Axiom M-2 Stand Mount Speakers, $700 Per Pair
{11.5h, 7.52, 8.5d, 89 dB SPL, 8 ohms, 10-150 w/ch}
One 5.5” Aluminum Woofer, One Titanium Tweeter
Bryston contracted Axiom to build its speakers a decade ago. The project was an immediate success and the companies merged. The resulting company is simply called Bryston.
Bryston is using the Axiom banner to bring speakers and electronics to market that are outstanding- yet under the price and power levels reserved for the Bryston brand.
Axiom speakers are built in Canada with a 5 year warranty.
Axiom M-2 Bookshelf Speakers
M-2 is a smooth sounding bookshelf speaker with respectable bass for a small listening room like an office- or for mating with a subwoofer.
M-2’s strength is that it has no sins of commission. Bryston doesn’t build any fake bass boost “bump” into M2 at 150-200Hz. You’ll find the majority of the Chinese imports create an unnatural color into the sound by CREATING cabinet chuffing. While their goal is to fake some rock level bass thump, the side affect is that Aretha sounds kinda like Lou Rawls!
M-2 has the same quality drivers as M3 and M60. The bass/mid cone is still made of a contiguous, Pure Aluminum material. It isn’t a woven fabric or a sandwich of materials that has some endemic flex.
M-2’s impedance swing is at 8 ohms and above, except for a tiny blip at 3k, which touches 5 ohms for an instant. This makes M-2 very easy to drive, vs competitors who drop to a couple of ohms despite 8 ohm ratings.
If you have the space/budget for M-3, or better yet Bryston’s Tiny A, by all means, go that route. The beauty of M-2 is that you have a smaller, less expensive option that might be just right for your den. In fact, I suspect a fair number of M-2 buyers will have quite sophisticated electronics, like a Rogue integrated. Your goal in the den or office is to have good resolution. You probably don’t need Herculean volume.