|
Dynaudio Audience 82 / 122C / 42W / SUB-30A Reviewed by
The latest refinement to the model line addresses one of the few complaints the Audience product line has received: the finish. These speakers are now available with real-wood veneer in place of the previously available vinyl-wrapped enclosures. But while customers may think that this is simply a cosmetic upgrade, Dynaudio maintains there is more below the skin. They arrive The smallish size of the Audience 122C center-channel took me off guard as I pulled it from its box. Its heavy and well-assembled cabinet is attractive, but not lavish. Starting around back there is a bass-reflex port and a single set of binding posts. At first the moderately substantial posts looked similar to those used on Canton’s Ergo line and other speakers I’ve seen. But closer inspection revealed that these were true five-way binding posts that accepted everything from bare wire to banana plugs. Dynaudio is known for their raw drivers almost as much as their finished speakers. Although these drivers used to be available to do-it-yourselfers and other manufacturers, if you want ‘em now you’ll have to get them in their finished products. The driver complement of the Audience 122C includes two 15cm ESOTEC midbass drivers with massive 75mm voice coils and one 28mm soft-dome tweeter. According to Dynaudio the tweeter is a shielded version of their legendary D260 ESOTEC driver. The "W" in the Audience 42W indicates a wall-mountable version of the Audience 42. Stretching and squishing the enclosure not only achieves a slender profile with the same internal volume, but also permits the bass-reflex port to be mounted to the front of the cabinet. Inset into the top rear of the cabinet is a sturdy metal eyelet that allows the speaker to be hung on a wall like a picture. Also included are small spikes, which decouple the 42W enclosure from the wall. The Audience 42W includes the same ESOTEC midbass driver as the Audience 122C along with a 28mm tweeter. Like its smaller siblings, the Audience 82 features excellent fit’n’finish. The three-way floorstander also uses the same ESOTEC tweeter as the Audience 122C -- but this is where the similarities end. Although they may look similar from the outside, the ESOTEC midrange driver on the Audience 82 uses a voice coil that is roughly half the size (38mm) of the ones used in the 42W and 122C -- you can optimize each driver when you build your own. From there, two 20cm bass drivers enable the speaker to reproduce frequencies down to a claimed 26Hz! Another unique feature of the Audience 82 that struck me as both brilliant and simple was four grommets affixed to the rear of its enclosure. For those who would rather gaze at the Audience 82’s handsome array of drivers, these grommets offer a means of securing the grille out of sight and harm’s way. The only issue I had with the Audience 82 was related to the wood hardware inserts that retained the supplied carpet spikes. These barbed inserts had a tendency to separate from the bass plinth if the spikes were accidentally screwed-in too deep. This resulted in the Audience 82 developing a bit of a wobble to its stance. I have never come across this problem with designs that use threaded inserts. Considering the other speakers in the Audience line, the Audience SUB-30A’s cosmetics fall short of my expectations. Its black vinyl suggests a product not commensurate with the rest of the system. The 12" driver used in the SUB-30A has a 4" voice coil and is powered by a 90W amplifier. The control panel includes variable phase and crossover to dial the sub into your system. In order to accommodate the new wood finish of the Audience line, changes in the manufacturing process prompted a complete redesign of the cabinet structure. Included in the new Audience speakers is a granite-like baffle fabricated from lead-impregnated MDF, which affords the driver elements improved isolation from resonance, and according to the company, has yielded a measurable improvement in sound quality. Movie sound The first DVD I sampled was The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring -- Platinum Series Extended Edition. The hurricane-like howl that surrounds Frodo each time he slips on the ring can possess an uncomfortable edge on a forward or bright system. The Dynaudio system not only gave this effect a smooth and open quality, but also convinced me that I was submersed in Sauron’s world alongside Frodo. Chapter 13 of the same movie sounded just as realistic. The scene where Frodo senses the Ringwraiths approaching was bone chilling due to the way the Audience system reproduced the sounds of the forest in my room. In addition, the extended "Council of Elrond" scenes revealed how adept the Audience system was at placing and reproducing intelligible voices. The Audience 122C in particular, not only kept voices anchored perfectly when they appeared center screen, but also integrated seamlessly with the 42W and 82s. This had the effect of allowing sounds to move out into the room rather than staying stuck to the walls. However, the greatest surprise came as Borimir succumbed to the power of the ring. The Audience 82 speakers flexed their muscles and produced powerful bass that caused my wife and me to jump. The Audience 82s had no problem reproducing the deeper bass effects during The Hunt for Red October, which made it seem as if submarines were moving through my living room. Although I have seen the film several times, the soundtrack still surprised me. The Audience loudspeakers had enough shimmer and speed in their treble and midrange where "quick" effects like the zip of a torpedo through water, or the metal clank and reverberation of a hammer on a steel bulkhead, startled me without causing aural discomfort. I was also able to hear deeper into the effect and discern between the initial impacts of the hammer as it hit steel, and the ripple of overtones that followed. Some speakers don’t have the control or integration between their drivers to reveal such harmonic subtlety. Many lesser speakers simply cram these details into one unidentifiable boom. Not the Dynaudios. Everything from the slightest breath to the largest explosion was crystal clear. The Audience system did not sacrifice transparency for the sake of smoothness. The recently remastered director’s cut of Amadeus demonstrated how well the Dynaudios are at revealing the seams within a sound mix without ruining the overall experience. The 122C rendered voices perfectly as Antonio Salieri is being carted off to the hospital. And it doesn’t take a trained ear to spot the forced dynamic range of orchestral music or pick out some poorly produced foley effects. Well-integrated drivers also empowered the Audience system to produce a seamless image. If bullets flew from screen left to surround right, the sound of the bullet cutting though the air moved consistently in that direction. If a person moved from one end of the room to the other, his footsteps would not miss a step during their travel. The synergy of the 82s, 122C, and 42Ws along with the low-bass capabilities of the center and surrounds kept sounds clean and well integrated within the surround image. The added bulk of the Audience SUB-30A in my room contributed little to the sound quality of the 5.1 setup, such was the bass present with the Audience 82s. I found that bass from the 82s went deep enough and loud enough to satisfy me in most cases. Crossing the 82s over at 60Hz did earn the SUB-30A some points by adding a little more punch to explosions and slightly better definition. But in my setup I concluded that it wasn’t worth the extra floor space or cash it consumed. Music sound The Audience 82 belted out Peter Gabriel’s "Big Time" (So [Universal 493284]) at levels that, according to my Radio Shack meter, approached 100dB. I didn’t listen at this level for long, but I was impressed at how clean, smooth, and undistorted the music sounded. Gabriel’s voice remained solidly anchored while instruments retained their distinctive sounds. Given adequate power, these are speakers that will get a party going and the neighbors running. Next up was the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s rendition of Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana [Telarc CD-80056]. Although some consider Robert Shaw’s interpretation to lack depth, this recording serves up some startling dynamics. The concluding movement, "Fortune Emperor of the World," sounded superb through the Audience speakers. The line between massive drums, a powerful choir, and the quiet moments never got lost. When the drums came charging in I could feel the wave of low-frequency energy hitting me in the chest. Through the Dynaudio system the dynamic range of music was perfectly preserved. Moving on to the DTS recording of Sting’s Brand New Day [DTS 91061], the Audience system enveloped me in a three-dimensional soundstage. Sting’s voice was smooth with nice weight, while instruments appeared with distinct outlines and accurate tonality. Guitars sounded full and palpable while at the same time sidestepping the artificial weight some speakers add to each pluck of a string. I had a hard time pulling myself away from this recording. The subtle atmospheric effects in songs like "Desert Rose" and "Ghost Story" created a very intoxicating presentation through the Dynaudio speakers. Each vocal reinforced my opinion of the Audience system’s very detailed midrange. Where other speakers would lose track of leading or trailing consonants and vowels, the Audience speakers would complete every word. I started hearing "ma" turn into "man" and "mine" prove to be "mind." The ability of a song to tell a story lies not only in the music, but also in the words of the lyric. The Dynaudio system’s ability to capture these lyrics correctly made a song more complete and therefore more enjoyable. What the Dynaudios did not exhibit was a euphoric or tube-like quality to their upper frequencies that made female vocals and strings more seductive. What I experienced was a speaker that preferred to let the music speak for itself. Danes versus…. The Dynaudio Audience system came into my home right after Canton’s Ergo system. I was very impressed with the Cantons and ultimately purchased them as my reference. The Cantons and the Dynaudios are, however, voiced quite differently. The Dynaudio system’s midrange sounds slightly more refined and coherent to my ear. Voices and strings are a tad warmer. The Cantons have a little more energy in their upper midrange and treble that is relatively unforgiving of poor recordings. Vocals on early ‘80s pop have a tendency to sound thin through the Cantons, whereas the Dynaudios’ smoother character adds warmth, which has the effect of beefing-up harmonic structure. The Canton system’s upper-midrange sparkle added excitement to brass and strings without becoming harsh. When cymbals crashed, the Canton’s aluminum-alloy tweeter filled the room with startling attack followed by a natural decay. The Dynaudios exhibited excellent detail and decay but without the immediacy that raises the hairs on the back of my neck. This immediacy furnishes the Cantons with a more involving sound, but made them more sensitive to equipment with less-refined high frequencies. Bass from both of the front speakers is first-class, but different. The Dynaudio Audience 82s have punch and extension while the Canton Ergo 900 DCs are subjectively leaner and tighter. There were times when I thought the Dynaudio’s powerful bass lacked definition since the Cantons pulled more information from complex bass lines. I also found the fuller bass of the Dynaudio Audience 82s required at least three feet from back and side walls. Otherwise, their bass had a tendency to get muddy and boom. Impressive build quality and tuneful bass singled out Canton’s AS 2 SC as the subwoofer of choice. Of course the Audience 82’s bass capability made subwoofers a non-issue in my room. Larger rooms may even benefit more from using four of these formidable floorstanders with a high-power multichannel amplifier, rather than a sub. Conclusion Dynaudio's newest Audience line will not only provide a very compelling home-theater experience, but also very involving music reproduction. The standout of this group is by far the Audience 82: Its combination of powerful, extended bass, refined midrange, and treble detail are a steal at the price. If you’ve thought about the Audience line in the past, but the vinyl finish turned you off, you can now have the bonus of real-wood veneer. The bottom line is that Dynaudio’s Audience speakers deserve a strong look from anyone seeking a system in this price range. Review System Speakers - Canton Ergo 900 DC (mains), 300 DC (surrounds), CM 500 DC (center-channel), AS 2 SC (subwoofer) Link to review above - HomeTheaterSound.com
As one of the world's foremost manufacturers of both raw speaker components and complete speaker systems, Denmark's Dynaudio has a well-deserved reputation for delivering both quality and value to its customers, And with the release of its newly updated Audience Series, which includes tower, bookshelf, powered subwoofer, and even wall-mount designs, Dynaudio unfurls both attributes with aplomb. The Dynaudio sound is known to be natural and relaxed, with a warm tonal balance; the newly designed Audience Series reviewed here doesn't veer from this course. What's remarkable is the degree to which the Audience lineup maintains this performance for such a moderate price $4,000. Features and Stuff These speakers are nicely built and come in three standard finishes: "black ash," "rosewood," or "light cherry" vinyl (wall-mount models also come in white). The review samples arrived in the black ash finish and though not bad looking (the profile of the floorstanding models is quite handsome), they were plain-and unobtrusive. (One very cool touch: All floor-standing models are fitted with an additional set of rear-mounted grille fasteners, so listeners who prefer the sound with the grilles off will have a handy place to store them.) Lavishing this much care in the design process makes it easy for dealers and consumers, as well as critics, to mix and match models within the Audience Series. So when it came time to assemble the review system two goals were established. First, the speakers were to be optimized for small-to-medium sized rooms. Second, we were looking for a package that would total roughly $4,000-a popular price point. The six-piece array that met both criteria consisted of a pair of the sleek front ported Audience 122 towers (a two way design employing a single soft dome tweeter, flanked by two 4.75" polypropylene woofers), the Audience 42C center, and a pair of the bookshelf-sized Audience 42s for surround. (The 42 and 42C are two way designs employing one soft-dome tweeter and one 5.25-inch driver. The 42C is f front-ported, while the 42s are rear-ported.) In contrast, the Audience Sub-30A powered subwoofer is something of a country boy-on the brutish side. Although it isn't especially large by American subwoofer standards, it was a bit of a surprise lined up beside the other models. But then big bass generally does require large woofers, cabinets, and amplifiers. Here, however, the amplifier rating is ambiguous; Dynaudio's spec simply states that the maximum power output is 90 watts RMS. No matter. The Sub30A never broke a sweat or otherwise came close to running out of steam. The recipient of this power is a 12", one-piece MSP cone complete with Dynaudio's die cast basket and 4" aluminum wire voice coil. The Sub-30A enclosure uses an extra-thick l.25" Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) composite baffle and, as Two-Channel Performance As I said earlier, Dynaudio speakers are generally warm, easy, and natural, They never bite, nor do they induce listener fatigue. But that doesn't mean they aren't detailed; and unlike some other designs, I wouldn't call them polite, just lacking in electronic glare. For example, Steve Earle's rendition of his own "Goodbye" (Train a Comin', Warner Brothers) was particularly alive sounding, with a strong presence and exceptionally vivid textures-be it the distinctive snap of a gut-string guitar, ringing metallic voice of a Dobro, or plucky weight of an upright bass. Earle's sour-mash voice had great clarity and good focus. But those into the laser-like spotlighting of images-think Wilson Watt/ Puppy-won't find it here, because the Audience 122's focus is just ever-so-slightly vague, as is the case most often with live acoustic music. And that softdome tweeter is a marvel of purity and honeyed extension. The 122's bottom end was initially a little too Rubenesque for my taste. But a minor tweak in room-placement and the insertion of the foam port plugs made the balance just right, with a lovely expressiveness and enough fullness to create the sensation of a hollow wood-bodied instrument. Turning next to Maurizio Pollini's recent release of the Chopin Ballades (DGG) allowed the Audience 122s to show off their spectacular range of tone colors. Dynamics, on the other hand, were good but lacked the dramatic flare and dynamics I'm used to with my reference Martin-Logan Scenarios (review elsewhere in this issue). This reticence is not unexpected from an array of small drivers, and I found myself happiest with the Audience 122s when I cranked them up a bit louder than I normally would. Fortunately, as I heard with Lucinda Williams' Car Wheels on a Gravel Road' this dynamic coyness does not impede the speakers' sense of drive or the sweet crunch of electric guitars. Finally, I should mention that the Audience 122s throw a very wide soundstage, extending far outside the edges of each speaker; they are quite capable of layering depth, too. I wasn't terribly surprised to discover that-bass extension and fullness aside-a pair of Audience 42s sounded much the same as a pair of Audience 122s, albeit with the slightly tighter focus and diminished dynamics typical of small monitors. This confirmed my suspicion that for $1,800, a quartet of 42s and a 42C would make an excellent affordable system. Adding the Sub-30A was a slightly more complicated task than normal (owing to the extra adjustments) but well worth the effort. Despite its size, this is a subwoofer of considerable finesse, No "one-note wonder" here, the Sub-30A is airy and textured with considerable detail and the ability-when properly placed and tweaked- gel with the rest of the speakers in the Audience line. (I later had a brief chance to try it with my reference Martin-Logan Scenario, Script, and Cinema center system with equally excellent results.) But that elegance doesn't mean the Sub-30A is a pantywaist, as I'll describe below. The Whole Enchilada The coherence, clarity, and ease of the Audience system really pay off with movie sound, which, as we all know, is generally mixed with a boost in the treble. One particularly beautiful surround mix is the DVD of Martin Scorsese's Kundun. The soundtrack opens with the barely audible whistle of wind that ramps up in volume just before all channels explode with the guttural voices of chanting monks and the staccato beating of wood blocks, drums, and other percussion instruments. This complex sonic mix was especially well suited to the Audience Series' strengths, conveying an immense, enveloping acoustical space that was also beautifully integrated. The Sub30A brought an exceptional feeling of weight and drama to the percussion, without losing control, sounding discontinuous, or making its presence felt as a separate entity. This was also true with RZA's jazz-infused hip-hop score to Jim Jarmusch's Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, with its throbbing bass notes. It is possible that those who feast on a steady diet of action flicks may want a more aggressive-sounding system, but I found forays into Three Kings and Gladiator territory plenty explosive and exciting. Conclusion
This Danish multichannel speaker system is an aural dynamo. There’s a common mentality out there in the free world that a given object’s quality can only equal the sum of its parts. Well, my contention is that some very special products exceed the sum of their parts, mainly when you calculate that unquantifiable constant - performance. For instance, of the many vague parts that make up the average bed you spend about eight hours a night sleeping in, which part is the most important? Is it the mattress? The boxspring? The pillows? The sheets? When you add a duvet comforter or a luxurious down featherbed, what does that comfort count for? An unquantifiable experience that can only be measured by pure enjoyment. Well, I go the same feeling when I was unboxing Dynaudio’s Audience speaker system. You see, Dynaudio is a Danish company best known in the U.S. for manufacturing high-quality speaker drivers. Some of these drivers go into the company’s own speakers, and some get sold on the OEM market. You can buy Dynaudio drivers and tweeters and construct your own speaker cabinet fro them, but, according to the company, it will actually cost you more than buying a comparable Dynaudio speaker made up of similar components, and it probably won’t sound as good. This point out a fairly interesting point - what do the engineers at Dynaudio have that the average speaker enthusiast doesn’t? That unquantifiable knowledge that goes with decades of engineering experience, that’s what. Aside from all that, however, Dynaudio’s latest foray into the home theater speaker market is probably the most impressive aspect of this storied company’s legacy, demonstrating the fact that Dynaudio's engineering exceeds the value of just lumping together various parts. We’ve been seeing Dynaudio products pop up at more and more dealers and in more and more installations; now we know the reason why. Filling out the low end is the Audience Sub-30A powered sub-woofer. Featuring a 12-inch woofer powered by a 150-watt internal amplifier, the Sub-30A comes finished in matte-black vinyl. The back panel of the Sub-30A has virtually all the connections most people will need. As always, there are the usual level control, a crossover-frequency knob ranging from 60 to 120 hertz, and a phase knob that rotates from 0 to 180 degrees. Also, there’s a set of RCA inputs and outputs for line-level connection. Unfortunately, there are no speaker-level connections, but if you’ve got a Dolby Digital pre/pro or receiver, that’s not really necessary. You just connect the subwoofer output of you pre/pro or receiver directly into the mono input of the back panel of the Sub-30A, and you’re good to go. Setting up the system was a cinch, and the speakers worked fine in the normal positions I place most speakers I test. However, the Dynaudio guys dropped by to tweak the system for me, and they moved the front main speakers a little further into the room than I would. The center speaker sat atop a Mistsubishi 50-inch RPTV, and the surround speakers were placed on the stands beside and to the rear of the listening position, angled in at my listening chair. The Sub-30A was placed in the front left corner of the room, where I normally achieve the best bass response for our listening room. Using high-end electronics, such as Krell’s A+V Standard pre/pro and their wonderful KAV-500 five-channel amp, we achieved great sound performance from this midpriced speaker system. On stereo music performance, I was really impressed with the Dynaudios. On all the pop and rock music I listened to, localization of instruments was precise - putting snare drums and high-hats exactly where they were supposed to be, rather than placing them indefinitely in the muddled soundfield as some speakers do. Also, the ever-important midrange reproduction (where vocals reside) was bang-on, always sounding natural, human, and uncolored (like a Ron Sexsmith recording), rather than raspy or wispy (like a Meat Loaf recording). Bass response from the Audience 70s was also tight and refined, reproducing kick-drum hits accurately without boom or overhang. Below that, the Sub-30A kicked in. With the industry-standard 80-Hz crossover in the Krell pre/pro, it integrated very nicely with the mains. Like a lot of audiophile subs, it’s expensive for the driver size and amp power provided, but it does afford a precision and musicality you don’t get with those big 15- and 18-inch bruisers. I have to say I found the combination of the Sub-30 and the Audience 70s a sheer joy to listen to - I think the Audience 70s compare favorably with a lot of $2000/pair stuff I’ve heard. I also like the fact that you can play them really, really loud. On multichannel surround sound material, my reactions were very much the same. The front soundstage blended naturally, thanks to the clever design of the speakers. Since all use virtually the same tweeter and similar midrange drivers, the entire system’s sound is coherent and balanced - characteristics critical for good multichannel sound reproduction. On dialogue, the center speaker also convinced me of its quality, since I actually forgot I was listening to a speaker and not an actual human voice. I’d say that’s a good sign. The Audience 40s in the rear balanced the room nicely, which made for a convincing presentation, especially during movie scenes. On 5.1 music, such as cuts from Sessions at West 54th, I would have preferred a surround speaker with deeper bass reproduction, but for the average movie, they’re great. Of course, they’re also a steal at the suggested list price. Last, the Sub-30A worked very nicely on home theater material, making the explosions seem larger than life. I honestly find it very hard to fault this system. It is what many others aren’t: a great deal of a pleasure to listen to. If you’re into great sound and want a great deal, there’s not much else that con compete at this price. Stereophile, July/August 1999 The Audience System: Most Dynaudio product feature striking clean Scandinavian design finished in rich veneers, but the 5.1’s pedestrian-looking cabinetry is clad in serviceable faux-wood vinyl. (The one slip in dynaudio’s refreshingly unhyperbolic product literature occurs when the copywriter calls the vinyl finish “magnificent.”) The tall and unusually narrow boxes are somewhat ungainly, but they help the speaker to disappear visually and sonically. In targeting a lower price point, Dynaudio put their money where it counts: in the drivers, which appear to be manufactured to the same high standards as those found in Dynaudio's more expensive product. In addition, the cabinet’s construction looks and feels quite solid. Each of the five magnetically shielded main speakers contains two 6-inch polypropylene-cone woofers driven by substantial if low-mass 3-inch aluminum voice-coils, which are wound using a patented technique. According to Dynaudio’s literature, the coils are thermoplastically coated, then processed so they expand and contract to form “a solid mass of compact wire” that is durable and extremely stable. This process also increases the density of wire within the magnetic gap, which increases overall efficiency, as does the use of dual magnets inside the coil. The pole piece is vented for better cooling, and the spider (the part that acts as a “shock absorber” for the coil) is progressively resistive to adjust the compliance based on the amount of driver excursion. Dynaudio claims this feature allows for outstanding mechanical control of the driver, even during the kinds of high excursions likely with home-theatre program material According to Dynaudio, the result of all this technology is linear movement without breakup, smooth and uniform phase response, outstanding dynamics, and maximum efficiency and mechanical control at high power levels. The compact, rear-ported system is said to achieve excellent low-frequency response down to an impressive 37Hz. High frequencies are reproduced by a magnetically shielded version of Dynaudio’s highly regarded D260 Esotec 1.1-inch treated textile dome tweeter. This driver features damped, sealed rear chambers to minimize backwave reflections and a large, die-cast from plate for extra rigidity and better heat dissipation. The crossover frequency is 2510Hz; the woofers roll off at 6dB/octave slope. Dynaudio’s literature says the crossover networks are built using “custom-produced” polypropylene capacitors and custom-wound aircore inductors. The Flared port on the rear is somewhat unusual for a home-theater speaker, which often must be placed close to a wall. Dynaudio’s solution is to provide a foam port plug, which makes the speaker behave more like a sealed box than a bass-reflex system. However, placing a speaker closer to the wall usually results in greater bass output anyway, so the net result should be close to the same performance either way. I’m able to place the speakers sufficiently away from the wall, so I didn’t need the port plug. I did listen to the system with the grille covers off, but I did most of my auditioning with them in place for aesthetic reasons. The Lowdown Both subs offer adjustable output level, variable lowpass filtering, and 360 degrees of continuous phase control in two ranges: 0-180 and 180-360 degrees. The unusually flexible connections include left, right, and mono low-level inputs, right and left “throughputs” that can pass the signal flat or rolled off below 80Hz, and a utility in/out that lets you link multiple subwoofers. The review system included the larger and more expensive 30A subwoofer. Based on the specs, the 20A offers essentially the same low-frequency performance (within 2Hz), but with 5dB lower output. It should suffice for listening rooms of small to average size, and it will save you $400. The Audience speakers proved easy to drive and provided equally satisfying (though somewhat different) performance with all three amplifiers. Perhaps due in part to the tweeter's outstandingly smooth dispersive characteristics and the narrow, low-diffraction front baffle, the Audience’s L/C/R speakers create the smoothest, least intrusive soundstage of any home-theater system I’ve audition. Instead of hearing three separate speakers, the listener is left with a lush sonic panorama extending across the front of the room. Other systems I’ve auditioned do this to varying degrees, but the Audience system does it best (not counting the ultra-expensive Linn system, reviewed in the February ‘99 issue, which is another league entirely). In stereo mode, the left and right speakers create the most solid and stable center image I’ve yet experience in my living room. Not only that, it remained centered in all three seating positions on my couch, almost elimination the need for the center-channel speaker altogether. The frequency balance is as stable as the imaging, indicating superb high-frequency dispersion and well-distributed power response across a wide arc. The overall sonic balance of the Audience system is rich, lush, and liquid in the mids. The smooth, non-edgy highs are entirely free of grain, and tight, well-articulated bass issues from the five main speakers when driven full-range with the subwoofer turned off. Driver integration is impressive, as demonstrated by music, dialog, and pink noise. Sitting amid five such speakers creates an intensely involving, non-fatiguing sonic picture. There’s nothing like five identical, well-behaved, nearly full-range speakers to create an ideal “acoustic bubble.” The Audience system’s version of this ideal sounds larger and richer than most, regardless of price. Small speakers that produce a big, rich sonic picture - that should appeal to many home-theater enthusiasts tight for space. If you like “snap” and “crackle,” you won’t get them fro the Audience system; it is well-behaved and polite, almost to a fault. Given the crunchy, processed nature of most film soundtracks, the Audience’s smooth, rich sound is a genuine plus, as is its image focus, which is reasonable precise but not at all etched or overly detailed. With the Audience’s presentation, you lose a bit of air or space and some transparency on music source. But if you use the system primarily for film sound, you lose little if anything. What you gain is a speaker system that is forgiving of film sound’s faults, while never sounding closed-in or smothered when reproducing music. Now Add the Bottom The rear port requires some clearance to work effectively. Dynaudio suggests a minimum of 2 inches; I managed about 4 inches. The Sub-30A is rated at 115dB SPL in a “typical” room. I barely had to turn the knob up from minimum to achieve a satisfactory main/subwoofer blend. With LFE information from Dolby Digital and DTS program material, the sub’s response is dynamic and full-bodied. However, it's somewhat “mellower” than some other subs, which seem to be more tightly wound and better able to deliver a wind-expelling punch to the stomach. It must be difficult for a company dedicated to musical reproduction to switch gears and build and “effects” box. When you put the whole package together and watch a movie with an accomplished soundtrack - like th DTS DVD of Dances With Wolves - you have a dynamic, rich-sounding system that never calls attention to itself or lets its seams show. It simply delivers an immense, enveloping, exciting sonic picture. Conclusion And, of course, until you crank up the system. The Audience 5.1 outperforms many much larger arrays I’ve heard, and it offers a sonic “bubble” far larger than its five slim boxes suggest is possible. It will play very loud without strain while maintaining its smooth, controlled demeanor. It’s only moderately efficient (86dB), but its controlled impedance should make it relatively easy to drive; and given its warm tonal balance, you can expect great results with a moderately priced receiver. If you’re looking for short-term sonic excitement, or your taste runs toward ultra-fast, razor-sharp, “snappy” transients, this system might sound a bit to polite. But over the long haul, its performance will continue to satisfy after some of the brasher performers have worn out their welcomes. |
 |
I was very excited when I heard that I would be evaluating Dynaudio’s Audience line of loudspeakers. The Danish loudspeaker company’s reputation amongst audio lovers is one of almost mythic proportions. Unfortunately, many fans have been deterred from owning these speakers because of their lofty price. For a long time the least-expensive choice was the Contour series. In response to those seeking more affordable Dynaudios, the company created the Audience series, of which a $5885 USD system was assembled for review here. After countless refinements Dynaudio believes that they have a design that strikes the perfect balance between affordability and fidelity.
The Perfect Vision, High Performance Home Theater, May/June 2001
Home Theater, August 1999