Axiom M80's, and VP150 vs ERT 8.3 and 6.3

well tony I got 2 out of 3 of my Axioms. I got 3 speakers but they sent me the wrong center. they sent the correct one out to me the next day and i'll have it this tuesday coming. i am incredibly happy with the towers. they are incredible and they have taken my audio pleasures to the next level; i can only imagine this only getting better once the VP180v3 center is here and in place.

i did play some stereo DSD SACD music with the new towers and had them set to full. it was truly breath taking. i got range like i ddn't have before. incredible lows & mids with great highs too. it went so low that you would have thought a sub was turned on in the background; but it wasn't. they boast a 95 db sensitivity, 4 ohm impeadence and will handle 400wpc of power. I have them running on my XPA-5 which according to the manual and confirmed by emo folks at 4 ohms is cranking out up to 440wpc all channels driven. they can go down to 34hz too. Oh yes, the VP180v3 has the exact spec's as the M80v3 center they are the exact same speaker, one vertical and one horizontal, same drivers & crossovers, cabinet size and weight too. i have them set at 50hz and they sound incredible. i am so happy with my choice that I am ordering a set of axioms QS8 surrounds for side surrounds www.axiomaudio.com/qs8.html i hope to have them by Friday. here are a couple of pictures of them minus the new center and as far as them sending the wrong one, not only did they send the proper one out the next day, they are paying to have the wrong one I have at my house shipped back their cost, no questions, no problems! now that's customer service and support for ya!


the Polk RTi10 tower next to the replacement Axiom M80v3 tower.


Calabrine cables (reused from the the Polks, hey, they are great speaker cables, I wasn't about to get rid of them!) bi-wire speaker cables firmly in place on the new towers and yes, when the new center arrives it will use the existing bi-wire cable that the current Polk CSi5 is using.


and here are the M80v3 towers in their new resting place and they sound and are boss! Oh yeah, they are all sporting the magnetic grill covers (when they are on of course) I love that feature, no more pins to worry about breaking off and no more holes all over the front of the speaker face, it's smooth all the way around!

I'll slap up a picture when i get the new center and it joins the bunch. i'll also throw up a picture of the QS8 surrounds once they are here and installed.

done & done! for now!!

Ok, my front soundstage is now complete. i received the correct VP180v3 speaker with dual pair of speaker binding post to match up to my existing Calabrine cables bi-wire cable (the towers are also bi-wired with the same type & brand) keep in mind that the speakers are identical in size and weight. it took a couple of measurments, try's but i finally got it right. i even have it set with about a 12 degree pitch up towards the listening area which made all the difference since i had it lower than the previous polk CSi5 center.

i created a bracket out of a shelf bracket system vertical support section with a couple of small L, some self tapping screws and some 8/32 machine screws. I also used the isolating rubber feet that came with the speaker. i mounted them to the support bar so as to not damage the finish of the speaker in any way.

i mounted them with 1 1/4" 8/32 machined screws with nuts on the underside. on the back of the stand i used two 3" brackets and mounted on of the footers on each of those for support. i also mounted the 3" brackets about an inch lower than the bar in order to get the pitch i mentioned towards the listeners head (more like the upper chest to head) it worked out great. once in place everything fit perfectly and on either side of the speaker to the inside wall of the stand i was left with a total of 1/4". as i have said before, i was meant to have this speaker! i did a test to make sure the speaker works and that i didn't blow anything up (old nervious electrician! ) i turned everything on, and no faults in my XPA-5, so, i put on John Mayer: SACD/DSD "Heavier Things" and it sounded incredible, that center made it's presence known! the soundstage became one really big, really wide speaker, seamless in it's transitions across the soundstage; yet, seperation when it was meant to be seperate! i also gave a listen to Tom Petty blu-ray "Mojo" in 5.1 and again, it was incredible. very well done, very powerfull at times from the front stage.

my family was very happy to see the speaker. my girlfriend who usually doesn't have anything much to say about the HT came to me and said "you know you were right about it being meant for you to have that speaker, it just made it in there" and she was right.

ok, here are some pictures. we are going to watch "Percy Jackson & the Olympains" on blu to celebrate the front 3. I'll give you my views on the impact of the front soundstage later tonight. and Friday, i am expecting to have my QS8 surrounds arrive and you know what that means, "box porn" and reviews.

later this weekend, or early next week, i'll update the gallery to reflect the new additions. i've waited until they are all in place and tested before i update the gallery. i'll also let you know how the amp is handling the new 4 ohm fronts and the 6 ohm surrounds (when they arrive) since all it's ever know is 8 ohm loads.


here is a broad shot of the stand and the metal bracket i mentioned earlier with the isolation supports installed. as well as the back brackets.


here is a closeup of the main support bar. good steel, glossy black supported by the end "L" brackets and see those rubber things, yes those would be the feet that would be used on the bottom of the speakers if you placed them on a wood floor.


here is the closeup of the L brackets in the rear with their isolation supports on. all the isolation feet are installed in the same direction (manner) as if they were being bolted to the bottom of the speaker as they were meant to be.


and the center is now in it's final resting place. resting comfortably on 6 isolation footers and loving life. look at the sides of the stand next to the ends of the center, about 1/8" on each side! the beauty is that you can't even see the steel bracket supporting the speaker, you'd have to lay down on the floor to see it; this worked out better than i thought, the center just appears to float! well, we are going to have some McDonalds and watch the movie, i'll give a review on how it holds up to the movie. i will say that the bass is out of the center is incredible. all 3 fronts are at 50hz @75db SPL from the trusty iPhone.

later...

well, i installed the new axiom QS8v3 surrounds and they work great. better than i could have imagined. the bracket installation was easy and the installation was easy too. though, since they don't make the QS8v3 in a dual binding post model, i could use the 14/4 bi-wire cable i made for them, so i converted them to standard 2 wire duty, simply doubling up on the conductors for each pole and they worked like a charm. also because of the design, i couldn't use my banana plug connectors so i went bare-back with them (i will accept responsibility for doing so :p;)) but that went smoothly too. and wow do they sound great, i mean really great too. before i go to bed, i'm gonna throw on some Elton John (DVD-A), Billy Joel (SACD/DSD) & AIX Records HD Video/Music Sampler on blu that came with the Oppos to check out the new surrounds with music. i'll comment on that tomorrow! here are a couple of shots!


bracket in place, secured to the wall. note the white monoprice 14/4 cable to the bottom right!


speaker mounted and in place.


QS8v3 shown here playing nicely with the step brother Polk TSi100, both are left channels with the Q being the surround left and the TSi being the surround back left. they and their right sided siblings play very nicely together in the background except for the fact that the TSi teases the QS because the polk has 4 terminal for speaker cable and is bi-wired and the QS only has 2 and feels a little left out, of course it throws it back at the Polk reminding it that it is he that has been adopted by the Axiom family, huh, children!