I have a location that has very basic needs: Router and single AP.

Is there any benefit to getting a heX and separate AP?

Put another way: Does the heX do anything that the hAP ax² does not do?

Thank you.

If indeed talking about hEX (and not about hEX S), then the only extras are the Micro-SD slot, USB port, and beeper. Plus what a user has stated here as an important thing, it has a "professional look" (as compared to the "consumer electronic look" of the hAP ac lite TC/ac²/ax²).

Users with hands-on experience have to tell you whether the WiFi 6 indeed performs on par with other vendors' WiFi 6 devices, or maybe even better; many users resorted to using Mikrotik devices for routing alone and other vendors' WiFi APs; this should be gone with the wifiwave2 driver in ROuterOS 7, but I haven't noticed any direct comparison yet.

Also, the hAP ax² is more powerful than the hEX as a router alone.

Sounds like the ax2 would work well for me.

Now I see there is no stock wherever I look.

Ugh.