Monitor Audio Apex 40 or Soundframe

denpolano

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Starting to prep for a new house I am building. Would like to be a little more discreet with the speakers and am considering the Apex 40 for LCR fronts or the Soundframes. I have heard the soundframes and they are very nice but not the Apex 40's. Looking for opinions on which is the better speaker performance wise. Anyone heard both that can give me their opinion?
 
Soundframes have 3-way design with 100mm mid-range drivers and similar RST tech C-CAM drivers as Silver and Apex range in a sealed cabinets. This is if you are considering model 1 or 2.
SoundFrame 2 | On-Wall Speakers | Monitor Audio

Purely performance wise for home theater A40 is better choice due to higher sensitivity (less power hungry), dual front ported cabinets with dual mid-bass drivers and higher 200w power handling (vs. 100w Soundframes) with the ability to play louder. A40 has low 100mm depth and the metal wall bracket keeps it close to wall.

No idea how different they may sound. You need to find dealer who has A40 for demo! Check MA site for local dealers and start calling them.
 
Soundframes have 3-way design with 100mm mid-range drivers and similar RST tech C-CAM drivers as Silver and Apex range in a sealed cabinets. This is if you are considering model 1 or 2.
SoundFrame 2 | On-Wall Speakers | Monitor Audio

Purely performance wise for home theater A40 is better choice due to higher sensitivity (less power hungry), dual front ported cabinets with dual mid-bass drivers and higher 200w power handling (vs. 100w Soundframes) with the ability to play louder. A40 has low 100mm depth and the metal wall bracket keeps it close to wall.

No idea how different they may sound. You need to find dealer who has A40 for demo! Check MA site for local dealers and start calling them.
Thanks Gasp. Yes, I should have said the Soundframe 1 and 2 for comparison to the Apex 40. I have already sent a communication to the dealer I heard the Soundframe 1's at but have not heard back yet to see if he has the Apex 40's to listen to.
 
The Apex A40's are the better of the two types of speakers. As for people expectation, the Apex thread should say everything you need to know even without even auditioning them as the Soundframes would have a bigger following on these fourms if they could match them even though they are classy flat(ish) speaker design which certainly has its place

So, if you need a flat design speaker which has a little more to offer than the Kef T-305 system, then you cannot go wrong with any of the Soundframes as they certainly have enough ability to excite, but in comparison to the Apex A40's, they just are not on the same level (in my own opinion)
 
The Apex A40's are the better of the two types of speakers. As for people expectation, the Apex thread should say everything you need to know even without even auditioning them as the Soundframes would have a bigger following on these fourms if they could match them even though they are classy flat(ish) speaker design which certainly has its place

So, if you need a flat design speaker which has a little more to offer than the Kef T-305 system, then you cannot go wrong with any of the Soundframes as they certainly have enough ability to excite, but in comparison to the Apex A40's, they just are not on the same level (in my own opinion)
Thanks Shane. I really enjoyed the soundframes when I demoed them. Can you give me a little detail about why you believe the Apex is on a different level? I have read the thread on Apex owners but just trying to gain as much info as possible from someone who has heard both. Dealer I demoed the soundframes at doesn't have the Apex to demo at this time.
 
Even though the original parts are from the same era of design (using some of the Gold GS' tech). I just feel Monitor Audio better executed the R&D to produce an overall more dynamic richer sounding speaker which really stands out for a compact cinema speaker

I'm not surprised you enjoyed the sound of the Soundframes as they do an exceptional job, yet once you have lived with the Apex's for a while, that dynamic richness really starts to show its authority and is also why many people choose them over the Soundframes
 
Even though the original parts are from the same era of design (using some of the Gold GS' tech). I just feel Monitor Audio better executed the R&D to produce an overall more dynamic richer sounding speaker which really stands out for a compact cinema speaker

I'm not surprised you enjoyed the sound of the Soundframes as they do an exceptional job, yet once you have lived with the Apex's for a while, that dynamic richness really starts to show its authority and is also why many people choose them over the Soundframes
Thanks again Shane. I really appreciate your input. Pretty sure I am going with Apex A40 across the front. Just need to figure out the surrounds. As they will be wall/ceiling mounted (open floor plan) I am looking to go with something a little more discrete than the A10's. Any suggestions on these?
 
Don't be afraid of using the Soundframes for rears as they will make for a cracking pairing whilst look classy to
 
Don't be afraid of using the Soundframes for rears as they will make for a cracking pairing whilst look classy to
Decided to go with the Apex A40 as the LCR and the Apex A10 as surrounds for a 7.1 system. I will be adding a Denon AVR-X4700H receiver. Lastly I will be using my Rythmik DS15 and my Outlaw 755. Now the long wait for the house to be finished.
 

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