For about a 3 month period I listened to various speakers matched up with various receivers. As for the receiver, I ended up with the Denon AVR2805, I absolutely love this AV receiver, and it was highly recommended by a few of the Axiom technical staff. Ok so I let the cat out of the bag. I recieved my new Axiom's about a month ago. I have the M60ti Millenium mains, VP150 Center, EP350 Sub, and 4 QS8 quadpolar surrounds. I think I'm the happiest I have ever been in my life, these speakers are absolutely astonishing.
During my research, I compared Axioms against the Paradigm's, B&W 703's, NHT's, and Klipsch, listening to a wide variety of music styles and many HT DVD movies. Most of my comparisons were done in a local high end AV dealer with special rooms set up in a true home type environment (not like the crappy rooms you find at Best Buy's, Ultimate, etc...) I was lucky enough to find a person within a few hundred miles from me with the same Axiom set up I ended up with, and his HT room environment was very similar to my setup. I personally believe the Axiom's sounded as good or better than the B&W's and Paradigm's in most applications. The NHT's were very close to those three. Many people say Axiom's sound like Klipsch, I don't see that at all, I like Klipsch, but the Horn design is not for everyone. I prefer the accurate, efficient, and high detail the Axiom's produce.
You may want to check out the message board on Axiom's website. I have found that family of members to be very honest and unbiased in answering questions. One other not, Axiom will bend over backwards to satisfy their customers, it is not often you can find that personal, your part of the family attitude. Ordering directly from the manufacturer means a lot to me, I know I can go to them for true customer service, not some local retail chain where the salesguy knows less than most of the customers that walk in the door.
Randy
