Hi everyone,
I am enjoying reading the active community that is out here. I am hoping to build a system around the M60s for a 13x22 room (8 ft ceiling). As a newbie, I hope I'll get some expert guidance on some questions below on subwoofers and receiver.

Subwoofer: I am interested in both music and HT. What are the subs I should be looking at ? Some thoughts: vtf-2, svs 20-39 PCi, svs 25-31 PCi, svs 20-39/25-31 PCPlus, Velodyne vlf-1012.. Are they any others I should consider ?
Is there a critical difference between the SVS PCi and the PCplus ? Does anyone have a strong negative experience with the svs cylinders design ?

Features:

- The Vtf uses AB amp vs the more efficient BASH amp on the SVS which is more modern. Is this an important item ?
- Are there any key features I should look for in a SUb (other than LFE bypass)?
- Some of them claim overdrive protection -- is this an important feature under normal usage ?
- SUb amp life: Most offer either one year or two year warranty. What is people 's experience on the actual life of Subwoofer amplifiers ? Are some brands much more robust than others ?
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Receiver: I realized after much reading that my current amp (panasonic HE200) has a pretty crappy sub crossover frequency of 100 Hz (and 150,200 !). So I guess I may be in the market for a proper receiver as well unless I want to suffer with directional Bass. What would be
your recommendations on good (and inexpensive) receivers with this critical Bass management feature down to say 60 or 50 HZ? Pioneer 45Tx appears to be one but I hear it is monstrously heavy at 78 lbs !

I know I have asked lot of questions but hopefully with your help I'll be able to make a decision soon.

thanks in advance,

I've got a Harman/Kardon 525, which has crossovers at 40, 60, 80, etc, as I remember. I just use it at 80, but I know it goes to at least 60.

audioseeker,

don't get too caught up in numbers and specs and all that. they don't mean anything. Listen to the equipement, read what other people say about it, and look at it to see if you think it's well built. Otherwise, you'll spend months yanking your hair out over which receiver has 5 more watts and who made this internal cable and how many ohms of resistance does the tweeter have and who knows what.

The M60's are generally considered the best sounding speakers Axiom makes. The M80's are brigher, but you can get clips (for free from Axiom) to make them a tad less brighter.

I hear from people that the SVS will out perform those subs but it isn't as aesthetically pleasing as a VTF or Velodyne. Yes, the BASH amp is very good, the Axiom EP350 also uses it. But other amps are good, too. Don't bass (haha) your decision on that. Listen, read, and look. F the numbers. Any sub will plus into any good receiver, so don't worry about connection method. It's either pre-amp out or line-out, that's standard.

As for a receiver, there's many choices. My personal preference is Denon. Some people prefer Onkyo. Some prefer Yamaha. I'd stay away from NAD and Pioneer, though. NAD products aren't durable (ask Alan), and Pioneer amps run hot and have very bad headroom. That's the general concensus I've read.

Denon, Yamaha, Cambridge (they're soon to release a 5.1), you can't go wrong with either one. Good prices, good products.

I've also heard great things about Denon. I personally have Rotel separates, which sound fantastic.

Hsu and SVS are THE subwoofer companies. I (and many other board members here) have a Hsu subwoofer, and we all couldn't be happier. Dr. Hsu makes a really terrific sub.

ravi,

I think sushi is going to bite your head off for that Pioneer comment. He loves his Pioneer.

One more HK 525 owner here. I demoed the Denon 2803 and the HK side by side at home with the M60s. I liked the Denon's A/B front speakers, the remote and the understated appearance - that was about it. The HK at 20 LESS watts per channel clobbered the Denon. Much more power for home theater. The Denon sounded a little thin to me.

i forget to mention the HK 525 - yes, i hear it's great.

In reply to:

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Pioneer 45Tx appears to be one but I hear it is monstrously heavy at 78 lbs !

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No, I'm not going to bite your head off, audioseeker. Rather, I take it as a great praise for the receiver. Seriously, I don't think the Elite receivers are "exceptionally" heavy for the price range. A 100W x 7 class of receiver is necessarily quite heavy if it were to perform up to its own specs -- the Elites and H/K/s both surely do according to third-party measurements, and both are pretty heavy. You just cannot make an over-700W power supply very light.

Anyway, if you plan to go for an SACD/DVD-A player in the future, I strongly suggest the Elite 55TXi, one of the successors to the 45TX. It features the i.Link/IEEE1394 port, which is becoming the industry standard for digitally connecting SACD/DVD-A players.

I think it might take 2 45Txs to get to 78 lbs.......

Pioneer VS. Pioneer Elite = David VS. Goliath.

Elite is good (but damn expensive)

regular Pioneer... no comment

thanks Everyone !
I went with the M60, QS8, VP150 combo. Also, ordered the 25-31PC+ from SVS. The axioms have arrived and am in the process of hookup. Hopefully, everything will come together nicely. The supplied T-bracket with the QS8 is not very wide.... My stud detector gizmo manual says that usually studs are 16 or 24 inches apart, but the QS8 T-bracket is only 8 inches wide so I am unsure how I'll install them.. Any ideas ?

If you can... center the bracket on a stud. If not, make sure any one screw catches a stud and use wall anchors for the others. Not a big deal.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe Alan stated that NAD's receivers/amps are fine, and that its their other products (CD players, etc.) that he doesn't trust in regards to reliability/durability.

BigWill - thx for the reply but I am wondering: The QS8s are a hefty 11 lbs (and they are not a non-vibrating art frame either). Are you sure wall anchors on drywall will hold it up with all the vibrating etc ??

audioseeker,

I was as paranoiac as you, and fastened the center vertical portion of the bracket right onto the stud center. I did not even fasten the horisontal "arms" of the brackets, but you can always use additional drywall anchors there.

As long as one or more of your screws catch the stud, where is the speaker going to go? It isn't going to vibrate the screw out of a stud. The wall anchors may take a little weight, but with 11 lbs distributed between a number of them (as well as the screw or screws that are biting into the stud) there will be no problem.