Well I finally caved in and plugged the Axioms into the 663 and the same thing happened only this time the Yamaha shut itself off at the peak.
I knew some of the Yamahas were not a good fit with the Axiom but the plan was to use the 663 as a pre/pro only, it's interesting that the Yamaha website states that their amps are stable down to, but not below, 4 ohms. I guess it doesn't mean much with such a low end model, an Amazon user states that the the 3800 drove the m80s no problem.
So my far pre/amp gambles have not paid off, it looks like I'll have to up the ante just to experiment more.
Still have to hope there is not something wrong with my power situation that is interfering with high current audio, since this is now 2 amps that have crapped out when push comes to shove, although I suppose the second example doesn't mean much . . .
