The Apex Club

[MUSICRAFT]

Hi Rick,

Thanks for the informative reply.

It's just the reviews! They are so good for the Apex! I am not in a position to demo so have to rely on what I read, reviews, owner opinon, and expert advice such as yours to come to some sort of decision.

The RX6 AV12 was to be my first choice, then I came across the Apex. They will fit better, firstly, and secondly as I said people (not just reviewers) are saying they are better for movies than the RX6 pack. I considered the A40s as fronts as they would not be much more expensive that the A10s plus the stands. I'm glad to hear you say that the A10s can be sucessfully wall mounted as fronts (parallel to the wall, forward-pointing at ear level), so I might just stick with those as fronts.

I have had an Onkyo 805 for several years now and it hasn't let me down. While I'd love to invest in a new amp, right now my budget doesn't allow it.

More thinking to be done again tomorrow!

Thanks again for the help

Fionn.

Hi Fionn

Thanks for your reply and your welcome.

The Apex series is excellent and imo fully deserves its praise If you want outright performance (regardless of soundtrack) and are prepared to accept some compromise in the styling/looks department (compared to Apex speakers) then the Silver RX6 AV12 speaker package is the one to go for. Alternatively for want outright styling/looks and are prepared to accept some compromise in performance (compared to the Silver RX6 AV12) then the Apex series of speakers are the ones to go for. Either way the Silver RX Series or Apex series of speakers will work well with your 805 amplifier.

Btw, i have used the Silver RX6 AV12 and Apex speakers with amplification such as Yamaha's DSP-Z11, Chord Electronics DSP8000/SPM3005 and Onkyo PR-SC5508/Plinius Odean and with every amplifier the Silver RX6 AV12 package has reproduced superior overall results.

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies, again.

If I went for the RX6 set could I use the A40 as the centre?

 

[ric71]

Hi All,

First post.

I have to decide between the Apex and the RX6 AV12.

I'm leaning toward the Apex (today anyway! ).

It has been suggested to me to go all A40 for the fronts, as downtothebone is considering. Rick, your comments are noted and just what I wanted to hear! ... but I still have a couple of questions.

Would going A40 not be moving away from the whole sub/sat concept? Why not then just go large for the fronts/system, like the RX6? I presume the A40 would be designed specifically as a centre, would it not sound different to the A10?

Also, anyone have the A10s wall mounted at the front? An Apex owner has said to me that they don't mount well as fronts, that they have to be mounted at a height pointing down and won't mount square, i.e., bottom of speaker parallel to the floor, back of speaker parallel to the wall. Is this true?

Thanks,

Fionn.

Hi Fionn,

I have my 4 x A10 wall mounted perfectly on the wall and can adjust the angle to suit with no issues what so ever!!

THE Apex is a cracking system and whether you go for 3 x A40 across the front or not you will not be dissapointed with either music or movie performance!!!

PS The front A10's are mounted at ear hieght facing directly forward and not angled down but slightly toed in to my exact preference :dance:

 

[Anonymous]

Ordered my 2 A40s yesterday and they are ready for collection today - that was quick. Good work from Bartletts on Holloway Rd.
Next stop timber merchants so I can construct a pair of stands to mount them vertically ...

DTTB

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Thanks for the replies, again.

If I went for the RX6 set could I use the A40 as the centre?

Hi fionn

Yes, you can also successfully use the A40 as a centre speaker with Silver RX6's. I ran this very combination for a weeks towards the end of last year and it worked a treat

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[ric71]

Let us know how you get on.I'm not too far from you if you are using Bartletts so any help needed let me know!

 

[Anonymous]

Yeah I have finally completed my Apex set up >) I bought the AW-12 on Monday and I was wondering what setting would be the best for the sub. Before I had a Kef HTBSE and all you could do was make very few tweaks, now I am met with dials, knobs and switches.

At present it is going into a Denon 1910 (will be upgraded one day) I have set the low pass filter to out. I have changed the Phase to ‘0’. I have set the power mode to auto and turned to frequency to 120. Is that correct? I take it the volume button on top of the sub is down to personal taste.

Can you please tell me what LFE and crossover (not sure if that’s the same thing) setting should I set my amp to 80hz or 120hz?

I bought the sub which was an ex- display model and all that came in the box cable wise was the kettle lead. There is a +12VDC port on the back should I of got a cable for that or is that bought separately if so what would I have to buy?

Also do you guys turn your subs off at night by using the power button number 10 in the manual?

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the advice All

 

[michael hoy]

You can download the manuals from MA's website here.

your settings look the same as mine, I set the volume to 10 O'clock position and let the amp deal with the rest.

Just one single subwoofer cable will suffice into the audio in connection, you can use a Y connector and split the signal using the Audio in left and right, this would boost the bass a little.

 

[RickyDeg]

Yeah I have finally completed my Apex set up >) I bought the AW-12 on Monday and I was wondering what setting would be the best for the sub. Before I had a Kef HTBSE and all you could do was make very few tweaks, now I am met with dials, knobs and switches.

At present it is going into a Denon 1910 (will be upgraded one day) I have set the low pass filter to out. I have changed the Phase to ‘0’. I have set the power mode to auto and turned to frequency to 120. Is that correct? I take it the volume button on top of the sub is down to personal taste.

Can you please tell me what LFE and crossover (not sure if that’s the same thing) setting should I set my amp to 80hz or 120hz?

I bought the sub which was an ex- display model and all that came in the box cable wise was the kettle lead. There is a +12VDC port on the back should I of got a cable for that or is that bought separately if so what would I have to buy?

Also do you guys turn your subs off at night by using the power button number 10 in the manual?

To what frequency you should set the crossover in your receiver is often down to personal taste, and naturally to how your speakers generally perform in your particular room, and perhaps also how much 'trust' you put in the the auto-calibration from Audyssey in your Denon. But generally speaking most people feel 80Hz is the best, and it's often the recommended crossover (I use this myself, for both the A10's and A40 to great effect). This way the subwoofer AW12 handle all the bass from 80Hz down, plus ofcourse the .1 LFE channel in movies.

Since you've (ideally) turned the low-pass filter off you dont have to bother with the crossover frequency knob on the AW12 since it no longer has any effect (your receiver should now handle that!). And you dont have to turn the power off over night, just leave the toggle in the 'auto-on/off' mode if you wish to make it simpler for you. Naturally, any stand-by mode draws a bit of power.

One very important note, especially about the AW12 - these speakers need a fair amount of running in! When I first bought my set the satellites performed admirably out-of-the-box (though they've mellowed more now after 2 months) but the AW12 sounded downright dull and uncontrolled, but after about 80-100 hours it REALLY began to shine! To use a clichéd expression: it was like night and day. Just keep that in mind just in case you experience something similar with your sub.

 

[Anonymous]

Thank you both for taking the time out to help me set up my sub and I can't wait until it has run. :dance:

 

[Anonymous]

3 a40s on the fronts ... wow, wow, wow just need everything to run in now especially the Marantz 7005/7055 combo.

 

[ric71]

Very tasty set up there.
Remember the Apex take a while to run in.
Bet music sounds great!!

 

[MUSICRAFT]

3 a40s on the fronts ... wow, wow, wow just need everything to run in now especially the Marantz 7005/7055 combo.

Hi dttb

Nice one

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[Anonymous]

Hi guys, I'm hoping someone could tell me the box dimensions and weight (including packing) for each of the a10, a40, and Aw12? I'm hoping to buy the set and ship it . Can't find this info anywhere. Would be greatly appreciated!

 

[gosalh]

Ok guys,

This one may be of interest to RickyDeg, Ric71 and Musicraft.

I purchased a new Bluray player - Oppo BDP-95

Amazing machine. Made my Apex sing even better than before. Much more clarity, detail and the bass sounds much tighter and deeper with blurays!!!!

Also CDs sound amazing too!!!!

I tried Battle Los Angeles and the scene where the troops arrive in LA for the first time in the helicopters sounded amazing with the explosions and gun fire.

I'm happy with the purchase, although i had to sell a kidney for it. This was my last home theater gadget that my wife would allow. Im all maxed out now both in cost and equipment.

Does anyone else own an OPPO BDP-95?

 

[gosalh]

Ok guys,

This one may be of interest to RickyDeg, Ric71 and Musicraft.

I purchased a new Bluray player - Oppo BDP-95

Amazing machine. Made my Apex sing even better than before. Much more clarity, detail and the bass sounds much tighter and deeper with blurays!!!!

Also CDs sound amazing too!!!!

I tried Battle Los Angeles and the scene where the troops arrive in LA for the first time in the helicopters sounded amazing with the explosions and gun fire.

I'm happy with the purchase, although i had to sell a kidney for it. This was my last home theater gadget that my wife would allow. Im all maxed out now both in cost and equipment.

Does anyone else own an OPPO BDP-95?

 

[MUSICRAFT]

Hi guys, I'm hoping someone could tell me the box dimensions and weight (including packing) for each of the a10, a40, and Aw12? I'm hoping to buy the set and ship it . Can't find this info anywhere. Would be greatly appreciated!

Hi Cybero

The dimensions and weight of the Apex boxes are -

A10 33cm (height), 20cm (w), 24.5cm (d), 5.15kg

A40 18cm (height), 21cm (w), 67.5cm (d), 8.15kg

AW-12 51.5cm (height), 47.5cm (w), 48cm (d), 26kg

All the best

Rick @ Musicraft

 

[ric71]

Hi Gosalh,
Very interested in your post.I want to get the Oppo 95 as you prob know.Can't afford it till the New year but patience is a virtue.
How do you have yours hooked up? Are you using Hdmi or a combination of stereo outs and multi channel outs?
I am very interested in the multi channel outs thus using the Oppos superior Sabre dacs for music feeding my Arcam.I intend to use the Oppo as a blu ray player as well as my music source replacing my Micro mega transport.
Its good that you have an understanding other half!!

 

[gosalh]

Hi Ric,

Im just using plain old 1.4a HDMI at the moment. Just set it up over the weekend and didnt get too much time with it.

Im actually looking for advice myself on how best to set it up and get more out of it. If you have any tips please let me know. Also they have a speaker configuration section in the setup. I've set up the distance of the speakers and channel level as same as my Denon's settings. Not sure if that makes any difference. I will keep playing with it and will let you know. Sound is amazing though even with the HDMI, made a big difference to my listening experience.

No more gadgets for me anyway for a very very very long time. I had to use the Jedi mind trick on the wife to get this one through ;-)

 

[ric71]

He he,
From what I have read the processing on the Oppo will be superior to both my Arcam and your Denon.I believe but may be wrong that if you use the multi channel outs and feed them to the receiver thus utilising the Oppos dacs will bring superior results. I don't know if this will work as you will want to use your XT 32 room correction and I want to use pro logic 2 for music. I'm sure some one can let us know the best way to hook up the Oppo.Please let me know how you are getting on with it and any tips you discover.
Ric

 

[gosalh]

Ric

Correct me if im wrong.

The audio gets decoded via the oppo if we go with the analogue right? But the sound still passes through the receivers dsp etc and gets processed again within the receiver before going out to the speakers? If this is correct then we shiuld still be able to get dolby pro logic or xt32?

 

[gosalh]

Maybe a clue in here http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1326170

 

[ric71]

Interesting reading gosalh,
I know if we use the L & R analogue output on the Oppo and feed our respective receivers via the multi channel in L & R and select direct stereo or pure stereo we will be utilising the Oppo's Sabre dac's but if it goes through pro logic or XT32 it is converted back to digital and has to then be decoded by the receivers dac's hence I am now confused and will need to research this more.Will prob need to let the Oppo do the dsp ie pro logic 2 for me via multi channel out but don't know about using XT 32 with it.

 

[gosalh]

The Oppo has dual hdmi. The primary hdmi is the main video port and can go straight to the tv, the second can be used for audio into the receiver. Do you think there would be a signifcant improvement in sound by doing this as if you were splitting up the bandwidth for different purposes?