Almost all of us that got axioms got them by taking a leap of faith. Faith that user and professional comments were acurate regarding the speakers. I was REAL nervous about getting a speaker that I had not heard but the recommendations for these speakers kind of overwhelmed me.
I started with M22's and ended up adding M60's and VP150. I have heard the Polk RT12's and on down at Fry's electronics. They actually had them setup in a well thought out descent sounding configuration. (Note: I have every thinkable big brand store near my house. . .Best Buy, Circuit City, Good Guys, Comp USA etc etc and never heard a set of speakers set up so they sound even descent. Not the case at this new Fry's though)
Anyway I was impressed with the sound of the polks but would pick my Axioms over them.
I think that you would likely be very pleased with either setup.
I also think that nearly everybody here is extremely happy and satisfied that they took the leap of faith with Axiom.
Regarding the subwoofer.
Axiom, Hsu, and SVS subs are going to far outperform a polk sub. There will be a very noticable increase in quality of bass. The sub truly is the peice that you want to invest the most into because it makes the most difference in the overall sound of the system. . .especially in home theater. So don't be afraid to go big on the sub. I have heard of nobody that gets one of the higher end subs from these three brands go . . . man I wish I didn't get that sub. They are awesome and really impressive. They make you grin heavily.
Just one guys opinion
Many of us know what it is like to spend WAY to much time researching speakers and audio components.
Just look at us, we sit here and still spend a bunch of time after we bought our speakers researching and talking about speakers etc. Call it a disease. We all need help. But you should here our systems!
