Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater System is shipped as we speak (so to speak)

I believe it would be prudent to try to compare the Studios and the M80s if possible in the same environment(dealer). The dealer's got nothing to lose if Bob were to bring his Axioms to the Paradigm dealer and everything to gain if he were to like the 'digms.
The worst thing that could happen is to return the Axioms, only to find out that the same issues remain with other speakers because of poor room acoustics or setup.
I've considered this myself, if I were able to bring my awaiting M80s to a Paradigm or MA dealer, just to do a direct comparison. I'm surprised the magazine guys haven't done more A/B testing with speakers in the $2G range(most popular).

Goooooddd Luck. No dealer is going to risk another customer walking in while your have a pretty new toy they don't sell. Maybe by after hours appointment, but I doubt that.

But what would the dealer have to lose? Bob's already bought the Axioms, the Paradigm dealer has the opportunity to convince him the 'digms are better, and return the Axioms under the 30 days. This way, Bob can know one way or the other, which he prefers, and the dealer has a chance to "steal" a sale. It's a win/win for Bob either way and the dealer would "break even" at worst. Maybe it could be done after hrs, but the point is the sale is already complete on the Ax's and the onus falls on the 'digm dealer to prove his are better and make a 'new' sale.

Adrian is right. The store has nothing to loose.

I know of a few stores here in London that would welcome the opertunity to sample the competition. You may want to do it on one of the not so busy days / times, like a Monday morning. Make sure you pre-arrange the session first. If the store has some sound rooms that you could close the door, even better.

paul

Wow, I just read 80 some odd posts. One question-is wrestling as good as this?? Sadly I might have to go back to my childhood

The dialog isn't as good, but men in spandex wearing makeup makes up for it.

Go back?

Okay, Bob, so your setup needs more work. You have the time, so relax and do it. The many owners who've experienced excellent sound when their M80s were properly set up aren't crazy or liars.

The first point is to make sure that all the drivers are actually working. Ken pointed out the importance of having the connecting strips on the binding posts tight(although you commented that bass was pretty good). Besides that, if the thin character in the upper bass/lower mid-range that you seem to be experiencing was due to damage that loosened internal wiring to the 5 1/4" mid-range driver you should carefully listen to make sure that it's actually operating.

Then, as has been mentioned here, you should position the speakers so that the distances from the centers of the woofer cones to the three nearest room surfaces(floor and walls)isn't identical. If they are, reflections can pile up in one frequency range, causing a suck-out which can make a speaker sound "thin", which the M80 certainly isn't inherently.

You mentioned a reluctance to do "tone shaping"; don't be reluctant, your ears and listening room are doing it to the speakers at every instant. When you get a chance later consider using the Audyssey room correction in your 2309(following the procedure suggested in the AVS thread)with the "Audyssey"(not the "flat") setting implemented. A more immediate step is to try a few dB of treble cut in the tone control or to toe the speakers out a bit so that you get a more off-axis treble response.

Good luck; things will probably work out.

Should have bought the M60s Bob .

So what have you tried, if anything, to get better sound out of the M80s? Have you tried any/all of the suggestions so far? With your odd shape layout, it is entirely possible the M80s (or possibly any other speaker) are incapable of reproducing the sound you desire.

I know we told you the Denon would be able to drive the M80s with out a problem but if you are driving the M80s hard you could be hearing some distortion from the amp making the treble even worse.

I know you say you have heard your reference cd on many systems through the years and it doesn't sound bad like it does on the Axioms. How many of those systems were as detailed(you have even said the Axioms are detailed) as the M80s. Could it be the M80s are in fact revealing the poor quality of this recording and you are only now just getting to hear it as it was recorded without coloration from other sources.

I agree TV isn't the best way to listen to speakers, the SQ varies so widely it is hard to account for the variances.

Judging by your comments it sounds like you might prefer a warmer more subdued speaker that emphasizes the midrange or rolls off the upper end more than the M80s, which brings me back to the M60s comment from the beginning as they are not as forward/bright as the M80s, more like the Studio 60s you heard, IMO.


If you can't get the M80s to sound right to you, I would at least try down sizing to the M60s before giving up on Axiom.

If you do end up with another brand I would be interested in knowing which ones you end up with.

Bob,
I almost sent my M80’s back after I first got them. My first impressions were similar to yours. The first thing I did was throw a rug down in front of them (I have hard wood floors). This made a world of difference. The second thing I did was re-position them to the side and rear walls. The M80’s need to breath. You want them at least 12” away from a back wall and at least that far away from side walls. They were still too bright for me, even though the bass and mid range improved. I called Axiom and they sent me four resisters to try. They go in line with the tweeters. With the resisters installed, all was glorious and I kept them. I have since removed the resisters, but only after I played with Audysey settings.

M80’s are not for everyone. I don’t listen to much Classical or Jazz. I tend to listen to more rock / Alt rock than anything. They sound good to me. They sound horrible with poorly recorded music though….. Make sure you give them a fair try with a disk that you know to be of good quality. Green Day, American Idiot or any of the Trapt disks are good alt rock disk that comes to mind. If those sounds like crap to you after you exhaust room set up suggestions, then I’d send them back.