Monitor Audio Apex 10 for Sonos

[admin_exported]

I'm setting up a Sonos system in the house and, for aesthetic reasons (the OH has insisted), I need to replace my fairly old Dynaudio speakers with something more attractive.
The MA Apex satellites with stands fit the bill aesthetically but they are usually rated as part of an AV system rather than a hifi (if Sonos 120 can be considered hifi) system.
So I'm wondering if just two Apex satellites would be enough for stereo usage or whether I also need to consider adding the MA sub-woofer.
Or I could be barking up the wrong tree altogether of course!
Thanks in advance for any advice you can offer.
PS I know a similar question has been asked before but it seemed to wither and die before any conclusion was reached! That one did have people suggesting that the 120 was ditched in favour of a 90 zoneplayer though...

 

[Lee H]

My ZP120 uses 2 speakers and a sub. I had to comply with the "no clutter, small speakers and I don't want to see anything" Police as the 120 is in the dining room.

I've got the sub under a sideboard so it's out of the way. The 90 is more flexible as you can add (almost) any amp to it, but you are then using more space.

My other 2 zones are ZP90's as they can be amplified without visible, "ugly black boxes"

 

[The_Lhc]

Well, they're 8 Ohms, so that's fine and 87dB sensitivity, which should be ok, you might not find it quite as loud as you'd like though, I've got Roth Oli 2's on my ZP120, which are 88dB and I can't push it to the volume levels I'd like sometimes, however the frequency response is only listed down to 60Hz, according to the MA webpage (http://www.monitoraudio.co.uk/products/apex/a10/specification), so you might find them a little bass-light. You'd really have to ask a friendly dealer to demo the arrangement for you to find out, it's a fair chunk of cash to spend to find out it's no good.

 

[sweety7272]

Totally understand that position! I've got a ZP120 in the kitchen, and for fairly obvious reasons wanted something neat and not big boxes (that's all in the lounge). I found it pretty tough to find anywhere to demo the set-up I was after for various reasons, but got some good advice over the phone from Moorgate Acoustics (thanks chaps) who actually recommended the entry level MA satellites (Vector) as their bass rolls off at a deeper (ie lower Hz) level than most satellite speakers.

They certainly don't shake the house like the main system does, but are pretty easy on the eye, small, and have a surprising amount of bass. Sound quality is reasonable, and perfectly good for what they are.

I think the general consensus is likely to be that any satellite that is designed to go with a sub is going to have a serious hole in the sound which you will certainly notice if listening to music.

Do you have the option of going with better looking "normal" speakers - eg some of the full range small standmounts like AVI Nutron etc ?

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the replies. I'm relatively new to the more recent hifi equipment (my old equipment comprises a Cyrus One and Dynaudio Audience 40 speakers!) so the latest "style" speakers are quite a new thing for me.

The "problem" with Sonos is that it allows you access to rooms that have previously been the sole domain of the significant other where it's not just sonic quality that counts. They want the music and the internet radio/services but they want it all to look nice too. Which seems to rule out quite a lot of options - in fact looking at speakers of late has been like going through mug-shot books (I imagine) - each set being rejected until we reached the Apex ones.

I'll take a look at the Vectors and see what she says.

Thanks again.

 

[sweety7272]

I had the same problem....colour seemed to come into the buying decision! Not something I would have considered personally!!