Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Stereo On wall M22 (W22)

I just saw this speaker and was wondering how well does it sound compared to the normal M22? I listen mostly to music if this helps any.

The reports from a couple owners indicate that it has significantly less bass(less than the specs would indicate)than the regular M22s. Unless the on-wall aspect is absolutely necessary you'd be advised to go with the regular model.

That may or may not apply to the in/on wall M22s, which were/are the original W22s.

I have the bookshelf M22 and the on-wall M22. The on-wall M22 does require a sub-woofer, whereas the bookshelf M22's will play bass sufficiently without one, except for the deepest bass. (As long as you don't buy a cheap receiver. I originally bought a $200 Sony from Newegg and it didn't have enough power to supply any bass.)

The M22 and on wall M22 have exactly the same specs.

If there is one thing I am confident of with Axiom, its their measurements/specs. They have both the equipment and the understanding/ability to use that equipment properly.

Perhaps issues with the on wall have more to do with placement and room modes than speaker performance?

I did a direct side by side testing of the onwall with the new power bracket against my m22's. Even though the specs are similar, there was a very noticable difference in the mid to lower bass frequencies. With my M22's I could get by with no sub, however, the same is not true for the onwalls. You really need a sub with these to give you a good overall experience. The smaller cabinet just can't produce the same deep base as the bookshelf. I'm not saying they are bad though, they sound very good.

It's interesting how those who have never listened to the difference swear that they must sound the same.

I was also using the same room and the same wall.

Knowing the fact that they produce less bass which is understandable with the design difference, do they sound similar in the mid and higher end?

I think they were pretty close. The onwalls I tested were brand new, so it is possible the drivers and crossover were closer to a v3 speaker. I think the mids sounds a bit hollower, which can probably be explained by the thinner cabinet, not sure.

Hi all and SirQuack,

I would second SirQuack's judgements of the on-wall M22s vs the Bookshelf version. Specs are helpful but they don't tell you everything, and you definitely need a subwoofer with the on-wall M22s.

The in-wall/on-wall M22s have better bass than the pure on-wall version because they use a larger vented enclosure (the ports are on the bottomside of the outer enclosure).

http://www.axiomaudio.com/wallspeakerw22_main.html

Regards,
Alan