Hi Michael,

There are quite a few of the options for the M80 that are standard on the M100; dual input, die cast baskets, and metal feet. But the biggest difference is that it is six of the woofer on the right below instead of four on the one on the left.

Ian, what are the comparative sizes of the voice coils?

Comparatively, one is bigger than the other one.



So, Ian, how's that M3_turbo (two-way with the new woofer) coming along?

It is 1" versus 1.5"

I imagine somewhere in that price is some compensation for R&D as well.Extra shipping and materials and you get bragging rights.

The cabinet is larger, so there is that extra cost, and of course this means the freight is more also. On top of that the M100 crosses into the zone of an oversized package so there is a surcharge. The other side of the equation is as our input costs rise over time there is always a lag in that showing up in existing models, making the M80 currently under-priced.

Is there a left and right designation or are they identical like the M80?

Thanks for the explanation Ian. It's been a few years since I actually looked into speaker prices. I have way too many speakers already, so I just haven't paid much attention to the market. I just did a quick search on the net, and things have most certainly changed. Looks like the Paradigm Studio 100's are now going for about $3500 a pair. Last time I looked at them, they were about $2000 a pair. Which is also when I bought my M80's at $1200 a pair.

If I were looking for a set of tower speakers, the M100's would probably beckon to me. I'd want real wood and a piano finish. That puts them at roughly $3800, which is a tad more than Studio 100's, but with free shipping and the M100's have more drivers. So I reckon, comparatively speaking, the M100's are a better bargain.

It would be interesting to sit in on a blind listening evaluation of the M80 and M100, as I find it difficult to imagine a speaker sounding a whole lot better than my "old" M80's. The LFR's, well they are a completely different animal with drivers firing in different directions, so I actually expect them to sound different. Maybe not better, but definitely different.

Having been involved in the Blind Listen Testing of all these models I can say for sure the biggest upgrade in the sound quality comes with the wholesale changes to all the models (the family of curves http://www.axiomaudio.com/blog/the-family-of-curves/ ). So M100s would definitely sound better than your M80s, but M80s made today will sound better than your current ones also. The current M100 does win the Blind Listen Test against the current M80s but the delta, outside the bass region where the difference is substantial, is nowhere near as large as between an older M80 and a current M100.

The LFR1100 is an interesting animal. I think the best way to describe it would be a like a discovery of some new pleasure; once you experience the LFR1100s there is no going back. And interestingly the difference from an M100 to an LFR1100 is at first seemingly small, the tonal balance is identical so there is no difference that way, it is the big 3D soundstage that exists everywhere in the room that gets to you and then there is no going back.

That sounds like it's probably the "list" price or close to it. I find many of the speakers I looked at 3-4 yrs back, like the Paradigm Studios(100s), Monitor Audio RS line and Energy's were marked down 25 to 50% when new models were on their way late in the year esp if there were changes warranting a new designation... Mk 4 vs Mk 5 etc.