OK.....After lurking around here and posting a few things, I have recently purchased the following set: M22i, VP150, QS4. I bought them from the factory outlet, so I have a couple of months to go until they arrive.
The one problem w/ long shipping times is that it gives you time to think. To add to that, the other day, I took a lunchtime jaunt to Best Buy to exchange my scanner. While I was there, I did my usual run over to the speaker rooms to putz around. Actually, I was focused on hearing the Athena line out of curiosity (AVS Posts). I didn't bother with the floor-standers. I kicked on the bigger of the two bookshelf models (AS-B2 I think) with that jazz track they have on there. I was surprised by how good they sounded. I was even more surprised when I realized that they sub that was previously on had kicked off when I made the switch. These things were punching out a lot of bass for a bookshelf. One of the BB guys walked up and told me that they have a pretty big bass sweet spot if positioned correctly in reference to the wall.
OK....so, I go back to work, but the back of the brain is running pretty hard now. I just purchased a set of speakers w/out ever hearing them. Are they going to sound "that much" better than what I just heard? I could have picked the Athena setup for about 2/3 the price of the Axiom setup.
So, to shut the voice up, I figured I'd get some opinions from those probably most able to contribute. Has anyone ever heard a side-by-side w/ the M22s and these Athenas...or any Axiom/Athena comparison? If so, please provide your opinions. Is the extra 50% in cost worth it?
As with any big purchase, the waiting period is the worst when it comes to buyers remorse and second-guessing. Thanks in advance for your input.
