Totem Hawk & Axiom M80 Comparison (1 Viewer)

[Doug BW]

Although it may be difficult to find a dealer in your area, I would heartily recommend you try to audition the Harbeth Compact 7ES-2 (list price $2000). Harbeth, which makes monitors for the BBC as well as speakers targeted for home use, completely focuses on a sound that is neutral, uncolored, and natural sounding. To my ears, they've been quite successful, as I found that acoustic musical instruments (on a good recording) sound more like the "real thing" than with any other speaker I've heard. (Among the speakers you've mentioned, I've compared them to the DynAudio 1.3 MkII and the Paradigm Studios.)

 

[Marc H]

Jason,
If you like the Hawk, I don't think you will like the M80 from Axiom. They are very different types of loudspeakers. The Hawks are tuned like a F1 race car to squeeze out the most performance and musicality possible. Much more money and passion goes into the driver selection, crossover components and woodworking. The M80 won't be able to soundstage like the Hawk nor recreate the more subtle detail with as much empty space around each sound.