Nope, you're not nuts.
I do, however, disagree with your 'ballanced' point of view.
From your description of what you prefer, I suspect what you are saying is that you don't like the bass heavy and/or over acccentuated mids that many do. In that regard, all of Axioms offerings are quite ballanced (flat frequency response).
I think you would be happy with the sound of any of the speakers you are considering.
While it is true that the M80 goes lower, if you are adding a sub later, that lower extension is also delivered by the sub.
What the M80 delivers is more detail across the range. I particularly noticed it with the kickdrum (mid/upper bass)and cymbals. Now, having written that, unless you were to do a direct a/b comparison where you could switch back and forth at will, I think it would be hard to describe the difference.
HOWEVER, if you really want the M80s, consider another alternative. I am not ready for Bluray yet, so I decided to pick up an older model 100wpc Sherwood Newcastle receiver for around $75. It has plenty of power to drive the M80s, center and surrounds. This lets me enjoy my M80s now while I wait for bluray to become more mainstream and for receivers with the features I want and the power to drive the M80s to come down in price to something I can afford.
Since you are starting out with two channel, this seems like a very reasonable option.
Last, but not least, I would suggest that you stop reading and do a bit of listening. See if you can find someone local who will audition some of Axioms offerings for you. Another option is to find a local Paradigm dealer. The studio line seems to be sonicly similar to Axioms offerings at a higher price. Give a listen to the studio 40, 60 and 100. It will give you a rough idea of the differences between the M22, 60 and 80.
I suspect that a little listening will remove a lot of the confusion for you.
Good luck and keep us posted.
