JohnGalt
December 9th, 2007, 3:38 PM
Having recently upgraded my entire HT system I'm down to the final piece: the sub. The remainder of the audio side consists of a Yamaha RX-V3800, a pair of Axiom M80 V2s, a pair of Axiom QS8 surrounds, and an Axiom VP 150 center. My use consists of a roughly 50/50 breakdown between 2-channel music and movies and I'm *very* happy with the performance of this system so far.
The M80s feature a 3dB bandwidth that extends to 34Hz and come in at -9dB at 25 Hz. I set the Yamaha's parametric EQs to boost bass by 4.5dB @ 20Hz with a fairly narrow notch and the result is a very balanced sound with the M80s proving themselves more than capable of providing a very clean and clear sound not only at levels at which I don't want to listen but at levels that can be downright painful to experience. To me the headroom was worth the price of admission as the system never sounds strained under even the loudest reasonable listening levels.
The only criticism I have is that bass-heavy effects in movies and passages in some music lack just a bit of the intensity that I'd like to hear. My best guess other than the extension of the M80s into the lowest octave is that the Yamaha might be having trouble delivering the current to drive the 4 Ohm M80s and the three other 6 Ohm speakers during the loudest low frequency passages. Adding a good quality sub seems to me to be the best way to alleviate those issues.
The room is approximately 27x16x8 but features an 8' opening on one side wall into another room/hallway of equal or slightly greater volume. Front corner placement isn't possible but rear corner placement might be and just-behind-the-couch definitely is (the couch is 2/3 of the way between the front and back walls).
I'm primarily interested in a sub that can keep pace with the M80s at high volume levels in order to take the low-end load off the Yamaha. Clean and tight sound is the order of the day, I'll be hugely disappointed with a sub that's even modestly boomy or sloppy. I'm willing to spend a bit more than is absolutely necessary in order to preserve some headroom as I'll be moving next year and may potentially have a larger HT room than I do now.
I'm down to three contenders: the Axiom EP 600, the SVS PB 13 Ultra, and the Hsu VTF-3 HO w/Turbo. Thoughts, comments, or alternative suggestions would be more than welcome from any and all here. Are these too much for my system? Not enough for the room volume given the adjoining area? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller? ;)
Thanks!
The M80s feature a 3dB bandwidth that extends to 34Hz and come in at -9dB at 25 Hz. I set the Yamaha's parametric EQs to boost bass by 4.5dB @ 20Hz with a fairly narrow notch and the result is a very balanced sound with the M80s proving themselves more than capable of providing a very clean and clear sound not only at levels at which I don't want to listen but at levels that can be downright painful to experience. To me the headroom was worth the price of admission as the system never sounds strained under even the loudest reasonable listening levels.
The only criticism I have is that bass-heavy effects in movies and passages in some music lack just a bit of the intensity that I'd like to hear. My best guess other than the extension of the M80s into the lowest octave is that the Yamaha might be having trouble delivering the current to drive the 4 Ohm M80s and the three other 6 Ohm speakers during the loudest low frequency passages. Adding a good quality sub seems to me to be the best way to alleviate those issues.
The room is approximately 27x16x8 but features an 8' opening on one side wall into another room/hallway of equal or slightly greater volume. Front corner placement isn't possible but rear corner placement might be and just-behind-the-couch definitely is (the couch is 2/3 of the way between the front and back walls).
I'm primarily interested in a sub that can keep pace with the M80s at high volume levels in order to take the low-end load off the Yamaha. Clean and tight sound is the order of the day, I'll be hugely disappointed with a sub that's even modestly boomy or sloppy. I'm willing to spend a bit more than is absolutely necessary in order to preserve some headroom as I'll be moving next year and may potentially have a larger HT room than I do now.
I'm down to three contenders: the Axiom EP 600, the SVS PB 13 Ultra, and the Hsu VTF-3 HO w/Turbo. Thoughts, comments, or alternative suggestions would be more than welcome from any and all here. Are these too much for my system? Not enough for the room volume given the adjoining area? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller? ;)
Thanks!