The Official Dynaudio Speakers Thread

[Spurrier Sucks]

Originally Posted by Twm1988

Yeah, that's kinda how I felt after using the Emits for a week and then at the end switching back to the DALI's for a day I just felt the presentation of the DALI's was 'off'. I wouldn't say the Opticon's were boxy, but definitely something in the mids had that 'canned' sound to vocals and the spatial presentation sounded a bit artificially enhanced.

Was a long day, but I ended up doing pretty well I think. My dealer didn't have the X14's in but had the X18's. Kinda worked out better though comparing the X18's and M20's anyway. Spent a coupe hours with 2ch music and then did a couple movie demo's just running in 2ch as well.

I found the Excite's to have the extra clarity and definition/precision I was looking for with the Emit's, and the Excites really didn't seem to loose any on the energy that the Emit's had. I would say the Excite's balance is a bit better, like you have said before Olivier. Emit's just sounded a little 'off' going back and forth between them. Emit's sound is maybe a touch more neutral and the Excite's had a touch of sweetness to them, which I liked. Even comparing the Emit's to the Energy's at home here, I found that I liked the Energy's tone a little better because of a similar touch of sweetness like the Excites have. Emit's sounded a little dry in comparison to the Excites, like they were missing a little of the proper tone color or whatever you want to call it, like they're missing a little of the human voice's heart and soul, and string instruments as well sound more organic with the Excites.

I also found that I did notice the difference in tone and clarity even with movie soundtracks. Of course explosions and gunshots sound equally good on both, but the things were familiar with like voices, dialogue and the film score's and soundtrack and certain things like rainfall and waves crashing and water flowing has a more organic and 'liquid' sound to it. The realism is just better with the Excites.

These things were enough for me to know that I wouldn't be happy enough going with the Emit's. I will say, just like Olivier, the Emit's probably can't be beaten in their price range, but the Excites take everything they do and improved it across the board. No, they're performance is not twice as good, like the difference in price would suggest, but they are the better speakers to be sure, and with the trade-in and discount off the X14's on top of that I had no hesitation going for them!

My dealer gave me basically 90% of what I paid for the Opticon's, and then also moved off the MSRP of the X14's. I had a number in my head of what I was willing to pay to go for the X14's and he was able to come 95% of the way there, so I was really pleased overall.

Emit's with stands and cables was tempting, but I thought to myself I will be happier with the better speakers and still using my own stands until funds allow to upgrade them too. Basically get the best speaker I can afford now and buy the rest of the items (stands, cables) in pieces along the way.

P.S. - that's awesome you love the C30's that much Olivier!!

Congrats! Which center are you going to get? X-24 or 28?

[BigAl87]

Congratz TWM and +1 on center i would get X-28 but is just me.

[Twm1988]

Thank's guys! Super excited to get them home, had to order them in so probably 2-3 weeks wait. DALI's came from Denmark when I ordered them, but the X14's apparently are coming from the Canadian distributor, so hopefully quicker than the DALI's took to come in.

Haven't decided which center channel yet, just doing the X14's for the moment so I can get them home and break them in and then will see if I can put more of a budget together for the X28. My dealer said he'll help me with the price on whichever center channel I go with, think he felt bad that I had to put this much in to figure out which speakers I want and how much more I have to spend now,lol. Super nice guy.

Still want to replace the H/K receiver with MRX 520 at some point too, what with the ridiculous thumping in the subwoofer channel every time the receiver drops a signal. Will be tapped out for audio funds after all this, Lol!

[BigAl87]

Originally Posted by Twm1988

Thank's guys! Super excited to get them home, had to order them in so probably 2-3 weeks wait. DALI's came from Denmark when I ordered them, but the X14's apparently are coming from the Canadian distributor, so hopefully quicker than the DALI's took to come in.

Haven't decided which center channel yet, just doing the X14's for the moment so I can get them home and break them in and then will see if I can put more of a budget together for the X28. My dealer said he'll help me with the price on whichever center channel I go with, think he felt bad that I had to put this much in to figure out which speakers I want and how much more I have to spend now,lol. Super nice guy.

Still want to replace the H/K receiver with MRX 520 at some point too, what with the ridiculous thumping in the subwoofer channel every time the receiver drops a signal. Will be tapped out for audio funds after all this, Lol!

I'd spend money on stand prior to center and run Phantom center for a bit. Just my 2 cents.

[callas01]

That's awesome to hear!!

I would not get cables until you have everything else you want first. So are the X14s on order?

[Twm1988]

Originally Posted by BigAl87

I'd spend money on stand prior to center and run Phantom center for a bit. Just my 2 cents.

Possibly, but there are two other listeners besides myself so only one person will be dead center, and the other two may not get a proper presentation??

[Twm1988]

Originally Posted by callas01

That's awesome to hear!!

I would not get cables until you have everything else you want first. So are the X14s on order?

Thanks Callas. Yes, had to be ordered in. I don't think he even stocks anything from the Excite line for some reason. Does have most of the Emit's in stock of course

Will definitely wait for cables till the end. Need to see how the speakers sound at home first, then if I want a little more sparkle in the high's or something I can get cables that will add the right amount of seasoning.

[Spurrier Sucks]

Got Naim Oliver?

[Twm1988]

X14's have arrived!!

Got about 1hr on them so far...

I would say that they are certainly an improvement over the Emit's I had on demo. Much better clarity and precision even without being broken in yet. Better flow to the music like Olivier had said. Neutral, but not quite as "dry" as the Emits seemed to me. High Frequency extension is better and much more refined overall. Don't seem to have lost any of the engaging presentation the Emit's had... they just need to open up and become a little more lively and cohesive, but that's my only complaint so far. Maybe they are not quite as aggressive and forward/lively as the Energy's, but they still have a good drive to the music so far, and the depth and spatial info is already destroying the Energy's.

[callas01]

They look great! Glad to hear they're sounding good! When are you gonna get new stands?

[Twm1988]

Thanks Callas.

I have the Energy's removed from these stands now and the Excited are Blue tacked to the stands. They are a bit low but are solid and have a good weight to them with the concrete base. The X14's fit fine on them and I'm happy with the performance they are giving for now.

I will eventually get a proper pair of stands to go with them, but for now my plan is to figure out which center channel I want and get the front 3 speakers home, steup, and broken in. When I get some more cash together I will probably look in to an Anthem MRX520, and then the stands will come in after that, and lastly maybe some speaker cables for he front three.

I know they're not the best stands to use, but having the front 3 speakers purchased and upgrading the amp will bring the biggest improvements so I intend to go for those first I think.

[Spurrier Sucks]

Has Oliver died?

[Twm1988]

Originally Posted by Spurrier Sucks

Has Oliver died?

Yeah I noticed he's strangely absent lately.

[callas01]

Originally Posted by Twm1988

Thanks Callas.

I have the Energy's removed from these stands now and the Excited are Blue tacked to the stands. They are a bit low but are solid and have a good weight to them with the concrete base. The X14's fit fine on them and I'm happy with the performance they are giving for now.

I will eventually get a proper pair of stands to go with them, but for now my plan is to figure out which center channel I want and get the front 3 speakers home, steup, and broken in. When I get some more cash together I will probably look in to an Anthem MRX520, and then the stands will come in after that, and lastly maybe some speaker cables for he front three.

I know they're not the best stands to use, but having the front 3 speakers purchased and upgrading the amp will bring the biggest improvements so I intend to go for those first I think.

That's awesome! With the X12s I found they sounded best with the tweeter as close to ear level as possible. So I think the X14s would be similar. However depending on how close or far you're sitting from them it'll differ, the further back the less it'll matter allowing for better dispersion, but still the closer you get the better they should sound.

Having owned the X22C and 210C I'll say the 210 produces more punch and male voices have a deeper more natural feel to them. However the X22 was one of the best dialog clarity sounding center channels I've ever heard. The 210 has clarity and is even more detailed and transparent sounding but, and I could be wrong, it seemed at times the X22 handled dialog just ever so clearer.... But action sequences definitely sound fuller and bigger and don't get lost at all between those towers. The X22 never sounded lost between my X16 btw, but the 160/210 sounded fuller to me then the 160/X22 tho. The X14/X28 will share the same size drivers and IMO should have that fuller more cohesive sound and any loss of dialog clarity would be marginal at best if what my aural memory remembers is actually true.

[Spurrier Sucks]

Originally Posted by Twm1988

Yeah I noticed he's strangely absent lately.

RIP Oliver.

[Twm1988]

Originally Posted by Spurrier Sucks

RIP Oliver.

Are you joking around?

[Twm1988]

Originally Posted by callas01

That's awesome! With the X12s I found they sounded best with the tweeter as close to ear level as possible. So I think the X14s would be similar. However depending on how close or far you're sitting from them it'll differ, the further back the less it'll matter allowing for better dispersion, but still the closer you get the better they should sound.

Having owned the X22C and 210C I'll say the 210 produces more punch and male voices have a deeper more natural feel to them. However the X22 was one of the best dialog clarity sounding center channels I've ever heard. The 210 has clarity and is even more detailed and transparent sounding but, and I could be wrong, it seemed at times the X22 handled dialog just ever so clearer.... But action sequences definitely sound fuller and bigger and don't get lost at all between those towers. The X22 never sounded lost between my X16 btw, but the 160/210 sounded fuller to me then the 160/X22 tho. The X14/X28 will share the same size drivers and IMO should have that fuller more cohesive sound and any loss of dialog clarity would be marginal at best if what my aural memory remembers is actually true.

I've found that my Energy RC Mini is also quite excellent with the dialogue clarity too.

Even though it's got about the same size drivers as the X24, I found that when I had the M20's on demo and used one of them as an upright center, the RC Mini still came away having the clearest and easiest to follow dialogue of the two. I think having the smaller drivers and not putting out as much bass allows it to sound clearer and not get muddied up. I told my dealer I was worried the X24 may struggle to keep up with the X14's, but he didn't seem to think it would have any trouble.

The X24 is $1200 CDN for me and the X28 is $1800 CND before tax. He said he could do $1500 on the X28 for me if I think I need to go for it. He has a Rosewood X24 demo model, and I think once I've got the X14's fully broken in I will go back and see if he'll let me borrow it for a day or two to find out if I am happy with it's output, or if I should go all in for the X28.

[Spurrier Sucks]

Originally Posted by Twm1988

I've found that my Energy RC Mini is also quite excellent with the dialogue clarity too.

Even though it's got about the same size drivers as the X24, I found that when I had the M20's on demo and used one of them as an upright center, the RC Mini still came away having the clearest and easiest to follow dialogue of the two. I think having the smaller drivers and not putting out as much bass allows it to sound clearer and not get muddied up. I told my dealer I was worried the X24 may struggle to keep up with the X14's, but he didn't seem to think it would have any trouble.

The X24 is $1200 CDN for me and the X28 is $1800 CND before tax. He said he could do $1500 on the X28 for me if I think I need to go for it. He has a Rosewood X24 demo model, and I think once I've got the X14's fully broken in I will go back and see if he'll let me borrow it for a day or two to find out if I am happy with it's output, or if I should go all in for the X28.

I don't think you need to worry about the x24 keeping up with the x14. Like Steve has said he used a x22 with his 260 and Sean used a x22 with his C2 for a while. He said it did a fine job with those. I'm considering getting a x24 to use with my C20. That being said I look forward to your comparison with the x24 and x28. The outcome could influence my decision if if I make a change with my center.

[prerich]

Originally Posted by Spurrier Sucks

RIP Oliver.

Are you serious?!!!!!

[Twm1988]

Originally Posted by Spurrier Sucks

I don't think you need to worry about the x24 keeping up with the x14. Like Steve has said he used a x22 with his 260 and Sean used a x22 with his C2 for a while. He said it did a fine job with those. I'm considering getting a x24 to use with my C20. That being said I look forward to your comparison with the x24 and x28. The outcome could influence my decision if if I make a change with my center.

I won't actually get to compare the X24 and X28 side by side... my dealer only has the X24 in for demo. I just meant that I will try and take that X24 home to demo and if I like it I'll order it, and if I think it's not keeping up with the fronts then I would go ahead and order the X28, but it would be without being able to hear the X28 in person.

Regardless, I will certainly let you know my thoughts on how the X24 performs with the X14's. I will probably need a good month or so to break in the X14's before I go and ask to borrow the X24, so hopefully that won't be too late to let you know my impressions and help you with your decision.