Entered CNET Catalog: 03/08/2005
SKU: 791
Manufacturer: Aperion Audio
Manufacturer description
In the past, getting a small home theater system meant compromising on sound quality and aesthetics. Not anymore. The new compact home theater speaker system produces full-size sound at an affordable price. The small satellite speakers and powerful 8" subwoofer replace large intrusive speakers and are the perfect option for smaller rooms like living rooms, bedrooms and dens. The system includes four, 2-way satellite speakers along with a dedicated center channel and powered 8" subwoofer. Finally, a high-performance home theater that is small, beautiful and affordable.User opinions
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User Rating: 
8/10
A great speaker value from an amazing company
Pros: World class customer support from Aperion, lots of included goodies, great sound for the price
Cons: Long, pronounced break-in period
Review:
This is important: you really need to break these speakers in for 5 straight days for all the sound to come through. Also, I found it necessary to turn up the bass and turn down the treble in order to get the kind of sound that appeals to my ears. Once you do all that, these little guys deliver superb imaging and a suprisingly rich tonal balance. Sound on the Eagles' Hotel California DVD-A was amazingly realistic and pleasing, and the 8" sub had no problem reproducing explosions and gunfire during Patriot Games. While I wouldn't mistake the 422/S-8 5.1 system for a higher-end $1000+ system, once you factor in the free shipping, free Monster speaker wire kit, SPL meter, and Aperion care kit, these speakers are one of the best values out there. Aperion makes buying their products totally risk-free, so what do you have to lose?
User Rating: 
10/10
Great speaker system - great company
Pros: Beautiful speakers, great sound, price is good.
Cons: None (none)
Review:
I bought this system to go with my brand new Panasonic AE700 projector and Pioneer 1014 receiver. I opted for the black ones. The finish is beautiful. The sound is outstanding. perfect blend between the satelites and the subwoofer.
Support and service from Aperion was also outstanding. They shipped it with a free SP meter, free monster cables and plugs (not sure if that always comes with it though). They were out of wire strippers (which I didn't need, nor did I know they were going to send) and immediately emailed me to apologize, and let me know they would send it once they came it. Came in the mail a few days later.
I would highly recommend these speakers and this company. For those who are unsure, another great plus is that the company offers a complete money back guarantee if you are not happy.
The only thing I would do differently if I were to start over - I would order Omnimount 20's in stead of 10's. The 10's do not have a good cable hole, while I think the 20's do.
Support and service from Aperion was also outstanding. They shipped it with a free SP meter, free monster cables and plugs (not sure if that always comes with it though). They were out of wire strippers (which I didn't need, nor did I know they were going to send) and immediately emailed me to apologize, and let me know they would send it once they came it. Came in the mail a few days later.
I would highly recommend these speakers and this company. For those who are unsure, another great plus is that the company offers a complete money back guarantee if you are not happy.
The only thing I would do differently if I were to start over - I would order Omnimount 20's in stead of 10's. The 10's do not have a good cable hole, while I think the 20's do.
User Rating: 
9/10
WOW! Perfect for my 22'x13' room! Just simply WOW!
Pros: The Sound! The Looks! The Price! The Customer Service!
Cons: NONE! I mean that, NONE!
Review:
For what this system costs, if anyone complains about them then they must be working for Aperions competitors, and NO i am not employed by Aperion, i'm a Paramedic in NYS. I'm upgrading to the 10" sub because i am getting subwoofer greedy and not because the 8" was bad, it isn't! My wife is going to be upset but i have to shake the house with my movies! Purchase whatever you like, i'm sticking with my shining Darth Vader black Aperion Intimus 422/S-8 (well, S10 now)! Thank you for your time. Joe
User Rating: 8/10
For $100 a speaker, how do they do it????
Pros: VALUE, sound, size, aesthetic, build quality
Cons: They could do more, but for the price/size, how???
Review:
These are my thoughts on a pair of 422's I brought home for a small living room system (copied from my post at the Aperion Audio website):
These are impressive little speakers; both for their price and their size!
My first impression, as I pulled in the driveway thinking that UPS hadn't been to my house yet because I didn't see the boxes behind our little porch flower box, was 'damn! they came in those little boxes???' They were even smaller once I got them out of the packaging (obviously). The entire packaging is about the size of a 522, so you can imagine how small the 422 is. For me, the dimensions on the website just didn't convey to me how small these little guys are!
Well, let me tell you, these things ooze quality!!! The fit and finish is up to the usual Aperion par, but with such a small package it seems even higher somehow? The binding posts are high quality and the relative 'heft' of the speaker speaks to a higher build quality than one usually associates for a speaker of this size and price. It makes you wonder 'how can they package all this into one speaker, sell it for only $100 and come out making any $$$?'
After approx. 100 hours of 'burn-in' on the Sharp SD-EX111 (the 422's intended mate), I pulled them into my reference system for a quick listen. My reference system consists of a Cairn Fog CDP, PrimaLuna Prologue Two and Totem Arro's in a small 9x11 dedicated room. To give you an idea of how small the 422 is, it is almost identical in footprint to my Arro's, about 1" less in depth. While not on par with the Arro's (and why should they be, at 1/6th the price) they do DO a lot of things right! They image very well and the soundstaging is beleivable. They give up the final measures of tonality, weight and airiness. Next to the Arro's, the voices and shear 'realness' of instruments isn't quite there, but it's damn well closer than it should be for a $200 pair of monitors.
I listened to several other budget monitor choices before deciding to listen to the 422's. The highly regarded Athena AS-B1's are totally unlistenable IMO, as are many speakers in this price range. I could go on listing the differences between the 422's and what I am use to hearing in my listening room with the Arro's, but that would really be doing them an injustice as they sound DAMN FINE for the $$$.
These are finally destined for the inside cabinets of a Salamander Triple20 (which does help their bass response and heft BTW), and will be used for ambient background music while eating, drinking & entertaining and they more than fit the bill. While the 422's would noticiably desire more power than the SD-EX111 has to offer, the pairing is one I can live with. My next upgrade would be a seperate source and integrated, not the speakers!
The one beef, and maybe this is just because of my large fingers? but unless you are using bananas to connect, getting your fingers in there to tighten down the posts on bare wire or spades is a little cumbersome. Other than that, these speakers blow me away for the price. Anyone looking for a non-intrusive speaker, this is a contender! I am really amazed at what is brought to the table for $200! Great build quality, gorgeous finish and damn good sound for the price!
These are impressive little speakers; both for their price and their size!
My first impression, as I pulled in the driveway thinking that UPS hadn't been to my house yet because I didn't see the boxes behind our little porch flower box, was 'damn! they came in those little boxes???' They were even smaller once I got them out of the packaging (obviously). The entire packaging is about the size of a 522, so you can imagine how small the 422 is. For me, the dimensions on the website just didn't convey to me how small these little guys are!
Well, let me tell you, these things ooze quality!!! The fit and finish is up to the usual Aperion par, but with such a small package it seems even higher somehow? The binding posts are high quality and the relative 'heft' of the speaker speaks to a higher build quality than one usually associates for a speaker of this size and price. It makes you wonder 'how can they package all this into one speaker, sell it for only $100 and come out making any $$$?'
After approx. 100 hours of 'burn-in' on the Sharp SD-EX111 (the 422's intended mate), I pulled them into my reference system for a quick listen. My reference system consists of a Cairn Fog CDP, PrimaLuna Prologue Two and Totem Arro's in a small 9x11 dedicated room. To give you an idea of how small the 422 is, it is almost identical in footprint to my Arro's, about 1" less in depth. While not on par with the Arro's (and why should they be, at 1/6th the price) they do DO a lot of things right! They image very well and the soundstaging is beleivable. They give up the final measures of tonality, weight and airiness. Next to the Arro's, the voices and shear 'realness' of instruments isn't quite there, but it's damn well closer than it should be for a $200 pair of monitors.
I listened to several other budget monitor choices before deciding to listen to the 422's. The highly regarded Athena AS-B1's are totally unlistenable IMO, as are many speakers in this price range. I could go on listing the differences between the 422's and what I am use to hearing in my listening room with the Arro's, but that would really be doing them an injustice as they sound DAMN FINE for the $$$.
These are finally destined for the inside cabinets of a Salamander Triple20 (which does help their bass response and heft BTW), and will be used for ambient background music while eating, drinking & entertaining and they more than fit the bill. While the 422's would noticiably desire more power than the SD-EX111 has to offer, the pairing is one I can live with. My next upgrade would be a seperate source and integrated, not the speakers!
The one beef, and maybe this is just because of my large fingers? but unless you are using bananas to connect, getting your fingers in there to tighten down the posts on bare wire or spades is a little cumbersome. Other than that, these speakers blow me away for the price. Anyone looking for a non-intrusive speaker, this is a contender! I am really amazed at what is brought to the table for $200! Great build quality, gorgeous finish and damn good sound for the price!
User Rating: 
4/10
Not the same sound
Pros: Great finish, lots of included goodies, good service and care.
Cons: Bright tizzy sound on voices, mushy bass, tiring over long periods
Review:
I love the looks and finish, but the sound is nothing like their older models. It sounds bright and tizzy when listening to singing voices. Violins sound so sharp on classical. Bass is thumpy and mushy. This is a very tiring speaker system to listen to, even for short periods of time. Much better sound from Paradigm, Polk, and for a bit more NHT at this price point. I hope Aperion gets it's act together and puts the great sound back!
User Rating: 
2/10
Big Disappointment
Pros: Looks very nice
Cons: Sounds very thin
Review:
All I can say is that the sound does not match the looks. They sound thin and bright, even harsh. Bass is boomy too. Much better products out there at near the same price.
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