Can anyone compare the M22 to the Paradgm S2? Are they in the same league? Many thanks!

Here's a couple of reviews. If you ever do hear the both of them, let us know if the S2s are really worth 5 times more than the M22s.

M22

S2

5X? I haven't been able to hear the M22s and would like to know what league they're in. I have a small sized room and wanted to go with bookshelf rather than floorstanders. But I want all the sound. That's what led me to Bose which is pure trash.

Read this speaker shootout at Audioholics:

click here

The M22s were able to tie the RBH $1800/pair for the best speaker in the shootout (at the time the M22s were only $400...the RBH were 4.5x as much)

The Audioholics review was the clincher for me. I'd read the other reviews that are frequently referenced too, but, no disrespect to any of our well informed members here, when Gene and the crew at Audioholics tell you that M22's are great speakers, well... IMHO they're the best informed IMPARTIAL guys on the Net.

My M22's ought to be arriving any day now. The wait has been absolutely killing me.

All I can say is the M22s do give you all the sound and then some. The detail is equal to that of the best floorstanders, but this detail does come at a price. The M22s will not add extra bass to the recordings so they appear thin. Recordings with good bass will play nicely but most usually have less than what most people are accustomed to. I run mine with a couple extra db in the bass settings on the receiver. If you plan or want a sub to run with them, then you will be missing very little.

I too have the M22's and love the detail and clarity for music and often use them in HT for movies and Soundstage or Austin City Limits on PBSHD in 5.1

Coldplay, Jewel, John Fogerty, Norah Jones were all on Austin City limits and it was like being there.

I use a sub and while not necessary it really adds to them. If I turn off the sub to compare I really notice that I love these speakers more with my sub.

good luck on your choice.

It's been a while but I did demo the Studio 20's and 40's years ago when I started my shopping. I like the 40's moreso than the 20's, had a bit more bottom end. Granted that could be resolved with a sub but there are times when I listen w/o a sub. I also compared to some Wharfedale Evo 20's in the same listening room and preferred those. That being said, I ended up with Axiom M22's and I don't regret it much. I only regret not getting M60's right off the bat.

I have some Von Schweikert VR1's which seem a bit more detailed than the M22's but it's not a fair comparison because I havent' really A/B'ed them. They are in different room setups. BUT, the VR1s are more than double. The M22's are definitley a better value.

To ctown's comment, I wholeheartedly agree that Soundstage and Austin City limits are great in HD for music. The 5.1 translates well. I still keep my Jewel on Soundstage on my Tivo. However, I didn't care for Norah (even though I like her music). She seemed like a dead fish during her performance, very lackluster. I wish I could get older performances like Joss Stone on Austin City.

Every time I hear a great set of bookshelf speakers, a switch to floorstanders makes me want to forget my tiny space and go that route. You started with M22's and went to the M60's? Even with a sub the difference was dramatic?

I can vouch for a difference. I wouldn't call it dramatic but the sound is more full, certainly noticeable. The M22s lower midrange and below, isn't as full as the M60's. I believe Peter Chenoweth posted about this a while back also. And I find the upper mids and highs on the M60 less clear/detailed, pronounced might be a better way to describe it, than the M22s so there is a trade off.

I agree with everything that jakewash said. Also be very careful with the sub. My 600 did not fill in for the M22s' lower midrange inadequacies most likely because of the steep 100Hz filter. I would think the 400 would do a much better job since it has a smooth drop off at about 24dB/octave above 150Hz.

But, if I understand correctly, Jakewash is suggesting to pass on the M22's and go for the M60's. Do you agree?

I would suggest if you want the clarity and detail of the M22s to go for the M80s. The M60s are less pronounced in the mids and highs then either the M22/M80. If you have the opportunity to listen to Paradigm's Monitor series 11 do so. The M80 and Monitor 11 are extremely similar in sound with the edge going to the Axiom.

I just upgraded my M22's to M60's after using the M22's for about 5 years. While I do feel I gave up a bit of midrange clarity in making the switch, I'd have to give the nod to the M60's. Just an all-around fuller sound than the M22's, while still maintaining the true Axiom sound that I love, but adding a nice touch of "warmth" that I think I was craving a bit in my front speakers. One cannot go wrong with the M22's (as long as you're using a sub), but I am glad I made the switch to the M60's. I'm still using the M60's paired with my SVS sub.

Yeah, Norah Jones was a mannequin with a good voice on Austin. I saw the last bit of Joss Stone and her performance, energy and voice made for a great show. It should get repeated sometime. Coldplay was great too.

Thankfully I'm no audiophile and dont even care to look for the limitations of the M22's and sub. I really just enjoy them a lot. Thankfully my old Bose 201's crapped out.

You can have mine!

Have you tried M261s ?

Well, for awhile I did have the 201s with the VP100 and I ended up turning down the 201s as they just muddied everything up.