to have better timbre matching to your M80 mains. The VP180 might also have superior off axis capabilities to the VP150.

The Denon 4310CI is a quality receiver and are known for their robust power supplies. According to this fine article published by Audioholics you should be OK running the M80 and VP180 set as "small" with your current receiver. Keep the unit well ventilated. For further reference, click on the link below.

http://www.audioholics.com/education/amplifier-technology/impedance-selector-switch-1

I can’t speak directly to the VP180 but I do have a M80 center channel which has the same driver complement. IMO it is very much worth the upgrade. Sonically it is better than the VP150 on every level, lows, mids and highs. So I think it’s worth the upgrade.

However, like marks said many people boost the center channel simply because they like to run it a little hot, but also because not audio sources are created equal. I find particular TV shows and movies have the center channel mixed low so have to boost it up.

i had a vp-150 for like um.... 6 or so years... and i though it was pretty good.... whenever i listened to music, i would always listen in stereo... never really used the processing... now today, i do not use stereo much anymore, due to the vp-180 being able to keep up with my m-60s.


the 180 blends perfectly, where as the 150 you could tell that there was a difference between the center and the L/R speaker. if you look in the vp-180 thread in the home theater section, i posted some pictures of the difference between the 150 and 180. I would say the 180 is about 4 times as deep as the 150..

depending on your finances, if 287$ isn't a big deal to you, i would say go for it in a heart beat.

my sound level is the same, but the 180 has 500W going to it now, where my 150 had 250W, due to the lower resistance of the 180.... the 180 does fill the room more so than then 150 really ever did....

i hope this helps, if you have any other questions i'll be around

I suspect that sooner rather than later you'll want to upgrade the center and as you point out it makes good economic sense to do that now.

I have had an epic 80-800 system for nearly 2 years, and the one speaker that never quite seemed up to speed was the vp150, despite its very nice sound. Hopefully by this time next week the vp180 will have taken its place.

A final consideration would be the size of your room. It was recommended that I install dual vp150 centers as well as dual subs in my size room (approx 8,000 cu ft) and I could not afford either at the time, so I put those on the upgrade later list. Now I'm told that a single vp180 will fill the bill, and I suspect it will, since the vp150 has been quite good, I would say close to sufficient.

The VP180 is not big deal.... Lalala I can't hear you...

Crap! Its not working.

I went from VP100 to VP180 (with M60s) so my experience won't be quite the same... but IMO since there's only one center channel it's a relatively less expensive upgrade than anything else, and the center channel seems to do quite a bit of the heavy lifting...

So yeah, I would upgrade unless doing so meant I had to seriously downgrade something else.

I plan to go from an in/on-wall VP100 to a standard VP150. For me, this should be a major improvement. I could go the VP180 route, but I'd have to make a custom hole in the wall under the TV and the rear ports would be lost, so I think a VP150 bookshelf box version would be the preferred way to go. I'm not satisfied with the in/on-wall VP100 sound. Voices are too high pitched sounding.

Although, I have considered a bookshelf M2 for a center, but I'm not convinced it would be better than a VP150.

Yeah, it's good that you are looking hard at the size. The one thing everyone agrees on w.r.t. the VP-180 is that it's *big*

Not that there's anything wrong with that!

"A quantum leap forward ... in time and space ..."

- Peart

Thank you for your replies - though I thought there would be more 180 owners with input.

Anyhow, VP-180 has just been ordered and should arrive next week.

Oscar I really don't know if there are that many VP180 owners here on the boards to begin with. I'm extremely pleased with our upgrade from the 150 to the 180, it blends so smooth with the M80s for a really nice soundstage and I certainly believe it was definitely worth the upgrade.

Congrats on your order!