Axiom Epic 80-600 Set-Up

In setting up the Axiom speakers in my dedicated Home Theater room (19 x 25 x 9), I wanted to try several different configurations for evaluation. The 5.1 system setup included the Axiom M80ti front right and left placed 12 feet apart and about 18 inches away from the front wall.

The M80ti's sound too directional with more than a slight amount of toe-in. I think this may be due to the use of dual tweeters. I suggest you keep the toe-in to a maximum of 3-5 degrees unless the speakers are spaced very far apart. The VP-150 center channel was placed horizontally on a 24-inch stand and aligned with the M80ti speakers. The two (yes, two) EP-600 subwoofers were placed on the front wall directly next to the M80ti speakers.

The QS-8s were installed on the side walls approximately 12 inches back from the null of the listening position and 18 inches above the seated ear level. This type of installation is typical for many living room home theaters.

For this evaluation I used the Yamaha RX-V2500 receiver in conjunction with the Aragon 2002 amplifier augmenting the front right and left M80ti speakers. All Axiom speakers are relatively efficient representing an easy load to drive but they all have a lower impedance value of 4- to 6-ohms.

This was the reason for the use of an external power amp. I set all speakers to Small and set the crossover to 80Hz for the M80ti front speakers, the VP-150 center speaker, and the QS-8 surround speakers. I then selected By-Pass on the EP-600 to prevent crossover cascading and selected the Flat boost setting.

I know many of you are thinking why set a front main speaker that has an effective cutoff of 35Hz to small 80Hz? There are many good reasons for this and these articles will help you understand why this is important:

The short answer is that the Yamaha RX-V2500 has a global crossover. If you examine the LMS frequency response on the above curves for the VP-150 you will see that at 80Hz it is minus 4db and then rolls off sharply below 80Hz. Changing the crossover point to 90Hz made the system sound too dry and hollow. The 60Hz crossover setting was too far below the effective crossover point of the VP-150 and QS-8s.

If you are using a receiver or preamp with (good quality) independent crossover settings, then I recommend 60Hz for the M80ti front mains, 80 or 90Hz for the VP-150 center channel and 80-90Hz for the QS-8s for multi-channel movie soundtracks.

The other reason for Small and 80Hz is it places less strain on my amplifiers and speakers because they don't have to reproduce low frequencies. The EP-600s are optimized for reproducing low frequencies up to about 120Hz. If you don't have a good subwoofer then this setting may not work for you. When I switch to DVD-A/SACD or CD, all of the speakers in the system receive full-range frequency because the crossover is bypassed.

Evaluating loudspeaker performance is subjective by nature. The reviewer's interpretation of the outcome may not reflect what other individual evaluations conclude. I have said in the past that my ears are far from golden, but I do think they are well tuned enough to appreciate good sound when they hear it.

To start the listening evaluation, I wanted to try Redbook CD. I selected Pure Direct on the Yamaha RX-V2500. This bypasses all DSP processing and crossover settings sending full range to the front right and left M80tis.

The first CD I loaded was LeAnn Rimes You Light Up My Life track 11 "Amazing Grace". This recording is far from reference, but I wanted to hear female vocals on the M80tis from start to finish. LeAnn 舗 s youthful voice filled the room with air and grace. This recording on many loudspeakers will sound shouty, beamy, shrill, and ring like crazy. The Axiom M80tis did a fantastic job; the midrange was very sweet, powerful and effortless. The upper frequencies were a little forward but not overly bright or tinny. The soundstage was enormous and deep. Moving from the center or the sweet spot about 2 feet to the right or left into my other listening positions the Axiom M80tis sounded almost as good as being in the center.

Up next, I wanted to try something with a lot of energy. Royal Crown Revue, Mugzy's Move was just the ticket. For those of you that don't own this CD, get it! It's not a reference recording but the retro big band swing sound is amazing.

Selecting track 1, "Hey Pachuco", I sat back and began listening as the M80tis began to play the combination of the vocals, hard-hitting drums, tenor sax, and baritone saxophone. The first thing I noticed was that the M80tis had incredible dynamics. The sax and the trumpet sounded astonishingly fast and the drum solo had my head boppin' and my foot stompin'.

I next selected Track 3, "Mugzy's Move". The Axioms sounded big and bold. The bass was tight and fast. It was almost incomprehensible the amount of bass radiating from the small diameter woofers. The midrange had a fundamental rightness, never sounding over-exaggerated, compressed or dry. It consistently sounded lush and full.

The tweeters sounded cheery and sparkly; not overly bright or neutral. These speakers have an aggressive attitude that is addicting. They love to be played loud, but also do well playing at low levels.. The M80tis are very revealing speakers; everything that is on the recording will be heard. Any weaknesses of your system will be revealed.

I loved the sound of the M80tis and could not find any fault with the sound of these speakers. Their effortless dynamics and revealing nature had me stretching my 1-hour Redbook 2-channel evaluation into a 3-hour sensation. These speakers have wow and then some WOW!

Many people don't have the room required for complete 7.1 systems. With this in mind, I wanted to evaluate the Axiom system in a 5.1 configuration consisting of M80ti front right and left, VP-150 center, QS-8 surrounds and two EP-600 subwoofers.

One of the most important attributes to look for when assembling a loudspeaker system is balance. System balance is dictated by the speakers' overall sonic signatures in relationship to each other and to the listening position as well as room acoustics.

Placement and room acoustical properties can change but we have no control over the sonic characteristics of the loudspeakers. Therefore, we need to make sure we select a system that sounds balanced.

A great DVD for evaluation system balance is Antz. This disc is chock full of foley effects, fast and hard pans, loads of LFE, and a top-notch music score. Animation is excellent source material since everything is virtually pristine 舑 having, by necessity, to be created from scratch. There is a scene when the princess emerges out of the grass, where the rustling of the grass blades and the pitter-patter of the ants as they walk across the tablecloth were easily discernable. Little scenes like this abound and allow you the opportunity to check the fidelity and clarity of your speakers.

In another scene, as the wasps fly over, there is a hard pan from left front, center, right front, right surround, and left surround. I replayed this effect many times. This effect sounded very smooth, seamless, and balanced; there was no discernable tonal difference. Be aware that even with properly balanced speakers, a room with poor acoustical properties may yield tonal mismatches across the front soundstage. If this occurs in your room look to see how you can either better arrange the room or apply some absorption materials to aid in correcting this problem.

The QS-8 surrounds sounded robust and spacious. Channel separation was excellent. As demonstrated in the scene when the wasps were hovering overhead, their wings are fluttering, background music is playing, and dialog is occurring in the center channel. The VP-150 sounded smooth, rich, and natural, though at times also slightly recessed.

After verifying my channel levels I came to the conclusion that this was most likely attributed to the size of my room, wide spacing between the front speakers, and the high dynamic capabilities of the M80ti front speakers. I will explain more on this later. The pans from left to right and front to rear sounded absolutely amazing. The EP-600s belted out huge amounts of tight lightning fast-undistorted LFE.

The music score accompanying all the effects sounded absolutely beautiful. During the several replays, the balance and effortless dynamic capabilities of the Axiom system were remarkable. There was no tonal shift between the speakers and, in my room, every speaker sounded nearly identical. For the individual that has sidewalls on either side of the listening position, and does not have the room to accommodate a full range rear surround or EX speakers this would be the system to consider. The Axiom speakers' performance set up in this configuration was stellar to say the least.