I would like to inform the group here why I am looking for new speakers. In February I bought Pioneer sdf3k speakers based upon CR ratings. While the speakers aren't bad, they are what I would describe as unremarkable. I feel like CR has no right to rate something so high when they don't even test all the other products, which they have openly admitted to. Any help I might receive in picking new speakers will be greatly appreciated. I'm feeling a little down in the mouth right now. I'd like to send these turkey's to CR and they can listen to them.

Are you interested in speakers of a similar size and price, or can you go bigger?

If you want to stick to a similar price and size, then the Axiom M3ti would be perfect, and would sound remarkable as well. If you can afford to step up slightly in size and price, then you can't go wrong with the M22ti. I've got a pair and they sound amazing with just about everything I throw at them.

littleb,
Never bother with someone else's "rankings" of any audio components. The best thing you can do is read alot of opinions to generate an idea of what a speaker may sound like, the quality of the company, problems consumers have had, etc., but try not to get this often proliferated idea that one speaker must be better than another.
For example, many people say Axioms have a bright sound. Some others have said that Axioms are bright and XY brand is not as bright so XY is much better and gets "ranked" as #1, Axiom as #2.
These types of statements are based on personal preference suitable to that individual. Only you can determine what sounds better to you.

Hi littleb,

Alas, while CR is excellent for buying reliable appliances and cars (I've subscribed for years) and my Whirlpool dishwashers have been very reliable, CR's methods of testing speakers are deeply flawed.

Years ago, several reps from the magazine visited the National Research Council with a view to incorporating some of the NRC techniques. They never did, and their speaker reviews have been inept ever since.

Oddly enough, very early in their history when i was a teenager building systems for my audiophile father, CR had a staff guy who understood sound quality. One of their early recommended systems included an AR woofer, a Janzen electrostatic midrange, and, if memory serves, an Ionovac tweeter. The guy who ran their program left CR and went on to market some high-end turntables.

Regards,

Alan, can you elaborate on the problems with the CR testing methods? I've long been highly suspicious of their findings, but unsure of what they may be doing wrong.