Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners New Speakers

After much discussion, hours of listening and comparing, I finally ordered Axioms last week. I got two M60's, a VP150, and 4 QS8's. I was super exited when the FedEx gal dropped them off. I got them inside and was impressed with the looks. Very nice speakers indeed!

Now here is where the trouble begins. I open the M60's and put the spikes on the bottom. The first few go on easily then I have to 'encourage strongly' the final couple. It seems to me that should not happen. This lack of attention to detail is concerning, but I did get the spikes on so all was still good.

I got the M60's and the VP150 setup. It was getting late and I did not get the QS8's up yet, but I had to hear my new speakers. I setup my Onkyo 705 to just the 3 fronts and my sub. I turned on some music and put the AVR in 'pure audio' mode (not processing - going straight to the mains). I immediately heard a cracking sound from the right main. This was very pronounced with drum heavy tracks. I tried several CDs and got the same cracking. It was late so I went to bed (disappointed).

The next evening I swapped the speakers and replaced the speaker wires. Once again I got cracking (from the same speaker moved to the other side). I'm now positive it is the speaker. So I contact Axiom Audio. First they want me to swap tweeters with the other M60. Are you kidding me? I'm not taking apart a speaker I just purchased. After a few more e-mails, they agree to send a replacement. Great. Now I have to wait a few more days, but I hope it will be worth it in the end.

Incidentally, while I had some time this weekend I did install the QS8's. I decided to run Audessy to see what it would detect. It did come back with an error on the bad speaker(no surprise there). I do, however, have other concerns. When Audessy is running, it plays a special sound. When playing this sound in the past, it sounded similar on all speakers. With the new Axioms, the center sounds very different from the main (the good one). Also, if Audessy detects too much ambient noise, it replays its test tones lounder 2 times. Audessy had to do this on the good M60 (never had this issue before). I'm not sure what this means, but I am not encouraged. Guess I will see when the new speaker arrives next week.

Sorry for the long post, but I'm not quite sure what to make of all this yet. I'm really hoping the new speaker settles everything. I'd really like to keep the $1000 I saved when choosing Axiom over B&W....

Your Audessy issue is normal. Different speakers will sound different with pink noise, in general. These differences will not be detectable when listening to normal (ie, not pink noise) material.

Congrats on the purchase dewd. I'm sorry to hear the one M60 is BOA (busted...). It happens sometimes.

Some people are comfortable swapping out parts and diagnosing problems in home. I'm a geeky guy and would have probably gone for it. I suspect Axiom is just trying to minimize the cost of repair. I expect shipping a tweeter is a lot less than the entire speaker.

Let us know when you get the replacement and get them fired up. Don't forget to post pics.

Dewd,

You have to understand that sometimes, as a result of shipping, the wires could possible jiggle loose on one of the drivers. This would not be a fault of Axiom. You have never received a package from UPS, FedEx, or DHL, that was damaged?

It is very easy to unscrew the driver and look inside to verify you don't just have a wire that came loose, which is a very simple fix.

I suppose if you don't want to try these basic troubleshooting steps to help Axiom , that is your choice, but I would not bash the manufacturer for something that could possibly be a shipping issue.

taking a tweeter out takes 5 seconds...

I bet axiom could have sent you a new tweeter faster than a new speaker too.

But hey, if you want to wait the extra time and go through all the hassle of re-boxing the old speaker then go right ahead!

Hopefully your issue gets resolved though... Problems like this can be frustrating for sure, basic trouble shooting can really help resolve the issue that much quicker.

YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME!!! I just spent $2500 on a product and now I am supposed to take it apart to fix it? I'm not sure what to say at this point.....

BTW - I'm not bashing Axiom. I understand things happen. The speakers appear to be well made with the exception of the one bad main.

I think the other posters are just suggesting a possible cause (shipping) a possible quick fix. If your uncomfortable in doing this check that's OK.

All it requires is removing a few screws... and does not void your warranty or otherwise harm your speaker.

I understand your concern, but by implementing basic trouble shooting techniques we can help keep the price of our future axioms purchases down!

Again, I hope everything gets resolved quickly for you.

Actually, Randy, I don't quite agree with that point of view. If the wires aren't attached securely enough to withstand the jiggles of shipment, I'd say the attachment method needs revisiting.

While it is very easy to unscrew the driver, not all customers are comfortable with that. (I know someone who accidentally poked a hole in a driver because their screwdriver slipped....) Any frustration they may feel is completely understandable and shouldn't be downplayed.

The tone of your reply is harsh and uncalled for.

I know nothing of this poking holes in drivers thing.

Man, I was so pissed...