Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners Which Axiom speaker to get?

Well I have come to the conclusion after lurking on this board, that I am extremely interested in getting a set of Axiom Speakers. Let me give you a little background on my situation. I have s38's as my mains and one is faulty so it is definitely time to get some new ones. I am driving my speakers off an Onkyo 601. The thing that scares me about Axiom's is the description "thin" that many people have used to label these speakers. The brightness and accuracy really doesn't bother me, in fact, it draws me to these speakers. The problem is that I do like a good solid mid section and "thin" most likely isn't going to sit well with me. I want to try a pair of speakers before I order the whole set just in case so my underlying question is, what speakers should I get to try and best match my likes or should I not even consider Axioms? I have been looking at the m22ti's but the M60's are what I really think I want. Which Axiom speaker has a good full sound but still has that upfront boldness that everyone raves about? THanks for reading my long drawn out post and for the advice!

Sean

Welcome Sean

If thin is not what you're looking for, I'd stay away from the M22s. The M3Tis are incredible speakers with a full, rich midrange and sparkling highs. It also has fuller bass which goes lower than the M22s.

However, if you can swing the M60s, I think you'll be astonished. As to that, I think the M3Tis will astonish you with their goodness as well.

Since you describe your fronts as "mains" I assume you are putting together a music and Home Theater system. The M60s are a really superb HT main speaker system choice.

For all that, the M22s are great speakers. If you read the reviews you will see that they are uniformly enthusiastically positive. The pair I auditioned just didn't do it for me, maybe it was a weak pair, maybe they didn't like the rest of my system, dunno. But, with a good subwoofer I'm sure the M22s are awesome in their own right, and the sub should fill in the lower octaves and elevate the M22 sound to the sublime.

Good choices Sean. I don't have any experience with the M22s, but I have to agree with 2x6 - the M60s are special. One of the things that jumped out at me was the full and detailed midrange they provide. If your space supports them, you won't be disappointed with the output.

Sean, the M22s simply aren't "thin", unless you're referring to the low bass which a sub would handle. If you wouldn't be using a sub, then M60s would certainly have a fuller overall presentation, but from about 60Hz up, the M22s are superb.

Sean, I currently have the M3s and M60s at home. It sounds to me that you would really like the M60s. Everyone that has heard them at my house has been impressed, including two snobby OC guys that never like anything. The M60s are sensational for HT, great for most music, well made and well priced. So far it has been my experience that Axiom will stand behind their product, as well, should you encounter a problem.

Another vote for the M60's, particularly if you can give them some room to breathe: at least 10' apart, listening area at least 12' away from them.

The word "thin" will be the farthest word from your mind.

Jason

Awesome! I am thrilled that thin is in no way an accurate description of the M60's. I am using a sub, a SVS 20-39pc+, so the bottom end is covered and then some! As of now, I don't know about being able to give them all the space they need but I am sure that I can give enough. What would you say is the minimum space requirements for M60's and what effect would having not enough room have on the sound? Also, the only thing holding me back is the what if? factor. I have never heard Axiom's and even though there is a full refund policy, the shipping on a set of big speakers like the M60's probably isn't chump change! Does anyone know off-hand the price of return shipping from the north-east, Jersey to be specific? I really appreciate all of your opinions and if anyone else has anything to throw in, please do! Thanks for the help!

Sean

Hey Sean - I can help assuage your discomfort about placement proximity. I have M60's and they are only about 8' apart, 10' away from me. The imaging is absolutely fantastic. The soundstage is higher, deeper and wider than I had reason to expect. It makes me smile. I love the "voice" of the speakers - it is full and rich, without any loss of clarity or detail.

If you are really nervous, you could try the M22's; especially with your sub, I doubt you would find them thin either. Spiffnme upgraded from M22 to M60, so could provide a frame of reference for you. I believe the overall impression is that the two models have very similar characteristics, but that the M60 just is a big "bigger" sounding.

I'll toss my hat in the M60 corner as well.

Just got mine earlier Monday. VERY happy with the sound. Not thin at all. I found out that I have a couple of really really poorly recorded CDs in my collection. Turns out Stevie Ray Vaughan greatest hits is one of the best recordings I've found so far. Funny, I always felt that this CD was just an "OK" recording.

The house surely has been a rockin' this week. My neighbors must hate me already.
Hahahaha... Oh well.. Who needs friends when you've got a killer sound system? I guess I'll just have to keep hangin' with Stevie!

I've had both M22s and M60s, both with and without a sub. The M22s + sub are very good, but The M60s + sub were better. If M22s were all I ever had, I'd be happy. They were vastly better than anything I'd heard before. However if you have the space, IMO the M60s are worth it.

If you like midrange get one of the speakers with a mid speaker. I just got a pair of m80's. I can tell you that they have plenty of midrange. And very detailed it is. It's a bit of a change for me. I have always been atracted to speakers with real bright high end like Boston Acoustics. I think if these speakers have weakness it's that they aren't as bright as BA's. But they are much more detailed in the midrange presentation. I'm not used to this. It's great to hear the detail. But I think It's pointing out the weaknesses of my solid state amp (Integra 5.3). Noise stands out more as pops and clicks is records. I think these speakers will really shine with the tube amp I ordered. Midrange is much more smooth on tube amps. Won't be here for awhile though.

In reply to:

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I think if these speakers have weakness it's that they aren't as bright as BA's.

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There's a first...someone who says Axioms aren't bright enough!

Mark

I'm serious about that. The Bostons seem to reach higher frequencies than even the Axioms. Or maybe the BA's don't produce some of the lower high frequencies that the Axioms do. I don't know how to explain it except there is a big difference between the two. I mean these Axiom m80's are bright in thier own way. And very detailed. I'm still evaluating them.

Allegedly some of the earlier BA Lynnfield VR series had a very bright top end. Maybe your M80s are laid back by comparison I auditioned the VR-M60 bookshelf, which was a very nice sounding speaker. However my M60s sound better, and are cheaper to boot.

My M80's are sounding better all the time. I was leaning toward returning them. But I am having second thoughts. The M80's have better midrange definition. Drums sound more like drums. You can the tone of the drum instead of some thuds. The BA's have the extended high end. They sound very good together. I would like to take out one of the tweeters on he M80 and put the boston tweeter in it's place. Might be the perfect speaker then.

I have the same receiver (onkyo 601) with the M22s and a 10" sub from parts express and am stupidly happy with the setup. I will eventually upgrade the sub (once I am not living in an apartment building with thin walls). The M22s work out very well to give me sound that leaves me saying 'wow' and 'nice' even after 3 weeks of daily music/ht use. The M22s with a sub (even a cheap one like mine) will not disappoint you, but if you have the money and space I'd suggest the M60s. That way you avoid the 'what if' factor... Which just got me to upgrade from the vp100 to the vp150...

James R