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SpeakerCraft AIM8 One 8" AIMABLE INCEILING SPEAKER (EACH) | 
| Brand: SpeakerCraft
Category: CE
List Price: $249.00
Buy New: $158.00
as of 9/9/2010 05:15 CDT details
You Save: $91.00 (37%)
New (3) Used (1) from $140.00
Seller: DIGITAL DISCOUNT CORP
Rating:  8 reviews
Sales Rank: 41038
Shipping Weight (lbs): 8.2
Dimensions (in): 5.8 x 11.4 x 5.8
MPN: AIM 8 One
Model: AIM 8 One
UPC: 664254172700
EAN: 0664254172700
ASIN: B000U7NGCW
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Pivoting and Rotating 8" Injection Molded Polypropylene Cone Woofer | | • | Pivoting 1" Treated Silk Dome Tweeter | | • | Timbre-Matched to All One Series Speakers | | • | Impedance: 8 Ohms | | • | Power Recommendations: 5 - 125 Watts (Undistorted) |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
The AIM8 One features fully pivoting woofers and independently pivoting tweeters, allowing the entire speaker to be aimed toward the listener.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 8
 Fantastic, well built speaker. February 16, 2010
Eric Slay (Orange County, CA)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
This is a great speaker that sounds fantastic and is built to last. If you're reading this review, you probably already know that the AIM8 is the entry-level speaker for SpeakerCraft. That being said, it is an entry-level speaker for one of the most well-respected super-high-end ultra-premium speaker companies in business. I am no audiophile, but my guess is that as you move up their line, the point of diminishing return (on your money) probably becomes pretty noticeable. Don't get me wrong, if you have unlimited funds, go for the top. Otherwise, I think you'll be more than satisfied with the AIM8's.
 Beautiful Speaker, Beautiful Sound January 1, 2010
Tate
Before you read on, I want to note that I have not experienced an entire sound system made up of SpeakerCraft speakers, I was only given this one 8" ceiling one to try, but if you're questioning the quality of sound from these guys I can at least put that fear to rest - it sounded stunning.
The first thing to mention, even before the sound quality, is that these speakers look, feel and scream professional. It isn't lightweight, but not heavy. Whatever material it is made of feels very sturdy in your hands and doesn't look cheap, especially the speaker grille and paint masks, which I suppose is the most important since that's what people will be seeing. Plugging it is was also surprisingly easy, just connect your wires and start going, although you'd probably have a professional install it for you anyway.
Now for the sound. I've listened to a great deal of surround sound speakers and other speakers in general, and I won't lie and say this one ceiling speaker topped them all, but it did sound really, really good. There wasn't a lot of one pitch (some speakers tend to either be all treble or all bass) and it could also pack some thump. I played a variety of music on there including everything from bass-heavy rap to the orchestral pieces from film scores and it all sounded movie theatre quality.
Overall, without sitting in a room surrounded with these guys and watching a Blu Ray of Transformers, I can't dedicate my heart and soul to how great they sound, but based on my experience with this one I'd say it's worth the price. And the price is pretty expensive, but you only have one home and you only have one home theatre to experience (usually) so why not get the best? I love that you can paint the speakers to match whatever color scheme you might have and I love the size of the speaker and everything about it. My biggest advice, though, would be not to take my word for it and find some place to listen to these yourself - but DO put SpeakerCraft at the top of your list of sound systems to listen to for your home, because they are probably even better than Bose and JBL and all the other big dogs.
A good option for whole house audio - but let your ears be the guide December 21, 2009
Kay Hayes (San Jose, CA USA)
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
SpeakerCraft makes quite a range of home theater and whole house audio products. I would consider the AIM8 one series speaker a good option for distributed whole house audio for several reasons:
- they are able to be pointed while remianing flush in the ceiling
- the one series has a reasonable price point
- SpeakerCraft makes a quality line of products that are easily matched to other speakers in the same series
I have, in my home, six Martinlogan Helos20, two AIM8 ones, and two SpeakerCraft CRS6 ones. The CRS6 are good "filler" speakers for low traffic areas but the MartinLogan and the AIM8 are in a different league. I will compare the MartinLogan and the AIM8 for that reason.
The first issue is that of sound quality. The SpeakerCraft have a very bright and crisp sound whereas the MartinLogan have a richer and fuller sound. It is a matter of personal preference which defines good or bad here. My suggestion is to go give a listen at your local high end audio dealer before you order them off of the Internet.
As far as build, the MartinLogans have a dual voice coil and 4 binding posts per speaker so, in essence, one speaker can produce stereo sound or they can be jumpered to use in a traditional left/right fashion. The AIM8s must be set up in the traditional left/right fashion.
The AIM8s have an 8" woofer while the MartinLogan have a 6.5" woofer. However, MartinLogan uses an aluminum cone woofer, a step up from the AIM8s polypropylene woofer.
The tweeters in the MartinLogans are neodymium soft-dome tweeters and in the AIM8s are silk dome.
Installation of all of these speakers is fairly simple. I happen to be in the middle of a home remodel so running the wire - normally the biggest pain - was relatively painless. I used some high strand count 14/4 Stinger in-wall rated wire. The rest was just cutting holes and using the built in mounting flanges to tighten them down.
Depending on your preference in sound, these speakers could be a good chioce. On a personal note, I wouldn't use any of the speakers mentioned here for surround sound applications. In fact, I would avoid in-ceiling speakers altoghther for that application.
Quality multipurpose speaker December 17, 2009
NecroComicon (The Inn at Innsmouth)
I replaced a blown 125w speaker with the AIM8 with terrific results, the 150w speaker sounds excellent in its place. The moveable tweeter and mid range speakers make it easy to direct where you want it (just be careful where you put your fingers when adjusting these). The white grill plate however can be tricky to remove once you have set the angle on these you are probably going to want to leave it. I have adjusted my balance to the right to favor this speaker and haven't had any distortion from even though it is handling more sound. The in ceiling or wall aspect of this speaker could be alot of work for some folks unless you are still building and can wire them with the electric, I put mine in a plywood attic cavity very easily, The speaker sticks out some and is a little heavy but the sound is very full and deep. There is a full range to these speakers from the depth of the sub to the highs and midranges everything sounds great. I listen to alot of music and this speaker is putting my old 125watters to shame. Movies sound great as well and this speaker also makes an terrific center channel choice as it makes dialogue in the front and middle loud enough to hear over all the surround sound effects. Well made and designed and most importantly a great sounding speaker for your important music and films.
The AIM8 ONE is the Entry Level version of the Series!! December 17, 2009
Leebo (USA)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
I have worked in the professional music business for over 12 years and have been in the home building business for many more. SpeakerCraft is one of the big names in high end in-wall and in-ceiling speakers. They make great products and they charge accordingly for them. This review is for the AIM8 ONE. Not to be confused with the AIM8 TWO, THREE, FOUR or FIVE which are the other speakers in the AIM8 Series. This is the entry level speaker which features:
* Pivoting and Rotating 8" Polypropylene Woofer
* Pivoting 1" Silk Dome Tweeter
* NO Bass or Treble Adjustments
* Accu-Grille
* Gold-plated Spring Loaded Speaker Wire Binding Posts
* Installation Template, Paint Masking Cover, Instructions & Specifications
This speaker (this is just ONE speaker, not a pair) is designed to be installed after the drywall is up. The included shield cover does allow you to install them before painting. It will protect the inside components from dust and paint while allowing you to paint the trim ring. The grill will need to be painted while off the speaker. I would recommend using an air sprayer or use thinned paint with several applications. The grill holes are easy to fill with paint and will hold paint in them. If you do get paint in the grill holes you can use compressed air to clear out the paint if it is still wet or even a toothpick. You will need to be careful to not soak the white backing with paint as it would reduce the sound transparency of the material.
The speaker is very well made and fairly easy to install. If you have access to the top side of the ceiling it is being installed in then it is really simply to move the existing insulation if any, out of the way and use the circular template to make sure there is room between the ceiling joists for your planned location. I usually take a small screwdriver and poke it up thru the drywall in my planned location, I have already used a stud finder or magnet to locate the joists (or metal drywall screws in the joists) before I poke the hole. If I have top side access then it is a simple matter to find the screwdriver and move the insulation out of the way so that it doesn't fall down the hole I am about to cut. I can then cut the hole from the top side using a drywall knife and let the dust and drywall cutout fall into a plastic bag that I taped to the ceiling before hand or a helper is holding. I often use the empty box the speaker came in to catch the debris if I am cutting from below, usually on a ladder, and with a drywall knife. Then it is a simple matter to install the speaker from below. Turn the four screws that extend the dog ears that will then screw down onto the top side of the drywall and pull the speaker up snug. Don't forget to replace any moved insulation afterwords.
I own a professional drywall hole cutting tool that attaches to a drill and has a hard plastic shield surrounding the hole cutter to catch everything. If you own one of the these they are great. The one I have is made by a company called Labor Saving Devices. I can cut up to a 10" hole which is great when you are installing big speakers like this one. There are other manufacturers out there that make similar products that you can buy at your local big box outfit, but they are usually limited to a 6" or 7" hole max. Be sure to check.
If I don't have access from above I usually try to determine the joist layout as usual, but then I make a small hole with a philips screwdriver in the center spot of the desired speaker location and then make a wire probe that is the same size as the radius of the needed speaker cutout dimension. I push this probe up thru the hole and then spin it around 360 degrees to see if it hits any hidden obstructions before actually cutting the hole. Patching drywall is not fun! Take your time if you haven't done this before!
This speakers does sound great. It is expensive however. I like the fact that the woofer pivots in any direction, but you are paying for this convenience. Less expensive, but no less quality speakers like Proficient Audio LCR speakers are angled in the housing in a fixed location and at a fixed angle. When you install them, you aim them before fully tightening the mounting screws. They are 1/3 to 1/2 the price and to me sound just as good.
The AIM8 FOUR or AIM8 FIVE (who came up with the naming system for these!) on the other hand are completely different beasts altogether. They cost much more. The AIM8 Five is $850 as I am writing this review! This AIM8 ONE is only $250. Only is a relative term! The FIVE features all the specs that a previous reviewer wrote for this product and are GREAT SPEAKERS Indeed! You do pay for that greatness!
While I do like the Speakercraft line and would take any speaker made by them and put it in any residential home out there, I think you are paying premium price for features that simply are not necessary or necessarily justify the cost. If I was designing a home theater or even a stereo in-ceiling system and money was not object, I would go with Speakercraft AIM8 FIVE's. If I was designing the best home theater or listening system I could I would never put the speakers in the ceiling. It's always a compromise. You can purchase in-wall speakers or better yet speaker cabinets to get the best sound quality and staging with the least amount of unwanted reflections, nodals and the myriad of other critical attributes. Don't get me wrong, these are great polypropylene woofer/silk dome tweeter speakers. Probably the best out there. But in the end they are exactly that - polypropylene/silk. These are only one step above cheap car audio speakers made with paper cones! You have to get into kevlar woofers and aluminum tweeters to get better performance and you can for $250 with other manufacturers. Price/Performance. These remind me of those homemade racing cars that look a lot like a Ferrari, but underneath it was just a V6 engine! A good one but nothing special.
If I had a budget of $250 per speaker, I would make sure I was getting at least an aluminum woofer and tweeter. If you are really looking at this speaker then you must A) have a lot of money or B) just getting into the trade/hobby. I would do a little more research. There are a lot of big money items in home audio/video out there. It get's really crazy. Like spending $3000 for two 3 foot speaker cables, or $500 for a 6' long power cord! And you don't always hear the difference. You can brag to your audiophile buddies but, your system is only as good as its weakest link. If you are an audiophile, you probably aren't reading this review anyway because you already know the specs on this ONE.
I gave this speaker 4 stars because it is a very well made speaker and sounds great for what it is. I took away one star because it is overpriced and overbuilt (in my opinion) for what it is.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 8
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