Need HT Speaker Guidance - Axiom, Ascend Acoustics, Rocket, Swan, Paradigm, Aperion! (1 Viewer)

[mackie]

Jonny - keep auditioning speakers and checking out different dealers. I suspect that there are more dealers in your area carry Paradigm and other speakers. Energy and PSB are Canadian manufacturers that make very good speakers too.

I've had mixed dealings with dealers myself. Over the past month I've been auditioning speakers to go upgrade my two channel system. At one dealer I was basically ignored and at another one I got great service. The sales person let me listen to many different speakers, didn't rush me, and answered my questions truthfully even though he knew I wasn't going to purchase speakers that day. Funny thing was at one dealer I was dealing with two different people. One was good and the other was trying to lecture me at the same time. It really is a mixed bag.

Unfortunately, I've had the same experience with ID brands. One was outstanding and the other has been disappointing.

I recommend listening to speakers before you buy and spending time communicating with the dealer to get a feel for the service you'll get.

 

[Jonny K]

Ok, another update. I finally took the plunge and ordered an Axiom system. I'm getting an Epic 60 system without the sub (M60ti, VP150, QS8). My receiver wouldn't drive the M80ti's very well so I had to downsize. I'm just sticking to 5.1 right now since my room (and my mom) won't accomodate the rear surrounds well. I've read multiple posts on this forum where people praise the combination, and Axiom looks strong. The M60s appear to be a step up from the Paradigm Monitor 7s I auditioned, yet they cost less. I can't wait to see how they perform.

And I'm impressed with the service too. I e-mailed Axiom on a Sunday night and got a response within an hour or two! I replied and asked about their hours and the guy told me that they have people working 24/7 answering e-mail. Cooool.

The speakers are shipping now and they should be at my place within a day or two! It came out to $2200 Canadian, so I still have money left over for a Feedback Destroyer! Yay!

This is going to be so cool.


Jonny K.

 

[Chuck_W]

Congrats Jonny! The Epic 60 looks like a great system...let us know what you think after you get it up and running.

 

[rob-h]

I have a 7.1 system with the qs8's, vp150 and m50's. I could not be happier. They sound great.

 

[Nhan_H]

Sweet. Let us know how you like 'em!

 

[Jonny K]

I just went out and spend the last bit of my budget on a Feedback Destroyer! I can't wait to hear this setup!


Jonny K

 

[MikeLi]

I have been thinking about getting one of those FB's as well. Let us know what you think. Some folks say they save the day and others report not much difference. Guess it just depends on your room but you would never know unless you try one huh?

 

[mackie]

Feedback destroyer made a huge difference in my HT. I had a 10-12 db peak at 40hz that was really annoying. Now I'm +-3-5 from 100hz down to about 25hz. I doesn't sound as "loud" as before but it's clean...

 

[Jonny K]

The speakers arrived today! Excellent! Time to set these up...

Oh, and mackie, do you have a "house curve" setup on your BFD? That will boost lower frequencies to make them sound equally loud as higher bass frequencies. (it's basically a flat response curve which has been angled a bit...I think).


Jonny K

 

[MikeLi]

Jonny.. congrats on all your new purchases... hope you like them all and you will have to fill us in when you get things hooked up and stuff.
Mike

 

[mackie]

No, I didn't set up a house curve. I just left it flat. I can see the benefits of doing this, but I was happy with the results I got without one. I didn't want to boost any of the lower frequencies and risk running out of power. I don't know if this would have happened, and frankly I was happy with the results and just left it alone. If I want more bass now, I just turn up the sub level on the receiver which I rarely do. I tend to enjoy music more than movies which might have something to do with the way I have it set-up too.

It's a fun project.

How do the speakers sound? I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on their sound.

 

[Jonny K]

Ok, the system is loosely setup (the fronts and the center). I haven't done any strategic speaker/listener positioning yet, and the room is still full of junk everywhere (moving furniture). But just standing in front of the speakers while they play they sound quite nice, definately nicer that what I had. Tomorrow I'll finish the basic setup and install the QS8 surrounds. The surrounds are much smaller than I anticipated, which is good. I remember the Paradigm surrounds I auditioned were huge boxes on the wall, but these QS8s are much nicer for size.

I've got the sub signal going through the BFD, but no setup was done on it yet. I need to buy a cheater-plug tomorrow because when I plug my cable TV in I get a bad hum from it (grounding issue).

This is exciting. The movie marathon will begin shortly!


Jonny K.

 

[rob-h]

The qs8 is THE best surround speaker I have ever heard. It can change the guys opinion that thinks the surrounds only handle 10% of the sound so they can be cheap!

 

[Jonny K]

Ok, the whole system is setup. I can summarize my oppinion of it with the following:

Now I'm not a speaker tester, and I don't have a lot of experience auditioning speakers and knowing all the little things to listen for. That said, from my ameature perspective I'm extremely pleased with my new setup. It sounds absolutely astounding to me.

Tonight I watched Sin City on DVD. Toward the beginning of the film I began to worry that my center channel might be damaged because during a particular dialog sequence I was hearing a high pitched noise/distortion. After a bit of experimenting I learned that I was hearing distortion on the disc, not from the speakers! The particular sound sample used for that conversation was distorted, and I could hear it on my speakers! For those interested, it was when the two guys are standing beside the Jaguar talking. Awesome.

Put in some music, "Evanescence - My Immortal". Can you clearly hear the background hiss? Can you hear it get louder when she starts singing? The song is manufactured using multiple sound samples stacked together with different quality levels. And I can hear it easily!

I hereby heartily recommend Axiom. The service was great, as was the product. The only thing lacking with these speakers is that the grills don't stay on neatly (you can't push them on tightly, they pop back out a bit in places, so it can look a bit messy from the side). That said, you'll find me in front of the speakers, not beside them.


Besides the speakers, I have two new issues.

The first issue is with the Feedback Destroyer. After installing it I found myself with a bad ground loop hum. I researched the problem and experimented a bit and it appears that it's coming from my cable system...I think. When I unplug the cable line it goes away, so I assume it's an issue with the cable being grounded in a different spot than the main house ground. I'm having the cable guy come out in a week to install high speed internet, I wonder if he can move the ground and fix this for me? I can also get rid of the hum by disconnecting the subwoofer cable between the receiver and BFD. Is this a balanced VS unbalanced issue? My connections are all 1/4 inch unbalanced.

The second issue is a room echo. Here is a top down picture of my room and theater:

http://www.telusplanet.net/public/kord/misc/theater.PNG

Yes, the sound isn't great from the two side chair positions (sitting nearly under each surround). I watch from the center chair, or move one chair out and watch with only two centered chairs. There is no couch here I'm afraid.

Anyway, on the side of the theater the walls are bare drywall. Under the duct which goes across the ceiling, if you stand next to one surround speaker and talk you hear a clear echo bouncing from the opposite wall. It seems to be worst in this position, and it effects some of the surround sound (is this good?). Now I don't want to clutter the room too much, but are there any ways I could reduce this echo without breaking the bank? I know wall acoustic treatments are expensive.


Thanks,


Jonny K

 

[mackie]

I have a certain amount of echo too which comes into play when I really turn my system up. It's frustrating. If it's real bad, acoustic treatments will be the only thing that works. FYI - they don't have to be real expensive and if you look in the DIY forum you'll find a few simple, inexpensive plans. Other than treatments, put lots of soft furniture, add a few plants, and a couple of bookshelves with lots of books. THe bookshelves will help diffuse the sound and work best in the back of the room. Also, think about closing off opening between the laundry room and storage room with a heavy curtain if you can't put up a door. Finally, there's a lot of info on acoustic treatments at Audioholics. Good luck and keep us posted.

 

[Jonny K]

All components in my system are powered through the same powerbar plugged into a single outlet. The only thing that is seperate is the cable system, which is why the hum exists. I'll look into a cable ground loop eliminator at the shack.

Regarding the room, I do block off the doorway to the room by opening the door of the laundry room. While not perfect, this creates a basic barrier over the opening. I'll explore the DIY forum for acoustic treatments.


Jonny K

 

[mackie]

This creates another opening.

Taming a room's impact on sound can be a challenge. Do some research and get creative. I bet you'll find a few good solutions that won't break the bank.

 

[Nhan_H]

Congrats, Johnny K. Here's the isolation transformer that mackie was referring to. I stopped by a couple of local Radioshacks, and they don't seem to have anything of the sort.

http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showd...number=180-075

 

[Lee-c]

The VRD-1FF from Jensen completely eliminated a slight hum I was getting from my cable t.v. connection.
It works flawlessly. Check out the link below to read more about it.

http://www.jensen-transformers.com/iso_vid.html

 

[MikeLi]

Lee...Great link to hold on to or I wish there was somewhere there could be a dedicated thread for things like this... It seems like when something comes up and a poster needs something I have lost it or forgot what or where I put it... Anyway the Jensen place also seems to be a great place for specialty items one may need.
Nhan, Parts Express is a great place as well... Again we need a place to put all these great links for folks...