There as been a lot of interest in Dynaudio on the board lately, one would almost think it's a new company. I had a pair of Contour 3.0's about 6 years ago with very mixed feelings.
Everyone is now touting the 42 & 52's. I'm looking for books for 2 rooms in a multi-zone setup. Can you give me some input on these.
Also, what's the story with Green Mountain Europa's. Seems they are made in your back yard, any take on these? Seems they are gathering a cult following. As always, thanks in advance.
Sorry I have been gone quite a bit this past month, shepherding my high school daughter around to colleges that are recruiting her. Has severely restricted my on-line time.
I have gone to a set of Dynaudio 42Ws for my mains and the 42C for my center speaker--makes for great sound with my NAD. I would dearly love to have my Maggies back, but my wife has decreed no more floorstanding speakers. The Dyns are about as close as I have found to the sound of the Maggies in a small bookshelf type speaker. I like the 42s very much, and I highly recommend them as an excellent speaker for a remote room in a multi-zone setup. Tell me, what are you using for your remote amplification?
Unfortunately, I have not listened to the 52s very much, but what I have heard was very good. They appear to have a little more depth and a bit more bass extension than the 42s, but otherwise sound very similar. I don't know anything about your old Contours as I had not even heard of Dynaudio speakers until about a year ago. Why did the Contours leave you with mixed feelings?
I must admit I had never heard of Green Mountain Europas until we had a poster who declared them the greatest speakers of all time. Sounds like a satisfied customer, which is great, but I hardly think he/she has made any meaningful comparisons with other products. Interestingly, Green Mountain is headquartered just down the pike from me in Colorado Springs, as you noticed. If I get a little free time, I intend to slip down there to look for myself. I have not seen a dealer in the Denver area, so I am in no position to give an opinion on the speaker. However, I am suspicious that GM is so close by, yet I cannot find a dealer. I don't take that as a good sign, but as always, I am open to hearing something good, so we will see. If I can get down there for a day to listen, I will post my observations.
Once again, nice to have you back. No apology needed. Quality time with your daughter-PRICELESS. I know, I have two of my own.
Had a pair of Contour 3.0's. Great build quality, super tweeters, very detailed and accurate. Very good mid range as well. Absolutely no bottom at all. Sounded ok with my sub, but for a $5000 pair speaker, i thoughtte bass should have been more substancial. That was right about the time I was getting into HT full blown and replaced them with Def/Tech 30's for the fronts. Kept them until I replaced them with the Maggies.
I have an old Marantz SR880 and NAD T770 in the closet, in case a piece of gear goes down, to use for power in the multi-room.
I pretty much thought Dynaudio was the way to go until the Green Mountain name came up. I would be very interested in your review if you can give a listen.
Thanks again and stay well.
P.S. If the wife would allow Maggies in every room in the house this would be easy. I quess there isn't that much love in the world.
I was about to decide between paradigm studio (40 or 60) and monitor audio (silver 6 or 8), but after all the positive feedback on this board about dynaudio and magnepan, i plan on giving them a listen first. haven't yet done it, but from the specs i have 2 questions: 1. sensitivity of magnepan and dynaudio is relatively low (about 86 db i think, vs 90+ for paradigm and monitor audio); if i understand correctly it takes 2x the power to make up the 3 db difference? 2. low end is not as low for magnepan and dynaudio as for paradigm and monitor (for ex, 52 hz for dynaudio 52, 30something for paradigm studios). i may need to get by w/o a sub for awhile, especially for music listening (live in apt bldg w/many nearby neighbors in all directions), so bass response of the mains is important.
how much of a concern should these be? my receiver choice will likely be nad 763 or marantz 7400. room size is about 27' x 12'.
Big1
Unregistered guest
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DynaAudio Audience 52 Special Edition already released. Has anyone auditioned this speakers. Need input. Thanks!
Hawk I am very suprised you had not heard of the GMA's. The Europa's are very popular among audiophiles and there is a lot to read on them. To paraphrase what I have read they have the following attributes. Soundstage, imaging, and most of all clarity. They are monitors so they do not play bass real loud, but the bass is very detailed and they are also known for being real good at low volumes. Actually great at low volumes. Doesn't mean you cannot crank them. They are not warm but extremely revealing. Some people do not like that lack of warmth feel it is more like sterile detail. Solid marble like enlcosure that puts them at 45lb. and also pretty plain looking. Very high performance at a reasonable cost. -- This is all second hand as I have never heard them.
One more note on those speakers. They probably are not a fit for most listeners on this forum. They don't have a matching center channel and tend to be matched most often with the warmth of tube amps. Not all, but most around here are putting together a music/movie combo set up. Still, it is enticing to pursue speakers that sound like they should cost 3k but are actually less than 1k.
This is probably going to be confusing, but I will try to make this clear--I actually think I have a grasp of this.
1. You are correct that the sensitivity of the Maggies and Dyns are much lower than Paradigms. However, both the Maggies and Dyns are 4 ohm rated speakers whereas the Paradigms are 8 ohms. So, while it takes more power to get either the Maggies or the Dyns up to speed, since they are 4 ohm speakers, any good amp driving them is going to have twice as much deliverable power. So, while it is true that a 3 db difference in sensitivity requires twice as much power to get to the same volume, this difficiency is offset since the amp has twice as much power to deliver.
2. Comparing bass frequency extension is tricky as it does not include the room, which has a great effect on bass extension, and because different speaker companies measure bass extension differently (some in anechoic chamber, some in "typical room", and they don't often tell you how they measure). However, putting that issue to one side, I do not see that the bass extension on the Paradigms is any different from the Dynaudios. For example, a Dynaudio 52, as you say, is rated to 52 hz, +/- 3db. The comparable Paradigm Studio 20 is rated at 54hz, +/- 2 db. I have heard both and I do not believe there is any discernable difference. Note, I suggest the Studio 20s because they are about the same size as the Dyn 52s and not that far off in price.
As for the Maggies, again I would suggest it proper to compare speakers that are comparable in both price and size. It is true that the Maggie MMG is rated down to 50hz, but that is a $550/pair speaker and Paradigm Studios start at $800/pair! Instead, I would suggest the comparables here would be the Maggie 1.6s and the Paradigm Studio 60s. Both are similar in size and price. Here the Maggie 1.6 is rated down to 40 hz and the Studio 60 is rated down to 46 hz. Paradigm says that the speaker has a "Low Frequency Extension" to 30 hz, but that is not within +/- 2 db or 3 db. In all likelyhood, it is a -10 or 12 db point. Heck, the Maggies can do that, too.
In short, numbers don't always tell the story. Instead, you are comparing some speakers that have widely different sonic charecterisitics. What I can tell you is that the Paradigms are the most laid back sounding of the group--in fact, the only one that is laid back sounding, IMO. The Dyns are just a little forward sounding, but pretty close to neutral. The MAs are pretty forward sounding and just a tad bright. The Maggies, as a planar speaker, simply defy conventional description--they are incredibly fast, capable of the most precise transients where most speakers would have an overhang. After wrestling with this, I finally realized that the best description is a concert hall. The Paradigms are Row 15, the Dyns are Row 5, and the MAs are Row 1, but the Maggies are so transparent they are never in the hall in the first place. They are like listening to an outdoor concert and you are right next to the band/orchestra/performer (except when I listen to jazz recordings--then, Maggies sound like the table right in front of the performer in a small jazz club).
I have a room that is 20' x 14', with 18'ceilings and open to the second floor. It is quite expansive. I will tell you that with the Maggie MMGs, I never needed a sub. With the Dynaudios, I use a modest 8" sub (for HT only) and it is just fine. Since you live in an apartment, I conclude you have much lower ceilings than I do, so I think any of these speakers will likely have enough bass response for you. So listen to all of them and choose the one you like to listen to the most. As for a receiver, I would get the Marantz if you settle on the MAs, but the Paradigms, Magnepans and Dynaudios sound best with the NAD, IMO.
I am somewhat constrained by what dealers in my area offer. By now, they all know me on sight (much to their dismay, I'm sure!) and usually offer up what is new--simply no one has offered up Green Mountain speakers. You have peaked my interest, however. Looks mean very little to me as I hunger for very clean, accurate sound, with great imaging. I will find them.