i have the ONKYO TX NR 906 i don’t live in the US but in Europe and decided to buy a full set of Axiom speakers based to the good reviews i saw on internet. But unfortunately i found them very dull, weak in treble and having nonexistent midrange! I had to place my older Bose Acoustimass 10 cubes on top of the towers. Bose boosted the midrange at least i can listen to clear and wide midrange, but still can’t hear high notes from the axiom tweeters, since the Bose overwhelmed them.
The center channel VP 150 have no bass weak midrange and treble. Again i replaced them with my older Polk Audio CS2 monitor series center channel which i was using before. Polk has a warmer bass tonality good midrage and high treble tones. Same thing for the sq4 and 8’s. Having said this the M60’s have phenomenal bass reproduction.
The EP 175 sub woofer is so/so kind1 of thing not to my taste either much better the Yamaha YST-SW90 Sub.
In the end I am very disappointed with Axiom.
I complained to Axiom but they were astonished with my feedback and to cut the long story short they did not give me too much attention as if i don’t understand what i was saying.
Please don’t buy these if you intend too. Go for Polk you won’t regret it.

Thank you

Yes, Axiom speakers are as good as you have read about.

Having been involved in mid-range and high-end audio in one form or another for years I was a little skeptical about buying speakers over the Internet. Axiom's 30 day trail offer combined with the reviews from users and pros convinced me to try them. I'm glad I did. I was building a new home theater and auditioned a lot of different speakers: Paradigm Monitor 9/Monitor 11, Paradigm Studio 60, Monitor Audio Silver RS6/Gold GS60, Klipsch Reference RF-82, and Definitive Technologies BP10/BP7004. I ordered the Axioms to trial them and will be keeping them. They are astonishingly good speakers especially given the price. I would describe them as VERY transparent. They will bring out poor room acoustics and call out poor recordings with little mercy. But, if you have good room characteristics and decent sources they will deliver clean clear musical highs and mids with a fantastic soundstage and great imaging. In terms of overall sound I would class them around the level of the Paradigm Studio 60 or Monitor Audio Silver RS6. This is phenominal given that a pair of M60 v2s will cost you less than half of either of those. The DefTech BP7004 beat all the others in terms of low frequency extension, but they also have built in powered subs. This sounded great with some types of music and for movies but was a bit too exaggerated for other material. Given the choice I personally prefer an external sub(s).

I have my M60s set up with the VP150 CC, QS8 surrounds, and QS4 rears. I opted not to go with an Axiom sub (no particular reason other than I really wanted to try an SVS) and went with an SVS PB12-NSD instead along with a Velodyne MiniVee I already had. I love this setup. Movies are amazing and music is incredible. I've demo'ed this setup to several people and after listening to the setup they find it hard to believe that I paid less than the price of a pair of good retail mid-range floorstanding speakers for the entire 7.1 speaker setup.

I also had a chance to experience Axiom's great customer service. One of the speakers had a slight blemish from an impact during shipping. It was VERY minor but still bothered me given that they were new. I sent Axiom support an e-mail on a Saturday and by Monday they had already issued an RMA, return label, and shipped out a new unit. They were responsive and accomodating. Quality product, excellent customer service, and very reasonable pricing - every company should be this good.

Speakers: Axiom M60 v2, QS8, QS4 VP150
Subwoofer: SVS PB12-NSD, Velodyne Minivee
Receiver: Onkyo TX-SR806
Source: Sony PS3

Extraordinary dynamics and clarity, reveals details in the music other speakers conceal

Excellent bass extension

Clear and open midrange

Smooth and non fatiguing sound at high listening levels.

Treble extension is remarkable, with detail without harshness or etching.

None

Exceptional service, Exceptional speakers. I purchased the M60 along with the vp150 center channel. I was not prepared for the outstanding clarity and dynamics that these speakers exhibit. I have been auditioning speakers from paradigm, monitor audio, klipsch, B&W. for the money none can compare to the M60 in this price range. you will have to spend considerably more money to exceed their capabilities in an average sized room, unless you opt for the M80. A few of my friends are already begging their wives to allow them to purchase a new set of axioms speakers for their home theaters. I took a chance on axiom audios 30 day in home trial, and I will not be sending these speakers back. Exceeded my expectations in every respect, upgraded my speaker cable from a 14 AWG monster xp to Bluejean 10AWG Belden Cable, made a huge difference in low end extension and soundstaging. the better the components connected to these speakers, will result in the listener being rewarded wiith noticeable improvements in depth and details you have never heard before in your music collection. the low end extension on these speakers prompted me to disconnect my sub for listening to music the bass is so clean, deep and tight, truly a remarkably engineered speaker period regardless of price. For those complaining of the Axiom speakers sounding bright, they need to upgrade their source components, system matching is crucial, and cables do indeed make a noticeable difference in what you hear.

Customer Service

Outstanding

Similar Products Used:

Monitor Audio rs6, Mirage OM9, Paradigm Monitor 11 v6
Mirage OMD 15

Excellent highs,nice mids, nice tight bass for size.
Price

mabye too revealing for poor recordings.

I've had my Axiom M60v2's for over a month now and must say are very impressed.I find them to be very accurate and revealing speakers.Very clear high's,nice midrange and bass.I was looking to upgrade from the Paradigm Monitor series and was going to switch to the reference series.I listened to Paradigm Studio 60's,Monitor Audio RS6's and some B&W's.They each sounded excellent in their own right.I found the Axiom's to be equally great sounding for a lot less money then the Studio's and B&W's.The RS6's were similar money but their center channel which I also was replacing was not compared also to the Axiom VP150 center.So price played a factor as I felt I was getting equally great sound without retail store prices.One of the first things I played was Dave Matthew'sTim Reynolds at Radio City Music Hall on bluray.Right away I noticed how much better the acoustic guitars sounded.Every strum and pluck of the string was so clear I threw my head back in excitement and then found myself pulling out all kinds of music from Enya to Tool.The M60's did not disappoint.I will end this by saying that obviuosly speaker tastes are different and come down to preference.The M60's are a more forward sounding speaker as opposed to a laid back type of sound in my opinion, but if you are looking for the 'higher end sound' with out breaking the budget I would put these on your list.

Customer Service

Excellent.

Similar Products Used:

Paradigm Monitor 7's,

Excellent soundstage esp. in upper and lower frequencies.

Slightly held back mid range but not discernable unless you do a AB comparison with another good quality speaker in similar price range and performance.

Wow - I am sure there have been buyers for the M60 since 2005 but unfortunately no one has written about them until now. My review will hopefully give you a more recent perspective of the speakers.

These are my 2nd pair of floorstanding speakers and I have to say that I am very thrilled about the quality, looks and performance of the speakers. I bought the High Gloss Cherry and am using M2 as the center channel.

My other components in the HT system as Yamaha RX-V657 receiver, Emotiva XPA-5 amplifier, SVS PB10-NSD sub.

I have to warn buyers that when I initially got it though, it was very flat and see that some of the reviewers have commented at about this stage. However if you burn-in for about 50 - 75 hours then the soundstage opens up very nicely.

The sound clarity is excellent for music such as Classic Rock, Jazz, Classical and also movies. Some exampls are the kick drum beat in Hotel California, David Gilmour guitar playing in comfortably numb song feels like he is right there with you. John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Winton Marsallies jazz compositoins and playing sounds that the stage is in front of you.

Once you get to this quality of listening to music, movies become no brainer. Action packed movies like Bourne Ultimatum, war movies and kids movies sound fantastic for audio as well as upper and low ranges. I notice that mid range is a bit below par than the other 2. However it is not bad to drop this speaker. Only partially behind.

Again this is my personal opionion in my home setup. Also I did AB comparison with Energy RC-30 speakers gotten from my brother and felt that they sounded a bit muddied over the 2 weeks I listened to them on and off. Also, I am sure there are a numebr of different offerings from paradigm, ascend acoustics, AVS 123, Def Tech etc. etc. But here in Canada, its hard to beat the M60s for price/performance.

Customer Service

Excellent.

Similar Products Used:

B&W (bookshelves) Paradigm (Floorstanders), Athena (Bookshelves)

Too many to count. No speaker can be all things to all listeners. But these Axioms come close. Please read the reviews that follow. Buying direct from Axiom is a dream. They arrive within a day or two, shipping is free, and if you're not happy you can return them free of charge within 30 days.

They can point out the worst in poor recordings. But good speakers "should" do that, shouldn't they!

This review is partly an appraisal of the M60ti and partly a response to any negative reviews you might read about any speaker system. The dozens of professional and consumer reviews you've read about the M60s are completely correct - these are excellent speakers and a fantastic bargain! Read the rest of the reviews that follow for all the details. I don't need to repeat them here. If you don't mind, I would like to offer some observations about speaker buying based on my experiences over the last 25 years. 1) Speaker evaluations are very subjective. Some sound better to one person than another. The fact that the Axioms have such universal appeal means they are well balanced producers of sound suitable for most electronics and musical/audio tastes. 2) Studies prove that human hearing has a very short memory. Unless you are comparing the sound of speakers side by side in the same room, with the same recording and electronics, you cannot make accurate comparisons between them. When my M60s arrived I compared them directly with my older Paradigm monitors - highly rated in their time. The differences: better imaging, midrange clarity and higher overall accuracy. And these puppies will play LOUD! 3) Price/performance. "You get what you pay for". That may have been true once upon a time, but not so much any more. Does a Mercedes perform twice as well for the price as a Lexus, or even a Honda? Does a $20,000 Rolex watch keep better time than a $25 Timex? Some people still believe you have to spend a lot to get a lot. If you shop wisely and do your homework, you don't have to. 4) Software is everything. The M60s are very clean and precise. They will show the imperfections in your recordings. But if you stay away from cheap electronics and lo-res downloads, you will be rewarded with outstanding sound.

Similar Products Used:

Paradigm, AR, Energy, PSB

Superior musical reproduction Solid build Unbelievable midrange (with jazz vocals, and operatic vocals)

Absolutely None!

I have had my Axiom M60T for nearly 18 months now. And can’t imagine buying another pair of speakers at any price. They just sound better every day. I live in Italy and have visited many audio shops here and in the U.S. Having auditioned countless systems; these Axioms can’t be beat! Last week I auditioned a pair of JBL TI10KBE in Italy, and at 3500 Euros ($4500.00) they sounded loud and distorted. I visit the Opera houses and listen to symphonies bi monthly. For me the music must real! It must sound as if you are there! The idea of buying good equipment is not to have to visit the performance daily (a costly venture). I won’t even compare Paradigm to Axiom as any who have seen Paradigm’s innards would conclude that they are junk! Visit Axioms website and you’ll see that they design their drivers to exacting measures. Sure they are built in China, but really what isn’t these days! Every speaker driver is built there or in some poor eastern block country. I have witnessed this myself. Company’s like Axiom can afford to give you the best driver in their low cost models as they do in their high-end models. I mean really, when a highly trained Chinese worker is making 50 cents to the hour to build drivers, how much should a consumer pay for the end product to satisfy their snobbery? I was in NYC three weeks ago and auditioned a pair of B&W powered by Rotel amp and preamp set, and they sounded much like my Axiom M60T, but they cost $3000.00. It occurred to me, that what you pay for is that horrible British exchange rate, a highly paid English assembly line worker. Why pay $ 2 dollars for a beer that cost $ 1dollar in the U.S. or 10 cents in China. Axioms cost less not because they inferior but because the U.S / Canadian exchange rate is favorable, and guess where B&W and Monitor Audio GR10 drivers are built? Did you say Peoples Republic of China, that’s right? Enough of this schooling! To say that all these Axiom listener’s ears are less acute than some self-appointed audiophile is pure hogwash! With a ten grand budget I could have bought any speaker in Europe, but I ended up shipping the M60T to Italy via airfreight, at extra expense. You say loyalty, I say not! I don’t own stock in Axiom; I did it for the pleasure of my ears. Do yourself a favor and audition every speaker you can, I still do! But you’ll be hard press to beat Axioms at any price. And with the difference in savings treat yourself to a set of Rotel amps, or Mc Intosh tubes if it pleases you. Forget about Paradigm, I won’t buy them if they where Free!

Similar Products Used:

B&W 703 Monitor Audio GR10 JBL TI10KBE (poor comparison) Boston Acoustics Wharfedale Emerald 97

Nice build quality, good looks, great customer service, LOUD, cheap.

Harsh treble (especially at loud volumes), too much bass, recessed midrange. DO not associate these with bright electronics.

After reading countless reviews and threads regarding the 60s, I decided to buy a pair. They will be used mostly for movies. To be honest, they failed to impress me. I have owned many speakers before these and to put them in the same league as the B&W Nautilus is a crime against audio. Yeas, they have great bass (way overemphasized of course) and are fairly detailed. However the mids are recessed and the treble is very "unrefined" and harsh at louder levels. I'm not trying to make enemies against Axiom fans but the honest truth is that most people who hype these up are individuals with little experience in what Audiophile speakers should sound like. I have used a Bryston 3bST as well as a Denon 3803 in order to analyze the sonic character of the axioms. For reference I used a pair of Monitor Audio GR10 (almost twice the price of the axioms...a little unfair I suppose). Axiom's specified sensitivity is a little overstated as these proved to be around 90db not 93. Well, the GR10's pretty much leave these in the dust in regards to smoothness, airiness and overall musicality. The 60's seem muffled in comparison. Yes, they are loud and clear but very unrefined (after all, similar drivers are also present in those other $200 speakers they offer. SOrry to be so hard on these but I simply do not believe they live up to the hype. By the way, I have owned a pair of Paradigm studio 40s which in my opinion were above these in all respects. I will keep these mostly for movies where they will give you very good value. My advice is to shop around a bit and listen to the best speakers you can in order to get insights as to what "reference" quality music should sound like. Other alternatives to these would be Paradigm Studio series, Monitor Audio Silver 6 & 8, Energy C9 all of which are a bit more expensive but much more refined. My advice is to spend $1k on a pair of quality bookshelves which will offer better sound quality at the expense of overemphasized bass. For the most natural bass I would recommend a pair of PMC FB1's or GB1's.

Similar Products Used:

Mordaunt short, Paradigm, Polk, Monitor Audio, B&W, Energy, PMC and more insignificant ones.

The existing reviews are on the money. Exceptional imaging/soundstage. Great for both music and movies. Competitive pricing - even though they're $100 more now. Excellent build quality - I noticed that right away and it made me smile. It even smells good out of the box.

Can't easily take them with me to work to show them off. I see what people mean about the grilles, but I really don't care.

My parents have Klipsch RF3-IIs that I like a lot for movies, but they didn't do it for me for music. I just got a new Yamaha RX-V2500 receiver and wanted some really good fronts to match. The online reviews for Axiom fronts say nothing but good stuff about them, so I figured it was a safe purchase. And the price/warranty is just great compared to what I was looking at. They arrived a couple days ago, and I immediately popped in a Norah Jones CD - Come Away With Me. My first impression was: OMG, I spent $900 on a POS that I did not audition - thanks a lot audioreview! There was blatant distortion at higher vocal levels, track after track. I put in other CDs, and it eased my mind that they were perfect - but this made no sense. I realized that even at really low volume levels, I could detect problems with the Norah CD - this led me to believe it wasn't the speakers. So I did some troubleshooting and determined it was the CD-mastering itself, and even found this article: http://www.diyaudio.com/forums/showthread/t-20219.html I don't know whether to be happy or sad that defects on one of my favorite CDs are so blatant now! Really, it's a testament to how good they are, and I should be raising my fist at whoever did the crappy mastering job. They have exceeded my expectations and have brought new life to music I've been listening to for years on equipment not nearly as good as this. I've been putting in CD after CD, listening to my collection. I am definitely satisfied with my purchase.

Similar Products Used:

Klipsch RF3-II

Musical presentation and balance excellent! Soundstage - Outstanding Exceptional mids and base response. Not to bright!

Should cost more!

These are simply fantastic speakers. I have listened to them for 18 months. I am going to review them again with more detail. Sound Stage: Very good to excellent once they are positioned right. These have a wide soundstage that is laid back and easy to listen to. The better your source amp and cables the better your sound stage. Depending on you room, I run them about 7.5’ apart and 18” off the wall. They are about 11 feet from my listening position. Bass: Very impressive bass. Drums and bass guitar simply sound fantastic. I own a HSU VTF-2 sub and very seldom use it with these speakers unless I just want to shake the house a little. Mids: Again superb. I particularly love how these present vocals, horns and string instruments. Electric guitar outstanding! Not to analytical very involving. I like the way the sound feels. Treble: Very good and not to bright or harsh. The weakness of several speakers I have auditioned is that they are to bright. This could be the equipment used to drive them. I have run these T-60s through three amps a Creek 5350, Odyssey Stratos and a Jolida 1301. These speakers are not bright on any of these amps. Balance: These are extremely well balanced between the Bass, Mids & Highs. A well balanced speaker has a better and more musical presentation. If there is any color I would say they are leaning toward being slightly warm which I like. Build: The speakers seem well built. If you take off the grills they are a little flimsy. Conclusion: I have two sets of Speakers that cost two to three times as much and I listen to the T-60’s quite a bit. Forget about the money and consider the sound. Axiom paid the shipping to my door and said if your not 100% satisfied send them back. Being a major skeptic I don’t buy into sales hype much.. I believe it when I hear it and the fact that they are still in my house and says it all! Comparing them to my other speakers. I like them better than the Stereophile A rated Triangle Celius 202s which cost twice as much. The Celius is extremely detail but don’t seem to be balanced as well leaning heavy toward the mids and treble, which gives them a bright sound plus they are rather lean on the bass. The T-60s compared to my Snells are very close in balance. The Snell CIVs beat them ever so slightly in the mid range. The T-60s sound slightly warmer and have a little better bass presentation. The above speakers used for comparison cost 2.5 to 3 times as much as the T-60s. I honestly thought the T-60s would be going back to Axiom. Equipment Used for review and comparison. Speakers: Snell CIV, Triangle Celius 202 Amps used: Creek 5350 (solid state), Odyssey Stratos (solid state) , Jolida 1301 (tube hybird) Preamps Classe CP-45 (solid state) Source: CD California Audio Labs CL-15, CD (solid state) - Ah Njoe Toeb (tube) Interconnects: RCA - Clarity Labs Emberglow, XLR - Tara Labs RSC Prime, XLR – Stealth Audio FLR Speaker Cables : bi wired 18 ga. 999 pure copper wire with banana plugs. Favorite CD Tubes: 6922 Amperex PQ white labels & CV2492 Ediswans.

Similar Products Used:

See comparison to speakers in review.