Hi Asher, good question and one that I and I'm sure many have wondered.
There are no reviews in any of the main stream audio magazines that I have ever seen. The reason I think is very simple. I think its just a matter of marketing strategy. Every company has to make decisions on what is the most effective form of advertising for the dollar. Axiom is an internet retailer so it makes perfect sense to focus their advertising dollars on the internet. People that buy on the internet are most likely to do their research on the internet. If they were selling through distributors in botique audio/video shops then advertising in the traditional magazines would make more sense.
Now that you have a pair of M80's you know that just because Axiom is an internet etailer doesn't mean their products are inferior to anything advertised in main stream magazines. Quite the opposite! I would argue that it is far more difficult to stay "on top" and far more competitive to do business on the internet. Consider this: If a product being sold through a botique store and "pushed" in main stream magazines is lousy who is going to know other than the store and the poor person who bought it and his immediate circle of family/friends. It is way harder for word to get out that a product is good or bad when being sold in the tradional way. Now consider the internet where people like you and me can give our opinions of products within minutes of having recieved them. This is a very powerful way to penetrate a market and can be hugely successful for a company BUT only if a product lives up to expectations and is decent. On the internet it may be possible to fool people for a little while but not for long, as word gets out way fast.
This is what has convinced me to give Axiom a try site unseen. After three years ( or more???) of business on the net and Axioms reputation is even better, people still rave about their products. There's just no way this kind of enthusiasm can simply be from the Axiom "hype machine".
But I agree it does seem counter intuitive that such a great product isn't seen in these magazines, and can be disconcertng at first, but I think this is just due to our own preconcieved ideas and the fact that the internet is still a very new way to market products and a very new way for most of us to make purchases.
Cheers, Jag
