Hey Dave, I think you struck upon one of the most overlooked components of this hobby--speaker placement and room layout. Best part is that speaker placement is ultra inexpensive and just requires a bit of patience. Even expensive speakers can sound horrid in a bad room. Glad you had fun experimenting and were able to get the most out of your Axioms.

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"Nothin' up my sleeve. . ." --Bullwinkle J. Moose