I recently had the opportunity to double-blind test the Paradigm Studio 60v2 and the Axiom M60ti. The speakers were set to equal levels using pink noise, while the listeners were outside the room. Once complete, a friend of mine (Mark), and I, came into the room and sat in the sweet spot. An A/B switch and CD player were in reach, so we could select our music of choice, as well as switch from one speaker to the other.

We spent about an hour flipping back and forth, and writing down our comments. Once we were satisfied with the test, the speaker identities were revealed. Results? Both speakers were rated quite closely: the speaker Mark chose as his favourite turned out to be the Axiom, and the one I chose was the Paradigm.

Overall impression: both speakers were very good. The Axioms were more neutral, while the Paradigms had a slight bump-up in the midrange. Depending on individual taste, this was good, bad, or indifferent. The Axioms also had deeper base (surprising since the Paradigms have larger woofers). The Paradigms had a larger soundstage, and were more forward sounding. Mark, as well as 3 others who were in the room, casually listening, found the largest advantage of the Axioms was their ability to more naturally reproduce piano and guitar. I on the other hand, was more impressed by the Paradigms wider soundstage, and ‘fuller’ sounding mid-range.

It was a fun experience. I have wanted to listen to the Axioms for some time now, as I find myself recommending them to friends and family. I figured I should at least hear them for myself, rather than rely on Ian, Joe, Alan and the board members praise.

I think for ~ $1,000 CAD, you’d be hard pressed to find a better speaker than the Axiom M60ti. In my books, Axiom has officially taken over as the best performance vs. $ spent from Paradigm. I’m planning on building a dedicated home theatre room in my basement within the next year, and I’m sure I’ll be adding some Axioms to the mix.

Note: ~ 10min after completing the listening session, Mark ordered himself a pair of FO M60s in Cherry.

Sounds great! It's always nice to see these comparisons. I've been curious about the Studio 60 for awhile.

Really nice, Dan. Your results reinforce my opinion that there are a lot of good speakers out there, and it pretty much comes down to personal tastes. Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts with us.

Thank you so much for your honest review. I appreciate that many people took part and that both speakers had their good and bad. Good luck on your new HT.

Oh, I should ask. What were the opinions regarding appearance? And what do the Studio 60s sell for?

TKHanson,
I purchased my Studio 60v2 for $1,000 when my local dealer was clearing them out once the v3 was released. I think the 60v2 retailed for $1,600 and the v3 now retails for $1,800.

As for appearance, both speakers have nice vinyl veneers on them. With grills off, I prefer the Paradigm, something about the black woofer, and yellow midrange... Grills on, I think I'd have to give the nod to the Axiom with it's virtually seemless veneer. Very cool how they glue the veneer on the MDF then fold them together.

Thank you for the informative and level-headed review. I appreciate you sharing your experience.

So, you guys listened to the same material in the same room and reached different conclusions?!?!? And you're still friends?!?! And the world did not implode?

It's a miracle.

Eloquent review. Thanks again.

Thanks for your thoughts. I know Paradigm has a pretty large and loyal following. They must be doing something right.

They have local dealers....thus their cost is higher and they sell more. Just stating the obvious.

In reply to:

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And the world did not implode?

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LMAO!

I'm not a shill for Axiom (Did I spell that right? I can't be one if I'm not sure of the spelling, can I??) and certainly others have done more comparisons than I have (ummm, none), but would an M50 give a little more of that midrange that the Paradigm had?

Haven't people said that's the difference between the M60s and the M50s?

Great review either way. Sounds like everyone's happy and that's what matters!

Thanks for the insight Dan.

Craig,
A quick look at the Paradigm website, reveals they share the same philosophical design views as Axiom. Both spend a lot of money on R&D, and both have spent years at NRC performing double-blind tests etc. The result is a similarly good speaker... benefit to the Axiom is a lower cost from cutting out the middle man.

>>but would an M50 give a little more of that midrange that the Paradigm had?

I believe the M50 actually has a little *less* midrange than the M60, at least off-axis. Alan posted a good explanation a week or so ago about why off-axis response makes so much difference, something I had never really understood until that post.

Thanks for a good review. I imagine it's pretty hard to like Axioms and not like Paradigms since they do share a lot of history and design philosophy.

The Studio 60's was the only set out of about 10 that I can say was close to the Axioms for the money.
My local dealer was clearing them out for $750 a set.
His sale was running to 12-25 and I couldnt purchase till after the holiday's, he said he would honor the sale after if he had some left. well he had some but wouldnt honor his word, so lucky me I decided to try the Axiom's. Sometimes dishonest dealers turn out for the best!
To me the Axioms have more clarity and better base.
I had also listend to the Monitor 11's for about $1200. Sounded nice but the base was a little lose for me.
My brother is a Bose fan, he has the 701's, he thinks there the greatest thing since sliced bread, when he heard my Mti 60's he said" Not bad for the price!" but he couldnt take the smile off his face the whole time he listend to them for about 3 hrs worth :-)

That would be the smile of a man in pain...

How about shock and aw.....