Axiom M2i impressions

[MacManNM]

I just picked up a pair of Axiom M2i bookshelves to do a quick listening test with. I figured the buzz is huge on these so I would throw in my 2c.

I hooked them up to my trusty old Marantz 2275 as soon as I got home. I listened to several different types of music. Now, I don't have anything to do an A/B comparison with at the moment so this is entirely subjective.

I tore them apart to get a look at the build. Not bad. The drivers are pretty much standard for this price class, the woofers are 5.25” with aluminum cones and stamped steel frames; the tweeters are 1”and titanium. The crossover looks pretty much like a standard 2 way crossover, nothing special about it. This unit has really nice 5 way binding posts, gold plated of course. The cabinet is ½” MDF with a huge port. Overall construction was pretty good, not exceptional though. Fit and finish is good. Here are some pics:

Listening:

The good: I was pretty amazed at the midrange clarity of these speakers; really good, female vocals sound very natural. The midbass and the low end are respectable. The spec is 60Hz, and they do that well, I didn’t try to push anything through them with super low bass, but if these are going to be used with a sub the output is useable.

The Bad: These speakers are extremely bright, almost fatiguing. Off axis tones them down to make them useable, but on axis was really bright. I know some of you are going to say, they’re not bright they’re accurate. Call it what you want, they are bright, much more so (if memory serves) than the BIC DV52si’s that I reviewed a few months ago. I will be getting those speakers back (they have not been modified yet) and I plan on doing a quick A/B with these and the DV52si, if I can get the DV62’s back I will throw them in too.

Edit:
I just wanted to add that these speakers although small, really like the power. I would recommend a solid 60w/ch amp in the least.

 

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

Pumpkin-pie scented candles makes every listening experience better.

 

[jaxvon]

Hmmm...

I checked out some Axioms a little while back. It was some towers (M50s),and while they didn't seem excessively bright, they didn't have the super awesome mids you describe.

I dunno, from your writeup, and my listening, I kinda feel that Axiom is overrated. Don't get me wrong, they're not crap, but I certainly feel that my BICs are worthy contenders, at a much lower price point.

 

[Duffinator]

I've been anxiously awaiting Ray's bookshelf shootout as I have a need for some bookshelf speakers and have been reading about the M3's and the Bic 62's. Mac your comments about the speakers being bright are interesting. Some just love these speakers and others think they are bright. I'm borrowing a friends Klipsch KLF 8.5's and I need to tone them down with the tone adjustments on my SX-1250. The Klipsch reference series speakers don't seem nearly as fatiguing. So if these Axiom's are bright I'll stay away from them. Of course the nice thing is if I don't like them I can always send them back.

Ray I hope your back is doing better. Maybe Gene or Clint can loan you a laptop so you can finish the article?

 

[furrycute]

Before, I've been a long time believer of "accuracy" when it comes to stereo sound. I always detested when someone describe a pair of speakers as being "bright." I always laughed at those comments and thought to myself, they just don't know what accuracy is.

Now sometime has passed since I started my journey into audiophile land. With each successive changes to my system, I have finally come to appreciate what a lot of people have complained of "bright" speakers. In acoustically poor rooms (rooms with bare hardwood floors, bare walls, large windows, etc.) bright speakers can sound piercing. They are almost unbearable at high volumes.


I guess that's why some people look for silk dome tweeters. They have that mellow trebble that a lot of people find bearable even in acoustically poor rooms. When I purchase my next pair of speakers, I will most likely look for a pair with silk dome tweeters. But the speakers have to be BIG full range towers. I'm done with puny bookshelves that have no bass (I mean real bass), that have real solid 20Hz-20kHz response. So far, I have looked to no avail. The search goes on...

 

[furrycute]

And oh, that first picture has backfocus issues.

 

[MacManNM]

Im an engineer not a photographer.

As far as the room and the brightness, I have been listening in the bedroom its 12x15, carpet, curtians, and a king sized bed with fluffy pillows (wife loves them). So the room is pretty much dead.

 

[j_garcia]

At the time that I tried the M3Tis, I had Paradigm Mini Monitors, which I consider a bit bright and the M3s were still brigher. The mids were good - better than the Minis, but the highs I could tell would become fatiguing over long periods. The cabinets, while interestingly designed, still seemed rather cheap, but that's how they keep the cost down I guess. I liked them, but I sent them on their way (and the Minis too).

 

[Zer0beaT]

Are those Axiom's a few years old? The label on the back and the emblem on the tweeter is different than those on the Axioms I bought earilier this year. I'm assuming they're used? Just wondering.

I haven't tried the M2ti, but use a pair of M22ti's as mains, along with a VP100 center, and I'm very impressed with them for most types of music, especially old Country, Folk, Electronic, and 60's rock. I rarely find them bright. The only music they don't impress me with is Classical and some Jazz recordings with heavy piano use, but even then I think they're pretty good, just not as good as some other speakers I've owned.

I originally had M3ti's and I didn't like them at all and sent them back to try the M22. I made the right choice there for my personal tastes. The M3's caused listening fatigue for me which was really depressing. The M22's have been a completely different experience. Axiom was really cool about my return and helped me choose the M22's instead, and they made the return so easy, the M22's were at my door less than 24 hours after my 9pm phone call, the M3's cost credited to my Visa before I'd even shipped them back.

Anyway, I think Axiom makes great speakers for the cost, even though there's other options out there in their price range that may be slightly better or worse. They're customer service is legendary (and I experienced it first hand) and that can make a very good product "the best". I think it's not just the quality of the speakers that give Axiom so much hype, but the combination of a great product with good price and incredible customer care. I'm proud to own Axiom speakers because they sound fantastic to me, they're made just north of my home, and they treat their customers like few other companies.

 

[3db]

Interested to knwo what you think of PSB

I've read quite a few posts saying that the axiom were on the bright side. I auditioned M60 and the M80s before Axiom started selling them thru the internet only and I found them to be quite detailed. This audition took place in an audio store and only for about 30 minutes, hardly long enough to give them a true evaluation.

A friend suggested trying PSB Image series and I they hooked me big time. They have layed back sound but are very good at revealing nuances in music. Just wondering what your opinion of them would be since you heard both the Axioms and the Paradigms. Try the PSB Image25Bs

 

[MacManNM]

Are those Axiom's a few years old? The label on the back and the emblem on the tweeter is different than those on the Axioms I bought earilier this year. I'm assuming they're used? Just wondering.

I haven't tried the M2ti, but use a pair of M22ti's as mains, along with a VP100 center, and I'm very impressed with them for most types of music, especially old Country, Folk, Electronic, and 60's rock. I rarely find them bright. The only music they don't impress me with is Classical and some Jazz recordings with heavy piano use, but even then I think they're pretty good, just not as good as some other speakers I've owned.

I originally had M3ti's and I didn't like them at all and sent them back to try the M22. I made the right choice there for my personal tastes. The M3's caused listening fatigue for me which was really depressing. The M22's have been a completely different experience. Axiom was really cool about my return and helped me choose the M22's instead, and they made the return so easy, the M22's were at my door less than 24 hours after my 9pm phone call, the M3's cost credited to my Visa before I'd even shipped them back.

Anyway, I think Axiom makes great speakers for the cost, even though there's other options out there in their price range that may be slightly better or worse. They're customer service is legendary (and I experienced it first hand) and that can make a very good product "the best". I think it's not just the quality of the speakers that give Axiom so much hype, but the combination of a great product with good price and incredible customer care. I'm proud to own Axiom speakers because they sound fantastic to me, they're made just north of my home, and they treat their customers like few other companies.

I think they are a year or 2 old. My buddy that has a Hi-Fi shop took them in on trade, and let me take them to get my impressions. From what you say the M22i is drastically different than the M3’s you had. That is interesting. The M2 and m3 are crossed over at 2.7, and 2.2, whereas the M22s are crossed over at 3.5kHz, perhaps that is why these little ones seem so bright.

 

[gene]

The M22tis are a significant upgrade to the M2is and M3is. They have double the driver surface area in the mids which allows them to play louder and handle dynamics better. That being said they do tend to have a bit of a bit to them which really show up in poorly treated rooms. Check your listening environment. These speakers wont do well with tile floors, vaulted ceilings and no room treatment.

 

[RLA]

Guys
I will start writing the review next week I can say that I went over all these speakers with a fine tooth comb There is alot more to be said about build quality and construction with these speakers
Ray

 

[RLA]

John
You have PM

 

[Johnny Canuck]

My Polks have silk tweeters and they are bright still.

Kind of made me feel better reading about Axioms here as I always thought i should have tried them before i bought my Polks and this is not the first time i have read Axioms are over rated.

 

[korgoth]

ive read people say axioms are bright, and an equal amount of people say they were not. but i think it really just depends on your room. i have the m22ti's and vp150, and ive never thought mine were bright. They are detailed, but never exhausting.

But, maybe its because i have thick carpeted floors, with tons of furniture, in a barn shaped room.

 

[j_garcia]

Nobody said Axioms were overrated. Bright is just as much a function of the design as it is the driver materials used, and it also depends on what you're used to listening to and/or are comparing them to. My 902s have aluminum tweeters, which in all other speakers I've heard with aluminum tweeters, I would have characterized as bright, but these guys are not. Like I mentioned before, I found my Minis to be a bit bright and when I dropped the M3s in their place, it was clear they were even brighter. I didn't say that was a bad thing, but it doesn't appeal to me. I did feel the M3s were very detailed and had excellent midrange and for the price, they are a solid performer. Even as a Paradigm owner at the time, I recommended the Axioms over the Paradigm Monitor line because I felt they were a better value for what you get.

 

[MacManNM]

Again these are my impressions of the speakers. The room is DEAD!!!! plush carpet, heavy drapes, and a king sized bed with those damn fluffy pillows evertwhere. Im sorry bit it is the speakers, they are bright, harsh detailed, however you want to state it. I imagine if I eq'd them up they would sound ok, the mids really save these units. I tried cutting the treb but the mids were sacrificed too much, so a really good graphic, or a parametric might work wonders.

 

[ptalar]

I have the M2i's as presence speakers in the front and I have the M3ti's as Rear Surrounds. The M2is were adds while the M3's replace a Bose AM3 Series III cube/subwoofer combo. I have an SVS PB12-Plus/2 for the bass below 90 hz, using my Yamaha fixed bass management.

I have not noticed a quantum leap in sound quality of my system with presence speakers. The speakers when they do emit sound sound very good and clean. I like speakers on the bright side. As far as the M3s go they are excellent also. They are an improvement over the bose.

I am not sure how the presence speakers work because they don't seem to work all the time. I set up my receiver with the presence speakers on but I understand they don't work simultaneously with rear surrounds.

Does anybody know how the presence speakers work in a Yamaha HT set up?

Thanks,

Phil

 

[j_garcia]

I hate to say it, but the presence "feature" is one of the dumbest ideas I think I've seen in a while. My buddy bought a Yammie some years ago because they had just come out with this. We set everything up and tried it out...the only WOW was "Wow, that doesn't really add much to the experience." Probably why Yamaha is the only one who does this (afaik).