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J Lippert Unregistered guest | Can anyone recommend an inexpensive stereo receiver or amp to mate with a pair of Axiom M22ti's? Would this "Panny" that is much discussed do the trick? |
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Silver Member Username: Stu_pittIrvington, New York USA Post Number: 906 Registered: May-05 | Are you trying to tame Axiom's reported "brightness" (I haven't heard them first hand) with a "warm" receiver/amp? Mixing opposite characteristics in audio doesn't always work out in real life, even though common sense dictates it should. Sometimes you get the best of both worlds, other times you get the worst. The "Panny" (Panasonic XR55) is a very bright receiver. I had it for about a week or two and found it was very annoying. On my somewhat warm speakers (PSB Image T55), the highs were still out of control. I can't imagine pairing bright speakers with it. My frame of reference for bright is Klipsch, and my ears would probably ring for days if I paired those two together. What is "inexpensive" to you? $100? $1000? Do you need a tuner, or would an integrated amp work? What brands do you have access to? How big is your listening room? How loud do you want it to go? Can you bring your speakers to a local dealer and hear equipment played through them? |
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Silver Member Username: GavincummNew York USA Post Number: 547 Registered: Feb-05 | I would personally pair Pioneer Elite with Axiom. |
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Gold Member Username: NuckParkhill, Ontario Canada Post Number: 1253 Registered: Dec-04 | I might suggest H/K with axioms. Truth be told, I have not found a good match for the bright axiom's yet. You gotts love the highs though. The Pioneer suggestion might be a good one, Gavin be smart. The pioneer has all sorts of widgets and gizmos to tailor the sound, a very versitile tool. |
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Silver Member Username: GavincummNew York USA Post Number: 550 Registered: Feb-05 | the pioneer is warm and smooth, which compliments the aggressive, bright nature of the axioms. |
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Silver Member Username: TwebbzAnn Arbor, Michigan USA Post Number: 347 Registered: Apr-04 | HK 3380 or 3480 with a subwoofer... Ya gotta balance those highs out with some bass. |
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Silver Member Username: GavincummNew York USA Post Number: 552 Registered: Feb-05 | thanks rick! forgot to mention that part |
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Bronze Member Username: Tommy_jenkinsTallahasse, FL Post Number: 16 Registered: Dec-05 | Marantz and Pioneer for sure, and maybe even Onkyo if you're short of cash. |
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Gold Member Username: Project6Post Number: 5682 Registered: Dec-03 | Marantz, HK and Pioneer are all great candidates. What is your budget anyway? |
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Silver Member Username: GavincummNew York USA Post Number: 557 Registered: Feb-05 | Im not sure about onkyo, but I would throw in integra. Integra is onkyo's higher end reciever line, and is much smoother. Onkyo to me have had a noticibly grainy sound after comparison to the integra. |
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Gold Member Username: NuckParkhill, Ontario Canada Post Number: 1280 Registered: Dec-04 | I trust Gavin on the Integra, I would rather remove one of my own organs than match Onkyo with the 22's. |
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Silver Member Username: ChitownPost Number: 761 Registered: Apr-05 | I would recommend Marantz. I have first hand experience with Marantz and Axiom M3ti's |
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Silver Member Username: TwebbzAnn Arbor, Michigan USA Post Number: 350 Registered: Apr-04 | The Marantz SR4320 80wpc receiver is not really "inexpensive". I was able to pick up a refurb for $289. It retails for $429. It is a nice "warm" choice. I have it mated to my Athena AS-F1s. http://www.accessories4less.com/cgi-bin/category/StereoReceivers The H/K 3380($219) & 3480($268) are good deals for the price. http://www.jr.com/JRSectionView.process?N=10946&Ne=10000 I don't know what you would pay for them at retail stores such as Circuit City. |
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Silver Member Username: GavincummNew York USA Post Number: 565 Registered: Feb-05 | I made the mistake roughly 5 years ago, when I didn't know anything about amp (or reciever) and speaker mating, trying to mate an onyko with my klipsch reference RB-5's nuck, if you are familiar with those speakers...sadly klipsch doesnt produce them anymore because they were amazing... but they would reveal ANY upstream weaknesses with those awesome tweeters (sadly... the newer klipsch reference aren't the same caliber) needless to say... it would have been more pleasent to listen to a HTIB speaker system... I have since learned my lesson after I got rid of the speakers thinking it was them. LESSON LEARNED: don't match good quality speakers up with poor electronics. I will reccomend onkyo once in a while, but only in certain circumstances. And this is not one of them. Recievers to avoid: onkyo sony kenwood Panasonic KLH recievers to trust: Pioneer (ESPECIALLY Pioneer Elite) Integra Marantz Harman Kardon Outlaw Audio (www.outlawaudio.com more expensive at $600) Rotel (great, audiophile quality) NAD (great, not too expensive, audiophile quality) I would also suggest taking a look at the Pioneer Elite A-35R intergrated amp if you don't need a tuner. it is an AMAZING little intergrated for the price, with a rich, warm, smooth, upper mid-fi sound quality that belies its price (only $200, sometimes less) not to mention it looks GREAT!!! The pioneer elite A-35R gets my top vote. if it were my dollar, it would be no contest. It can drive notoriously difficult speaker loads without a problem. My MartinLogan dealer had one of these set up for demo purposes for me, and I couldn't believe the power of this little amp, rated at "only" 45 watts. He had it hooked up to a pair of clarities. any others I forgot guys? |
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Silver Member Username: DakulisSpokane, Washington United States Post Number: 810 Registered: May-05 | How about a vintage or newer tube amp? Fisher or HK tubes - circa 1960 to mid 70s. The Jolida 302 B might work as well. And, I suspect that the addition of a decent subwoofer would help as well. After those options, then I might look at the Marantz or HK s.s. IMHO Dave. |
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Silver Member Username: GavincummNew York USA Post Number: 574 Registered: Feb-05 | jolida is great idea as well, however they did have some balance issues that needed to be taken care of. Has that been fixed? |
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Gold Member Username: NuckParkhill, Ontario Canada Post Number: 1298 Registered: Dec-04 | The Jolida my buddy has. The imbalance was an issue, and he fixed it by mistake. He added a shunt circuit for analog power meters(happened to be shure meters) and the balance issue went away. I am not certain of the fix, as he is running Klipch bins and horns, all loaded, but he did really well, by accident.Cool. |
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Gold Member Username: NuckParkhill, Ontario Canada Post Number: 1306 Registered: Dec-04 | The guy just got a Haffler 500 amp, and is running the bins off the Haffler. Those loaded bins must be 105 db/w/m. Savage. Where is Paul when you need him? |
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Silver Member Username: Rysa4Post Number: 372 Registered: Jul-05 | I agree that a tube amp with the axioms makes sense |
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Gold Member Username: NuckParkhill, Ontario Canada Post Number: 1308 Registered: Dec-04 | Marc, how's the band? Havent seen an update on the site.I was hoping to see you here for the Outlaw and Behringer threads going on. My Eagles have improved lately, the pipes are rounding up. Joe Walsh, baby, dude has the highs(perhaps imbibed). |
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Bronze Member Username: KidstereoPost Number: 14 Registered: Oct-05 | How much does the Integra Stereo receiver cost? |
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Silver Member Username: GavincummNew York USA Post Number: 753 Registered: Feb-05 | matt, integra only makes HT recievers. However, a good HT reciever such as Integra (and Pioneer Elite) will give you a better overall listening experience than models made by the following companies: onkyo sony panasonic (although some beg to differ) klh (well duh) denon (although some..again...beg to differ) harman kardon pioneer integra (onkyo's high end line) and pioneer ELITE are a step above these lines mentioned above, and use better components, and better connections throughout. There are some purists that will scoff at the idea of using a multi channel reciever to reproduce stereo music. But, if there is a chance that you will be upgrading to multichannel music or HT in the future, I would reccomend taking a look at these brands. Integra starts around $600, and Pioneer Elite starts at (I believe) $800 if you aren't going to need the multi channel functionality of these recievers, Pioneer Elite makes a great intergrated amp, called the A-35R, and sells for around $200. I wouldn't hesitate having one of these around. |