Jerry, the treble area in the M3 and M22 should be essentially identical(if the M3s you had were operating correctly, which I still doubt). The M22s, which I've used for eight years with great satisfaction, have a more accurate response in the lower mid-range and upper bass, and more closely approach the ideal of a high fidelity unit. If Hi-Fi is still the name of our quest(those who answer "What is your quest?" differently shall be catapulted into the abyss), the M22s are superior speakers.

Here's the strange thing with the M3's I had. On very well recorded cds like Mark Knopfler's I heard sibilance which I had never heard before on his cds with other speakers. Yet with other less well recorded cds I heard no sibilance. Shouldn't it have been the other way around?

this does suprise me, I hear no sibilance with my Knopfler "flying to ..." CD on my M80s, M22's, or M22 on walls.

I really wish I understood what was going on with the M3's. To be honest I never heard vocals so sibilant and so unnatural as I did with the M3's. Yet on some cds they sounded just fine.

You could certainly try the M22s as they are a more balanced sound with better midrange to compliment the highs, they sound more natural to me than the M3's. You only have the cost of the upgrade and return shipping if you still don't like them.

Have we asked this before? Is there someone nearby with Axiom's that you could audition with?

Hey Jerry, have you made a new speaker choice?

You're gonna think I'm nuts but I asked for another pair of M3's. I just don't have the energy to keep ordering speakers online. I used a pre paid debit card to order the Axioms so I would have to wait for a refund before buying another pair someplace else. I didn't like the looks of the wire hanging there in one port. It wasn't a good week for me in general and maybe my frame of mind wasn't too good when it came to new speakers.I don't think I gave the M3's enough time.

Sorry to hear you were having a bad week before you got your speakers. Glad to hear that you are going to give them another shot. Hopefully, they will work out for you.

After you posted about your problems, I brought my M3's back in to my main listening room and could not find any of the problems you were experiencing.

If your new pair is without any visual flaws, be sure to give them more than a day or two to judge them.

I know you have been reading alot about them, both good and bad, but they really are a good little speaker. Being sibilant is not anything I have ever read or heard about them. Nor have I ever noticed such.

Be sure to keep us informed when they get there and you have a chance to give them a run through.

maybe a nice, sweet, low power (+-5 wpc) single end triode integrated amp to go with your m3s. They make a perfect match. sweet, full, beautiful music ... assuming you're not listening to head bashing grunge of course.

I haven't kept up with the entire thread, so in case this hasn't been mentioned, don't be afraid to try David's suggestion on speaker placement. It worked wonders for me to play with toe-in to pull the sound stage together - like the difference between sitting in the back row where everything seems to come from one spot vs sitting in row 10 where you can pick out different instruments in their various locations on stage.

Scott