Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Stereo Sound differences between M80s and M60s?

I'm just curious to know if there is any significant sound difference between the M80s and the M60s? Thus far everything I've read or heard from Axiom says no and is it correct in my assumption that the only difference is the power rating? My 60s seem downright awesome to me and in my mind I'm thinking I could very well pull them out of this smaller sized (22x12) room they would probably sound equally as well in one of the larger rooms out front.

Do many folks use the 60s or 80s for stereo and music only? I think Rick (wid) does, I was thinking today about how awesome a set of 80s and big 'ol shot of power must sound set up for music specifically.

I keep hearing that they sound the same as well, however the M80's have more bass.

I had the M80's in a room that is 16 by 10 and will soon have them in a room that is 18 by 12. they sounded awesome in the 16 by 10 room. The M60's will be incredible in a 22 by 12

In reply to:

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The M60's will be incredible in a 22 by 12

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They really do, which is why I was wondering if and what would be the difference between the two. I'm thinking a pair of 80s dedicated to music only in one of the other larger rooms would be the cat's meow. I've had the 60s for a couple of weeks now and I'd say 85% of the time so far has been listening to music and really don't anticipate that to change much in the future.

I believe the M80s really start to shine when your room gets much larger, 20+ feet on a side. Axiom talks about 4000 cubic feet or so (eg. 25x20x8)as the point where you should be looking at M80s... and at 6000 cubic feet they start talking about M80s and a big honkin' power amp.

22x12 is M60 country, even with a cathedral ceiling. I found my M2s were great in a listening area like 10x13 but started to hit their limits when I moved them into a 13x23 room. In that same 13x23 room I feel like I'm only using some of what the M60s can do.

In the new house the HT area is a 23x25 loft with 12 foot ceilings angling right down to the floor, about 3700 ft3 if I remember correctly. That's where the M60s are going to start earning their keep.

Yes Rick I do run a set of M80s in a 2.1 set up for music only.I have them powered by a Rotel Rb 1080 that is rated 300 watts into 4 ohm.Even though the 80s are rated @ 95 db it seems to me they really do like some power to drive them.

I have mine in a room that is 2700 cubic feet.I dont think they are to much in a room of that size.They sound absolutly amazing to me.For a dedicated stereo system I dont think one could go wrong with the M80s.This is just my opinion

I will soon be moving my set up to a smaller room, in the next month hopefully. I want to buy a new TV first but cant decide on what to buy. After I get moved into the new room I will post pics comments etc. It will be a 16' X 12' room with a 10' ceiling. I am going to be in the serious overkill bracket with the M80's and my SVS sub, should be interesting to hear the difference.

The room it is in now is 20 X 20 with openings to kitchen, dining room and stairs. After all I can always turn it down a little, if need be. In the current room it is still powerful enough that I never approach the limits of any of my speakers.

The M80's are remarkable in how loud and clear they will play. I need a sound meter and time to mess with all this stuff. I am curious as to how loud it is actually playing. Best speakers I have ever had by miles.

BrotherBob,

I doubt the M80's would give you that much better sound. If you are going to buy another pair anyway for a second system, then get them as long as you can afford them. you can't go wrong with M80's unless you are putting them in a very small room (i.e. 12 by 10).

What size room are you thinking about putting the M80's in? Do you listen very loud? Are you going to add a sub to them?

Ravi, the room I'm thinking about putting the music dedicated 2.1 system in is 23 x 27 x 12 and yes I will use a sub.

This system won't come together over night, but hopefully within a couple of months or so I can get it started and add a little here and there. Affordability? After years of paying for kids high end toys, dirt bikes, automobiles, education funds and so and so forth, it's time for a little expendature my way...a little here and there at a time.

For now I am in the very early stages of planning and I have so much to learn and am searching for any and all imput, so be ready for some off-the-wall questions and ideas in the upcoming months.

BrotherBob,

I just heard M80s tonight, driven to ear-splitting (yet oh so smooth) levels. If you like your music REALLY LOUD, then I'd definitely recommend getting M80s. If you don't listen at really high SPL levels, then the M80s won't give you any added benefit, especially if you use a sub.

Brotherbob,
Plenty of great answers here to help you make your decision.
One thing that I did not see mentioned though was how far away from the wall you would be able to place the 80s.
They seem to be, (ONLY from what I have read), somewhat more placement finicky than the 60s.
That was the deciding factor for the Axiom crew while they trying to help me decide between the 80s and 60s.
When I told them that I just could not have the speakers pulled out further than 8 or 9 inches from the wall they immediately defaulted to the 60s.
That might not affect your decision, but I remember it being a big deal when I was trying to decide.
Tom

I use my 80’s for stereo only. Room size is 28 X 32 with a vaulted ceiling. I’m also running an Outlaw LFM-1 sub. I have no idea how they sound compared to the 60’s. My listening tastes vary from alternative rock to country. About the only complaint I have is that ….AT TIMES….they tend to be a little too bright with some songs that have a lot of cymbals. But this is only when I have them running above 110 dbs. Again, this is not very often and only with a few songs. As far as being able to fill a room with sound, I simply can not imagine “needing” the 80’s to fill a room smaller than a gymnasium. My HK is rated at 100 per channel at 8 ohms, but is reported to be closer to 150 at 8 ohms. Don’t recall the 4 ohm rating. I have not, can not, and probably will not ever turn the HK up over 50%. It’s simply too loud…….and I like to sit in the front row, right next to the speakers at AC/DC concerts.

Placement wasn’t an issue for me, other than making them look right with the furniture layout. The only noticeable placement issue I had was having to move them about 18” away from the wall. This definitely made a difference in SQ.

>>The only noticeable placement issue I had was having to move them about 18” away from the wall. This definitely made a difference in SQ.

I think that IS the main issue with M80s. They're pretty deep, so if the back of the speaker is 18" away from the wall the fronts need to be 3 feet or more into the room.

M60s aren't *that* much different but they are a little less deep and they can go a little closer to the back wall... and they are a little smaller so they don't look quite as imposing sitting 4 feet into the room

As my only basis for comparison, the M80s didn't look all that big at Dennis' place. Then I came home and the M50s looked positively tiny... I can't imagine what Peter thought!

Perhaps its just my room, but I have had the front M80s the 16" - 18' from the wall and also less, they have been left at about 8" - 10" from the walls. I can not notice any differance, so have left them close to the walls. But like I mentioned to Peter and Ken, if I start getting to critical about the SQ, I just walk over and turn up the volume. LOL

Yep... I'm guessing that's because you have them fairly far away from side walls. I don't have any direct experience placing M80s, just started to see some patterns with the people who felt M80s were too boomy -- they all seemed to be near to side walls and really near to the back wall.

It definitely does vary from room to room. We're all guessing here

Mine are placed in front of the fireplace hearth. The hearth is about 18” high and 18” in depth from the fireplace. That may be why I noticed such a difference. The lower port was closer to the hearth, while the upper port was considerably further away from anything. When I moved them away, the difference was like night and day. I just measured the distance and they are sitting 12” away from the hearth.

join the M80Posse!!!

Hold on, who says M80s get their own posse ?

<<< For now I am in the very early stages of planning and I have so much to learn and am searching for any and all imput, so be ready for some off-the-wall questions and ideas in the upcoming months. >>>

BrotherBob I'm going to be following your posts.

Cheers

Warfer21, I went with the Rotel RB-1080 amp and the Rotel RC-1070 preamp...for a couple of reasons. I've read and heard good reviews, they are a reputable company and the nearest dealer of any kind to me was the Rotel dealer. I wanted to look at Parasound but the nearest dealer was over 100 miles from me, whereas the Rotel is only about 30. The dealer had the 1080 connected up to a pair of B&W speakers and after fooling with and listening to this amp for an hour or so I thought I did good.

The 80s will be ordered this coming week and as far as a sub, I'm holding off on one for the time being to see if I may like the stereo only system without one.

I have some other accessories to come up with cables and etc...so hopefully here in a little while she'll be up and running. I'll keep you posted!

Anybody in Northern Virginia, DC area, near zip code 22041 for auditioning m60s please? I'd like to open a new thread too, but I don't know how to. Thank you guys!!

to look for an audition, check the audition thread on the questions and comments section.. sorry, i am too lazy to make a link..

and if you wanna start a new thread, just go to which ever section you want it to be in(stereo, home theater, questions/comments,etc), and at the top of the first thread, you will see the word 'POST'.. with a little letter next to it.. click on that, and you are creating a thread..

good luck

bigjohn