YUP. You're certainly right, fmowry.
Wednesday came, and the Axioms are now sitting in my living room. I had waited a year to buy these, and having never owned a REAL set of speakers before, I was ready for them. Couldn't have made a better choice, especially for the price. Yes, I could see where a sub joined in would make the range more full, but for now the M22s alone will do very nicely. I can't believe people pay $1000 for mass market speakers when you can get something better for so much less.
I had bought an Arcam amp a couple months back, and when paired with my old speakers (some 70s Realistic tiny bookshelves), there was practically no treble and no bass. You could tell there was some presence in jazz vocals that couldn't come through a normal mass market Sony system, but actually the Realistic spkrs matched better with that mass market Sony (emphasized bass and treble, scooped mids). Plugging in the Axioms was an entirely different ballgame. The highs come through wonderfully- the Arcam warms them up nicely so that they're not too overpowering, the bass is nice and tight, and the midrange is sweet and present. Amazing.
Thanks a ton to the Axiom staff for the prompt service, and to the board for all the reviews and opinions I've read here- they've certainly helped me to pick out some amazing speakers! I am indeed a happy camper.
