Axiom or Rocket? Or could I mix..?

[DavidJ]

Urggh, more good replies. Been too busy with work to keep up!

Will respond properly soon, but would be keen on hearing how Minus rates his VP150.

Whatever, whilst I'm here..

Axioms make amazing towers or LRs

What's an LR?

I auditioned Axiom M22's, they are really great but that's to be expected because Axioms make amazing towers or LRs but their centers can leave those wanting more. This is evident by many Axiom owners getting an addition 3rd tower to operate as an center channel.

I'm not sure I understand this. If the Axiom's towers are good, which makes the M22's good, why should their centres be lacking? They've got the same speakers as the M22. Only reason I can think of is that they bear the greatest share of workload in movie listening.

Shipping may be an issue but it is really SHORT TERM. The speakers you buy will tend to stick around for many years so don't use shipping as a major deciding factor.

You're completely right, of course. It's just that it IS part of the price. I'm half-tempted to go with the Axioms, just because I could get them sooner. Perhaps I should hang fire and save a little more money, go for the 123's.. Man, I feel like an abstained smoker who's just contemplating how delicious it will feel to fire up that forbidden tube of delight. I think I understand what women get out of shopping (except, of course, they never save)

I personally chose to go with two bookshelves as centers because I have no WAF to worry about and I get much better performance than a horizontal center for the same price. I get the same centered dialog with no noticable drop in volume or clarity from one side wall to the other. It dosn't get better than that!

If two bookshelves are better, and similarly priced, why do companies bother to make a separate centre? Is this a stupid question?

How do I just quote someone, without doing this?

Never mind

 

[ivseenbetter]

What's an LR?

Left and Right Channel...your mains.

 

[DavidJ]

Oh, and

ALWAYS go with matched fronts and center......Or you are really just trying to be an Audioholic..........

How dare you..

Check this out, and feel glad you're stateside, my friend:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-O8c0Esu5WY

(It's R, so you might want to check)

 

[jamie2112]

Oh, and



How dare you..

Check this out, and feel glad you're stateside, my friend:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-O8c0Esu5WY

(It's R, so you might want to check)

OHHHH NOOOO those Brits are know for their Kung Foo or is it Indian food?

 

[DavidJ]

I think Kung Foo is Chinese food

However, it is a fact that Chicken Tikka Masala (aka CTM) is one of our most popular dishes. This from Wikipedia:

Popularity
Chicken tikka masala is now served in restaurants around the globe, and a UK survey claimed it is the country's most popular restaurant dish.[3] One in seven curries sold in the UK is chicken tikka masala. Its cross-cultural popularity lead the UK Foreign Minister to proclaim it as Britain's true national dish. [6][7]

Our then Foreign Minister, Robin Cook, actually passed away while dining in a famous London Indian eaterie. He suffered a heart attack after one too many pieces of naan, and was rushed to hospital. Unfortunately, on the way there, he fell into a korma.

 

[MinusTheBear]

My initial impressions of the VP150 - purely subjective

Ordering process:
I ordered the VP150 online on thursday, Sept 4,received confirmation of delivery on Fri Sept 5. Delivered to my door on Monday Sept 8. Axiom sent me an email that same day telling me that my centre channel was delivered to my location succesfully and if I needed any assitance in anything to conact them. Nice touch! The ordering process was fast, efficient and as painless as possible with online ordering.

Initial impression:
This thing is a huge, twice the size of my previous centre channel. It is long and slender with dimensions of 7.5" x 27.5 " x 7.5 ".

Things I have listened to: Keep in mind I only received this yesterday.

Planet Earth DVD:
The dialogue from the VP150 was clean, crisp and accurate. With my previous centre channel I noticed some nasally quality in the voice but that was gone with the VP150. The VP150 is very effiecient as well, I have no problem driving the VP150 with a Denon AVR 688 (Denon's entry level receiver) in my medium sized room. However in a big room you will need a more beefy receiver/amp which typcially the VP150 is suited for.

Dave Mathews - Bartender in DD 5.1 (Bonus DVD that comes with busted stuff)
The way the sound is mixed for this track all the bass guitar goes through the centre channel. The sound coming from the VP150 was stunning to say the least, it was extremely detailed and accurate. The bass lines coming out of the VP150 was pure ear candy. You could feel its presence. This was the highlight for me so far.

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Easily
This song is off of their album Californication. I choose this knowing how poorly recorded this album is. I listened to this song in Dolby Pro Logic II. The bass coming from the VP150 sounded good however the vocals sounded bright, not pleasing to listen too. I had a tough time getting through the song, I would not be able to listen to the entire album.

Monday Night Football In Dolby Digital 5.1

Again the commentary sounded superb. Did not sound bright at all and dialogue blended in with the rest of the system quite nicely. So far from the little time I have had with it, the VP150 is a big step up from my previous Polk centre channel, however it should be considering it was $200 more dollars and in an entirely different class/model than the Polk. The VP100 would be a more comparable model in this case. I do not think it is a fair comparison.

Conclusion

From the very limited time I have listened to it, my initial impressions is that I have found the VP150 very clean, detailed and accurate sounding. You can really feel its presence in a smaller room. Poorly recorded/compressed music sounds bright. The VP150 is very effiecient and even the most modest recievers are capable of driving it. Placement can be a problem for soom due its physical size (its big). Even though I am not married it is safe to say it will have a low WAF factor as well. I am looking forward to spending more time with it in the upcoming week.

 

[the grunt]

If two bookshelves are better, and similarly priced, why do companies bother to make a separate centre? Is this a stupid question?

Good question. Basically horizontal center speakers are a design compromise to allow it to more easily fit above or below a TV. Here is an article that talks about some of the effects of design on center and surround speakers.

http://www.soundstage.com/surrounded/surrounded200307.htm

I'm not sure I understand this. If the Axiom's towers are good, which makes the M22's good, why should their centres be lacking? They've got the same speakers as the M22. Only reason I can think of is that they bear the greatest share of workload in movie listening.

Since the ideal situation is having all three front speakers the same using any horizontal center will cause some sonic differences that may be exaggerated by room acoustics and speaker location. Some ways to mitigate this are discussed here:

http://www.axiomaudio.com/tips_center_channel_sound.html

Unfortunately many people who complain about the Axiom VP150 are repeating what others have said and not listened for themselves. That said I am one who owns a VP150 and found that I didn’t like the way it sounded with the M80s. I don’t think the VP150 sounds bad just that it can’t keep up with the M80 L/R mains. For me this really showed up in multi-channel music and to a lesser extent in movies. So I did in fact get another M80 which is presently upside-down above my TV resulting in an amazing front soundstage.

However, in MinuseTheBear’s excellent review he indicates that the VP150 sounds fine. Which is likely attributable to many factors including the differences in our rooms, seating distance listening preferences… Based on what I’ve read in many forums I have no doubt that the VP150 works great for most owners I’m just one of those for whom it didn’t. Unfortunately the only way you will know if you like any speaker is to listen to it yourself preferably in with your own equipment in the room you plan to use them.

Cheers,
Dean

 

[goodman]

Dean: I gotta see a pix of this. Please.

 

[the grunt]

Here are a couple pictures of the M80 above the TV in this thread. I live in an apartment so the overall aesthetics are made to be low budget but functional.

http://www.axiomaudio.com/boards/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Main=15077&Number=219121#Post219121

 

[fredk]

I though you might pop into this thread Dean. That upside down M80 hasn't fallen over yet has it?

 

[mazersteven]

Dean: I gotta see a pix of this. Please.

 

[DavidJ]

Wow, that VP150 really is big. Although I've measured for it, that picture really brings it home. Wonder whether I'd get away with it..

Don't suppose anyone has compared the 150 to the 100?

 

[MinusTheBear]

Wow, that VP150 really is big. Although I've measured for it, that picture really brings it home. Wonder whether I'd get away with it..

Don't suppose anyone has compared the 150 to the 100?

Especially if you use the television (42 inch LCD) as a reference. It is not bulky just long, I only had 8 inches of room between the t.v and the end of the stand (which is not very much) and I was able to get it to fit in there with no problems.

 

[the grunt]

I though you might pop into this thread Dean. That upside down M80 hasn't fallen over yet has it?

It’s wedged in there pretty good so I don’t see it coming down by itself. Anything that happens to it will likely be from me moving it around to try different locations, but I’m pretty sure after last weekends listening it’s staying up there for good as I feel it sounds better than on the ground for most things.

 

[Bugbitten]

I suggest single or dual M3s for centers.

 

[mazersteven]

dual M3s for centers.

Duals? First time I have seen a recommendation for "Dual" bookshelf speakers as a center channel. Please explain your recommendation.

 

[fredk]

I have dual M2s for centers: one above the display, one below. It centers the dialog on the speakers nicely.

 

[mazersteven]

I have dual M2s for centers: one above the display, one below. It centers the dialog on the speakers nicely.

What do you do use a Y-splitter from the receiver?

 

[fredk]

I run them in series. I don't remember why, but that is what was recommended to me at the time.

 

[mperfct]

I run them in series. I don't remember why, but that is what was recommended to me at the time.

That's pretty interesting. I've never thought of that and wonder how that would work. Wouldn't you exponentially increase timing problems?

I'm running 3 RBH SI-760's behind a Seymour AV screen. Everything is a compromise, I suppose. Here's a good article from Chris Seymour detailing out some more about 3 identical front speakers.