Dynaudio upgrade advice needed

Dynfan160 has had x16 focus 160 and currently Focus 260. I also have a friend who has had the same. From what I've read and been told the Focus line provides a little more than the Excite line. 160 may sound a bit brighter than the 270 as well. Maybe the second driver helps with that. I want to hear the new contour series before getting anything new myself. 

More focus and less excitement?

Lol. Yeah maybe. Think he described it as punchier bass and airier highs. A little more refined. 

I have the old Contour 1,8mk2s which were the the forerunner of the Focus 260.   12 years old a superb speaker but took on a completely new lease of life when the 250DR arrived.  The I'm yet to hear a speaker at less than £8,000 that I would buy to replace.   If you can find a 260 I'm sure you'd enjoy but they like plenty of room.

Regards,

Lindsay

I know you have the older Excite model, and to be honest the new Excite range is much improved, believe it or not. Hearing the new Excite models may be worth investigating.

Since Dyn no longer makes the Focus line in passive any longer you would have to get used, or possibly you could find NOS, I just purchased the X38's, compared it side by side to the Focus 260's my dealer had for his demo pair. I preferred the X38's.

Yes, I know the Focus line has higher spec drivers, but the Excite X38's well, just sounded more exciting. A little less refined, and a little less reserved, but not really such a big difference, you can tell the Focus line is an overall better speaker, but lets just say you could tell they come from the same manufacturer.

The Contour S3.4 LE are excellent sounding speakers, and would be a definite improvement over what you have. But to be honest, the speakers that you already have, to make a really worthwhile, night and day difference, you would have to move up to the Confidence line.

The C1 Platinum's I heard at Axpona were, to these ears, the best sound at the show.

thanks Badlands - wow I am quite pleased that you preferred the X38 to the Focus 260 ! 

Actually when I heard the C1, Focus 110 active, then XD400 (sorry I mentioned XD600 above, my mistake) active, and then I took a chance and purchased the X32 without audition, I don't find any night and day differences, and that may be why my dealer suggested an upgrade all the way up to Confidence C4 range (he did say it is a huge slice of the top of range Dynaudio at much more affordable price)

 but still the C4 is quite expensive !

Thanks very much everyone for your feedback, very helpful

I was thinking the same, I love that fast and boogie Naim sound, and with the Excite it does make for a very fun sound to me, and I would not be that keen to trade a more energetic presentation for more refinement

What was driving the C1 at that show?

I did heard the C1 driven from a Krell amp, but what was amazing was that my Naim DAC V1 into the focus 110 active speakers wasn't really such a massive step down from the C1.

The C1's were driven by Mark Levinson mono blocks, the speed, impact, and delicacy had to be heard to be believed. James Taylor was standing right there in the room, HONEST! There is a blurb on the Stereophile website saying something to the same effect. But I wrote my review first!

What did you think of the bass output on the C1?

Super fast and tight, and very extended by any standards, even more impressive that it's a stand mount speaker, you get your $7000.00 dollars worth with this speaker. If you have the disposable income, and have the proper electronics to do them justice, very highly recommended.

Here's the blurb from Stereophile review.

Ok that is some serious $ amount of electronics, the C1 is one hell of a speaker to be upto that level !

I only heard them with the entry level Krell integrated. And also it was the much older C1, not the latest version. 

If I may ask what system are you fronting your X38 with?

Definitely the best looking of the range.

I wonder what level of Naim could drive the C1S as well as that ML system at the show?

I don't know ?(!)

badlands posted:

I know you have the older Excite model, and to be honest the new Excite range is much improved, believe it or not. Hearing the new Excite models may be worth investigating.

My little X12's were my first choice for my Qute2.  Have since added the NAP 100.  Now I see there are X14's, and 18's.  Darn!  I'm sure my local dealer would be delighted to lend me a pair. Now-a-days I listen substantially more hours per week to my Qute than to my SN2/NDS, just because of what's in what room and where I 'hang out' in the evenings.

Have you heard the 14's or 18's?

analogmusic posted:

I wonder what level of Naim could drive the C1S as well as that ML system at the show?

I know a guy that says a SN2 wasn't up to his C1s but the 272/250 combo was. He did say he likes it really loud so a SN2 may be good for most people. I may be able to answer that question my self in the future. 

Bart posted:

badlands posted:

I know you have the older Excite model, and to be honest the new Excite range is much improved, believe it or not. Hearing the new Excite models may be worth investigating.

My little X12's were my first choice for my Qute2.  Have since added the NAP 100.  Now I see there are X14's, and 18's.  Darn!  I'm sure my local dealer would be delighted to lend me a pair. Now-a-days I listen substantially more hours per week to my Qute than to my SN2/NDS, just because of what's in what room and where I 'hang out' in the evenings.

Have you heard the 14's or 18's?

X14 suppose to be an improvement over the X12 and easier speaker to drive, 8ohm. The X18 is 4ohm but uses same driver as recently discontinued Focus 160. I would like to her them but right now the Focus 160 seems to be the better value if you can steal find them in stock. 

C1's can be driven with ease from supernait level.

282, nap 250 is a great combo. So my advice would be, try to find some preloved c1 mk2. 

Confidence serie is really different level from exite, focus and even contour.

Witch dynaudios can be driven from NAP 140? 
I would try contour 1.1 with NAP 140 but I'm not sure if that is enough power. 

I tried the C1 mark II on the end of a pair of serviced NAP135s at home.  

I suspect that the speaker-room interaction was an unhappy one, so while there was a tremendous amount of bass, it was somewhat ill defined.  The mid-range was a bit relentless & tiring too.

The bass seems to come out of the enormous rear ports, rather than from the speaker cone at the front, so careful placement away from boundaries is essential.  They are a funny paradox of a small speaker that needs a great deal of space.  A bit weird but there you are.

With the right amp (I suspect this means a 250DR as a minimum), an iron grip and enough space, they could very well sound truly special.

Best regards, FT

Don't .... Work on the sources first

Dynaudio speaker sound really good from Contour and possible Confident Series. Mostly are power hungry or need decent amp to drive them well, even though Dyn-company/designer improved a lot on the 'easier driving drivers and etc'. This is Naim forum, and sure Naim is matching well to these speaker. If you wish to go for alternative view then Accuphase is a good move (2nd hand Integreated Amp like E550 or E560 will do the job very well.

With Dynaudio C1 close to wall, the foam plugs Is good help to control the ports output.