For me, in my room, the 8xrs is a little more dynamic and faster sounding than the SAM. Both seem to go equally low, but the SAM has a little more warmth in the upper bass. The 8 also puts out a bigger soundstage and images a bit better. The SAM does have that wonderful tone in the midrange that is very lovely and intoxicating, yet in the upper registers, I feel the 8 has a more even frequency response. Neither speaker is “better” than the other, it all comes down to listener preferences.