Well mdrew, i'm in agreement with you that some Axioms are bright. I said that in my first review of the M60s
three years ago, so you are not alone.
I'm in disagreement with your opinion that this is a flaw of sorts that Axiom should 'work on fixing or improving'. The assumption being made there is that Axiom has some knowledge that their product that needs improvement, but that assumption is not valid if you ask the speaker designer what he really thinks about his product. If Ian (and other Axiom designers) feel they have built a perfect speaker with smooth linear response, no one who buys them should be expecting improvements. The idea they are flawed and need to fixed may not be the opinion of the speaker designer. Along this line, i would not expect any 'fixes' anytime soon.
Instead, if one believes the speakers have such a flaw, that consumer should buy other speakers.
I have, yet i still own my Axioms.
I think they are fantastic. Depending on the recording the clarity is superb, but sure, there are other good speakers out there that can do detailed sound w/o being forward but that high level of clarity (the 'brightness') seems to make subtle details stand out more obvious in my mind.
However, consumers should keep in mind that Axiom does sell other speakers that are not as 'bright' as the M22/M60/M80 line. I have the M40s in house and i know that the sound is much more recessed but to me it still has a classic Axiom sound (if i could use such descriptive words). My thoughts on the two can be
found here in case anyone wanted a short read.
Axiom makes an excellent speaker at a superb price. There are many other brands out there, many are more expensive. Consumers who feel the Axioms exhibit some problem should just start saving the pennies for one extra year and consider another brand that suits their personal preferences more.
I'm a huge fan of Tannoy and Monitor Audio, coincidentally both British companies. Tannoy can make some colourful speakers (audio wise that is) but i like the sound, so i bought a pair. Hopefully on Sunday i will finally have a chance to A/B the Tannoys with the M60s. I've been curious for some time about the detail that the Tannoys can produce but without the forward tone that the M60 usually has. For kicks i will also test out the M40s and M60s in my upstairs living room which has much harder surfaces and less furniture than our basement room. We shall see if the M60 actually sounds any sharper. Keep in mind that i cannot A/B two rooms unless i can move through space and time instantaneously so any observations in this regard will be purely subjective. The A/B speaker switching thoughts should be somewhat more accurate.
I'll post some thoughts on it since it applies to this topic.
Pictures included.
