Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Advice from Axiom Owners M2 to M22

Hi, i am considering purchasing some M22v3' to replace my current M2v2'. Has anyone here made a similar progression and what was your experience. i currently have M2's, QS4's and a vp 150 with 2 yamaha subs powered by a denon AVR 3311CI. I use a set of HPM900 Pioneer speakers for my 2 channel listening as i feel something lacking with the M2's. Will there be much of an audible improvement moving up to M22's.I am totally happy with this setup for movie watching,i just feel there could be room for some impovement.

Richard

Richard, if you mean that you're comparing the M2s alone to the HPM-900s alone, then the bass extension and loudness capability of the HPM-900 with its 12" woofer would be a clear area of difference. The bass extension(at least 20Hz lower)of the M22 would in part change this.

I'd also note that for my 2-channel music listening(well over 90% of my listening)I never limit myself to just front speakers if a full setup with sub and surrounds is available. Using a mode such as DPLII to extract the surround ambience that was mixed into the front channels(there was no place else to put it)and direct it to the surrounds where it belongs increases the realism and enjoyment of home music listening significantly.

John

Ive had the hpm's for near 30 yrs and for my music style they sound great still. I feel the mid range is where i want more from my axioms. As i said i use a a pair of subs with my axioms. I not saying i dont like the m2's im just looking for a little more from the mids. Hopefully this makes sense. BTW i have a small living room, 16 x10 .

If the HPM-900s have a somewhat elevated mid-range(I'm not familiar with them), the M22s aren't going to duplicate that effect. Both the M2s and M22s have an exceptionally accurate and flat mid-range which I consider to be ideal for music. The M22s, with two rather than one driver in that range would be able to play louder with low distortion, but this wouldn't affect moderate listening levels.

My experience with M2 and M22 is that they sound very similar and as John mentioned the M22's do play cleaner at loud volumes, that would be to say the M2's sound strained and the midrange becomes less clear. IMO,the M22 does have an ever so slightly smoother sound, which I suspect is due to the slightly lower FR it has.

I suspect you might be wanting better upper bass where the M22s have an edge over the M2s as John pointed out but the M60 or M80 would be my suggestion for an upgrade.

Something else you might want to try, if you have the room, is adding the VP180 (or wait for the VP160) to the system which will add a great deal more sound/warmth/texture to the front soundstage for movies. I briefly tried a VP180 with my M22s and it worked very well and I felt the movie had more punch to the action scenes.

The M22v3 will offer greater output and dynamic performance in comparison to the M2v2. The design philosphy for the M22 was to offer output performance similar to a tower speaker from a small footprint which the M22 achieve. Once you have tuned your subwoofers to the M22 expect a detailed, accurate and neutral presentation.

I used to use M2s as my computer speakers (with a PDR10 sub) and was happy with the clear sound. I then re-purposed a set of M22s into that role and at first the difference was subtle, but then I loaned out the 22s for an audition. Bringing back the M2s illuminated just how much I preferred the 22s. The M2s sound very similar, clear and precise, but they lack impact. They seem lifeless and dull compared to the M22s (and the M3s, although these have a different sound). I would definitely upgrade to M22s (or M60/M80, obviously). The M2s now languish as my on again/off again 7.1 rears.