Just wondering if anyone here uses M3s for their mains or even center channel. I will probably be running them on a Yamahao receiver. Based on my research many have said this would be a `bright setup'...I am looking for more of a neutral sound.

ANy opinions would be appreciated.

Hey there Mr. Willie

I think there are many people that will chime in on this one, as the m3's are killer bookshelves. I don't own the m3's but can about bet they are far from what you would call "bright". In fact, none of the Axiom speakers in my opinion are "bright", contrary to what many Axiom bashers will tell you on places like AVSForum.

Axiom speakers are designed to be neutral and accurate to the source. The m3's I would say have great bass performance by themselves, and with a sub would be great for HT in a small to medium sized room.

Having 3 identical speakers across the front is best for soundstage and timber matching, so 3 M3's would be fine for left/center/right.

later...

I am SbWillie on AVS and there are plenty of bashers there...

I've been a member here just as long but have had log-in issues so I haven't been posting.

I'm considering a single M3 for a center channel speaker but am wondering if it has as good a a sound stage as the 150 (would save me some $$ as well).


DOes the freq. response on the M3 in the 80-120Hz range give it some boominess?

My LR is 19 X14 but opens on one side to a DR and kitchen...the other side is a wall which is mainly composed of a brick fireplace so it will probably be bright simply based on the room layout.

SBWillie welcome to the Axiom boards,.... finally!

I haven't heard the M3, but either of the VP series will give you a good soundstage, but they may sound slightly different than the M3s. I have had the VP100 for almost 4yrs and it is has been great. I have just recently bought the VP150(curiosity go the better of me) and haven't had a chance to do a comparison but my initial impression was it sounded a little deeper, but a more thorough comparison is coming.

Another big welcome SBWillie. I've read your posts at AVS, where I am known as Rijax.

I ran three M3s across the front in our old smaller house, and they were an ideal set-up!

I ran them with my sealed sub..a smaller 10 incher at the time...and they were a beautiful thing, although when we wanted to control sound levels when the kids went to bed, the sub was not terribly missed. I normally cross my speakers at 60hz and the M3s are more than happy to sing along.

We had a 27X12.5 ft. room at the time and they filled it with no problem whatsoever with a smaller 55WPC Onkyo 5.1 receiver.

I felt they were just ever-so-slightly to the cooler side of neutral, but in no way could they be considered the least bit bright.

I still use one of them as a center along with M50s in our new larger listening room and they match up just great! The M3s produce a very natural sound with voices, and for someone looking for a slightly warmer version of Axioms, the M3/M50 upgrade is a viable alternative.

My sister uses M3's as her mains and they sound great. I wouldn't hesitate to use them on their own at all.

thx for the replies

despite what many may say, the VP series sound quite different than the M3 or even M2 bookshelf (at least to my ears). I would opt for the bookshelf variant for a centre channel any day of the week.

I use M3s for my studio monitors, and they are quite warm sounding, I prefer the sound of the M22s for mixing (I move my M22s into the studio for doing final mastering) but for normal recording, the M3s do the job quite well. They do have a bass hump in the 100hz to 150hz range that can get quite annoying when recording bass...but other than that, they are great speakers..

I would recommend the M22s over the M3s for home theatre and music listening (if you have a sub).

Make sure that your sub extends to 150Hz. You may need that much range with the M22s. I've heard the M22s and they lack "bottom end warmth". If your sub doesn't extend that far, the M22s may sound thin to you. They are an extremely clear and detailed speaker though.