She loves my Dynaudio!!!

[Davemcc]

So I went out today and bought a pair of Dynaudio Focus 140's on a whim. I didn't mention it to my wife because I didn't even know I was going to do it. Anyway, she loves them...a lot. So much that she hasn't even asked what they cost. Talk about gettin' off the hook.

Initial impressions:

They do a much better job of filling the room with sound, even without requiring a lot of volume to do so. They sound somewhat lighter than what I'm used to with my Era D5. The mids are more open and the highs clear without being bright or harsh. But this gets into one of the things that I like about the Era in the first place. They have a tremendous bottom end and really feel heavy at times, really playing rolling bass riffs and guitar riffs very solidly. I think I may begin to miss that solidity of the D5 over time.

One thing that I've found with the D5 is that they like a lot of power to really shine, so I've been giving it to them and I've been very happy with the result. But the Dynaudio don't seem to have that same craving for power before they really start to shine. It's a substantially larger speaker and you can hear and feel that it fills the room much easier without being pushed.

The Dynaudio also do an excellent job of presenting the singers voice, clear and distinct. It's hard to describe exactly but without compromising the music or balance, the singers voice seems to stand out distinctly, particularly with tracks from Jackson Brown and America (some of what I've listened to already).

The imaging seems better than the D5, but it's the imaging that I really wanted out of the Dynaudio in the first place. That's what initially attracted me to the Dynaudio the first time I heard the Focus 220 at my dealer. I know my DIY acoustic treatment (esp. the corner traps) is probably preventing me from getting the best imaging possible, but that's an issue I'll take up with some professionals later.

Overall, my initial impressions are that I'm very pleased with this choice. I'm especially happy that my wife is happy despite my spending nearly $2k without even a mention to her.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

I love DAs.

You think she loves them, expect a big truck full of new furniture to pull up on Friday. I drove to a near by town yesterday to pick up my external hard drive and it ended up costing me almost 3k. Turns out some jack-*** put a furniture store by the AV store so after we left the AV store, she said 'pull into here real quick' and you know how the story goes from there.

 

[Davidt1]

So I went out today and bought a pair of Dynaudio Focus 140's on a whim. I didn't mention it to my wife because I didn't even know I was going to do it. Anyway, she loves them...a lot. So much that she hasn't even asked what they cost. Talk about gettin' off the hook.

Initial impressions:

They do a much better job of filling the room with sound, even without requiring a lot of volume to do so. They sound somewhat lighter than what I'm used to with my Era D5. The mids are more open and the highs clear without being bright or harsh. But this gets into one of the things that I like about the Era in the first place. They have a tremendous bottom end and really feel heavy at times, really playing rolling bass riffs and guitar riffs very solidly. I think I may begin to miss that solidity of the D5 over time.

One thing that I've found with the D5 is that they like a lot of power to really shine, so I've been giving it to them and I've been very happy with the result. But the Dynaudio don't seem to have that same craving for power before they really start to shine. It's a substantially larger speaker and you can hear and feel that it fills the room much easier without being pushed.

The Dynaudio also do an excellent job of presenting the singers voice, clear and distinct. It's hard to describe exactly but without compromising the music or balance, the singers voice seems to stand out distinctly, particularly with tracks from Jackson Brown and America (some of what I've listened to already).

The imaging seems better than the D5, but it's the imaging that I really wanted out of the Dynaudio in the first place. That's what initially attracted me to the Dynaudio the first time I heard the Focus 220 at my dealer. I know my DIY acoustic treatment (esp. the corner traps) is probably preventing me from getting the best imaging possible, but that's an issue I'll take up with some professionals later.

Overall, my initial impressions are that I'm very pleased with this choice. I'm especially happy that my wife is happy despite my spending nearly $2k without even a mention to her.

Do you plan on selling your D5?

 

[Tomorrow]

Way to go, Dave!! Congrats. Life is short and you oughta get what you want.

But maybe you're doing the typical male thing that we all do...("I got away with something...yeaaaa")... Uh uh. She might not comment now, but that's because revenge is the dish best served cold, and wimmins really really know it. There will be an even scale at the end of the process. Count on it.

PS: Hopefully I'll have a little braggin' to do this week, too. Woooooooo..............

 

[gus6464]

Pics!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Davemcc]

I love DAs.

You think she loves them, expect a big truck full of new furniture to pull up on Friday. I drove to a near by town yesterday to pick up my external hard drive and it ended up costing me almost 3k. Turns out some jack-*** put a furniture store by the AV store so after we left the AV store, she said 'pull into here real quick' and you know how the story goes from there.

Naw, I'm pretty sure she really does love them. I played a few songs for her that I thought would put them in their best light. Then I handed the remote to Discowife so she could play her own music and she promptly cranked the volume to -2db, far higher than I ever really go. She also doesn't care to know what they cost. She's very happy.

 

[Davemcc]

Do you plan on selling your D5?

I'm not going there. I still love my D5's. You're the second one to ask since I announced my new speakers, which brings up an interesting point...has anybody ever seen a pair of Era speakers for sale used? I haven't.

 

[cbraver]

Nice, Dave! Now I have another Dynaudio owner to b.s. with!

You're right that they don't need power, but feed them some and you might find the solidity you enjoy. I haven't heard a Dynaudio yet that didn't sound best with big iron.

Enjoy!!! Take pics!!

Oh, btw, don't sell your D5's. Keep them, you'll regret selling them. A speaker you love now, you'll really love years from now. If you sell it, somewhere down the line you'll go "damn, I wish I never sold those."

 

[Davemcc]

As requested:
View across the front:

Focus 140 close up:

Era D5 and Focus 140:

HEY RJ, what have you got in the oven?


Forgot to add, these are driven by a Rotel RMB-1075 using a Denon AVR-2307 as a pre/pro crossed over to my SVS PB12-plus. The center channel is the Era D5 LCR that looks like it matches (visually) pretty darn well.

 

[cbraver]

Man, those look amazing.

The center channel is the Era D5 LCR that looks like it matches (visually) pretty darn well.

Yeah, at first I thought you bought a C200 also.

 

[Davemcc]

Man, those look amazing.

Thanks. I love the Rosewood. The Dyne's are a lot bigger than the Era, but I think the Era might be heavier. They are a solid hunk of small speaker.

Yeah, at first I thought you bought a C200 also.

Who knows? Could be next. I haven't been entirely happy with the vocal clarity of the D5 center, but given the Dyne's exceptional vocal clarity it seems like that would be a good way to go.

 

[gus6464]

Dave what size driver does the Dynaudio use? It looks huge compared to the ERA.

 

[adk highlander]

REALLY Jealous right now. Very nice. I've been lusting for dynaudio's contour line for a while but that rosewood looks really good.

 

[Davemcc]

REALLY Jealous right now. Very nice. I've been lusting for dynaudio's contour line for a while but that rosewood looks really good.

It's only a swipe away!

Gus, it's a 6.5" driver vs. the Era's 5". But don't let the driver size fool you. The Era has very strong bass. Following a bass guitar riff from it's lower to upper registers is pure delight with the Era. I'm on vacation this week so I'll have some time to put the Dyne's through their paces as well, but my initial reaction is that I will get equal, but not better bass response at least to my 80Hz crossover point. Driver size may play a role in extension, though. While the Era is rated to 50Hz, the 140 is rated to 41Hz.

 

[Tomorrow]

HEY RJ, what have you got in the oven?

Those are really lovely speakers, Dave.

What do I have cookin'? Well, I don't want to jinx anything since they are in UPS's hands right now, but these should be here TOMORROW!! (Now if only I could afford an amp to drive them, lol.)

 

[Davemcc]

Would telling me what they are be jinxing the delivery?

They look pretty nice, though. Whatever they are.

 

[gus6464]

Those are really lovely speakers, Dave.

What do I have cookin'? Well, I don't want to jinx anything since they are in UPS's hands right now, but these should be here TOMORROW!! (Now if only I could afford an amp to drive them, lol.)

Aerial Acoustics Model 7B!!!!!!

 

[MUDSHARK]

So I went out today and bought a pair of Dynaudio Focus 140's on a whim. I didn't mention it to my wife because I didn't even know I was going to do it. Anyway, she loves them...a lot. So much that she hasn't even asked what they cost. Talk about gettin' off the hook.

Well don't you just suck!

 

[leo1058]

nice setup. enjoy!!!

 

[chadnliz]

You will love them even more when they break in a bit, play them at low to moderate levels for a few days then push them for a bit and they should really show you what they can do. I did not read every post but I assume they are new, if they are not you may have optimal sound already, congrats on your new speakers!