I was at my favourite dealer's place last week and he was demonstrating the new looks-like-a-bookshelf-sounds-like-a-floorstander speakers, the Mirage MRM (SGD$3000++). Along come a buyer looking for budget bookshelf so off goes the MRMs and on comes the Dynaudio Audience 40.
The MRMs were pretty good but the Audience 40 at a mere SGD$800 were so close I was really hard pressed to find any real differences. Soundstaging, imaging and most importantly transparency and palpability were top rate. I could hardly believe it!! Although the electronics used were admittedly pretty high end (Classe CDP .5 as transport via Alchemist's Top Of The Line Forsetti DAC, Pre/Power (Signature Series) and AFA cables throughout), the fact is the Audience 40 never let them down. It conveyed every bit of musicality with the out of box sound and the "right there in the room" quality. And at that price, it totally defeated the good impression the MRMs gave me. I asked my dealer-friend, "Who would buy the MRMs when they hear these?" Not that the MRMs are bad, they very good - but also very expensive....

Now I truly regret buying the JMLab Cobalt 807 (read my review elsewhere inthis site) without auditioning these speakers first.

Now I know how it feels when people say "I would give it 6 stars if I could". me? i give it 7 stars - 6 for sound and another one for sheer value for money.

Those of you looking for bookshelf REGARDLESS of price should listen to this first. If anything it wold at least be the yardstick for which all others are compared in terms of absolute sound quality *and* value for money. By the way, I heard the Audience 50s but the 40s, to me, are better. The 50s border on being harsh (as noted in Hi-Fi Choice).

The Dynaudio 40 are a great value. I purchased a system for a friend and was limited to $1500 total. Listened to many speakers in the sub-thousand zone and was not overly impressed (of course I just upgraded my speakers to Maggie 1.6's so I was recently auditioning in the $1500-3000 range) until I ran across these small wonders. They are very musical and their only sins would be ones of ommission - not surprisingly, they lack bass slam - but the bass they do put out is good quality. I was won over. Brought them home and decided to break them in on my Rotel 991 (200Wpc). Dynaudios are rumored to require a significant break-in so I was prepared for anything but what I heard, namely stunning sound. Right out of the box the highs were sweet and they really could rock, which I didn't expect from such a small bookshelf. They never congested even when driven hard. Wow! Patted myself on the back for scoring such a bargain for my friend. Now for a bit of a reality dose. Only have $800 left for a cd player, receiver and miscellaneous. Pick up the Marantz CC-38 carousel based mainly on the GoodSound review for $250. Good build quality for the price. Good stands set me back another $100, Radio Shack gold interconnects ($10) and 20 feet of Carol 12 gauge (Home Depot - $10). Have less than $400 left for amplication and she says she has to have radio so it looks like a stereo receiver is the only choice. I went with the Onkyo 8511 (100Wpc) based again on GoodSound and the fact I owned one before I upgraded.
Well, hooked everything up at her place and she was ecstatic. Unfortunately, while the speakers sounded good, they no longer sounded magical. Granted the Onkyo was right out of the box, but when we cranked it up, it started to fall apart, nor was it as good at anything at any volume levels.
Moral of the story. The Dynaudio 40's can be magical when teamed with higher end equipment and really provide more performance than their modest price. Does anyone out there have any suggestions for a better stereo receiver under $400 (I can still return the Onkyo!)? By the way, this is not a rip on the Onkyo which I myself was happy with, I just think it is outclassed by the Dynaudios.
Final comment. I also listened briefly to the Dynaudio 50's and was very impressed. They definitely had more bass presence and sounded terrific. I simply couldn't afford the extra $200, but they could well be worth it.

Five big stars for value, four overall since those 50's could be better

Some background: This review is made after listening to Legacy Focus and Whisper (Elite DVD and CD Player - forgot model #, with Legacy monoblocks), Martin-Logan Aerius and SL3 (Marantz Receiver and CD Player, forgot amp and DVD player), Hales Revelation 3 and Transcendence 3 (Rotel Amp and CD Player), NHT 2.5i (Rotel Amp and CD Player), 2.9, and 3.3 (Sony 355ES CD Player and Sony TA9000ES amplifier stereo mode), Definitive Technologies BP2000, and BP3000 (Sony 355ES CD Player and Sony TA9000ES amplifier stereo mode), PSB Stratus Silver-i (Rotel Receiver + Amp, Denon DVD Player, and another config which is Bryston amp + Rotel CD Player + forgot what preamp), DynAudio Audience 40 (Krell CD Player and Receiver), Snell (forgot what model, but it's $1400 a pair with McIntosh amp + Sony 5 CD changer player), McIntosh ML4C (Marantz DVD Player with all McIntosh amp/receivers). See my other reviews on these speakers for a perspective of what I want in sound.
All the speakers above I've heard in different places/room/situations/conditions and might affect the judgement of that particular speaker, so take this with a grain of salt, and more importantly, LISTEN to them if you are interested. This is just an OPINION of mine of those speakers I've heard. Full disclosure: I haven't bought any of these speakers, but right now I'm leaning toward the NHT 3.3, since I can buy them (1 year old) at around $2500. All the speakers I've heard will either get 3 to 5 stars, since I don't believe any speakers at this price range is capable of getting 1 star (If they do, how many star is my $10 computer speaker? If it's also 1, I'm sure the speaker reviewed will be a LOT better than my $10 computer speaker). A 5 can only be awarded to live performance, and so far I haven't heard anything that sounded like live performance (meaning you can't distinguish whether an instrument sound came out of a real instrument or a speaker).

Although this is a cheapo speaker compared to other speakers I auditioned, I have to say something about this. If anyone reading this is in the St. Louis area, please take time to go to this one shop called Music For Pleasure (Big Bend, near intersection with Laclede Station). I went in there, and they have this rather marvelous setup: the DynAudio Audience 40 with a $2500 Krell CD Player, and a $2500 Krell Stereo Receiver. The sound coming out of this setup was INCREDIBLE. Speakerwise, you would NEVER have expected a sound like that to come out of a $300 speaker. That said, this is STILL a $300 speaker, and cannot be compared with the other speakers I listed above. Strains when you push the volume up, and base leaves a lot to be desired (after listening to the other speakers). Also, since the accompanying equipments are expensive, make sure you listen to it with your own reasonable set of equipments first.

For those who need either a small speaker or are looking for hi-fi on a budget, the Audience 40s are worth serious consideration.I have heard most major brands and in their price range the 40s are very musical. I just purchased a pair and while they're still being broken in, the sound is very, very good. Before buying I seriuosly auditioned B&W 602S, Castle Isis, and Sound Dynamics RTS-3s. I had already ruled out Snells and Vandersteens because i don;t like their sound, at least athoer lower-cost products. I liked the 602s, but they would have overwhelmed my listening room and the bass of the 601s was insufficient. The CDM1SEs were nice speakers, but were beyond my budget and not moving enough to make me want to spend the extra dough. The Isis were superb on jazz, but the treble sizzled on both vocals and rock. They had a severely etched quality that I felt would lead to listening fatigue. Especially since I audtioned them with tubes and I have solid state gear. The RTS-3s were a better all-around speaker with a very warm cast. The emphasis is solidly on the midrange. In their price range, they are hard to argue with and would seem to be ideal for pairing with a receiver or budget gear. They are not, however, a very sophisticated speaker and the listener's engagement with them is casual. They are perhaps too easy to listen too. And because of their price, I really wanted to like them, although the dealer was asking much more than the $280 list price. I auditioned the Dynaudios last because they were the most expensive, and I was hoping not to spend that much. Unfortunately for my wallet, they were too good to pass up. The music was detailed, rhythmic and involving. From what I'd read about Dynaudio I was afraid they'd be somewhat bright, but they weren't. They seem to be at home with all kinds of music, accurately reproducing the tone of John Coltrane's sax, the nasal drawl of Tom Petty and the distorted electronic attack of Jeff Beck's guitar. I haven't really listened to them with classical yet, and I think here their small size and soundstage may be a real drawback. But you'd be surprised at the bass these speakers put out and it's not just low frequency noise. Imaging is not bad, especially considering my room and that I don't yet have them on dedicated stands. Listening to Otis Rush, I got a real sense of the band, especially when he took a solo. The music seemed to originate from his amp and not mine. They are easy to drive, which was another concern of mine, since Dynauidos have a reputation for being inefficient speakers.I've got a Linn Classik--75 watts at 4ohms--and it has no problem driving these speakers. There are other speakers in this price range that may do certain things better than the 40s; for instance, I think the Maggies are better on vocals. But for all around listening and ease of use and placement, these would be hard to match. If I had a larger listening area I would have listend to the 50s, but since I don't, I didn't want to torture myself.

I think for the money they are hard to beat considering they are about $550 in my country.
I have paired them w/ relatively budget electronics to very expensive Krell stuff and the speakers just keeps up with the music.

I had mine less than two weeks and I do notice that the highs are a little too much for my taste although I heard frm other owners that breaking them in would tame these.

Imaging, Soundstaging & bass is quite good for such a small speaker. I had them placed 8 feet apart, 7 feet away from the rear walls. Its amazing how this speaker filled the room with layers and layers of details. Equipment used in acheiving this setup: Krell KAP150, Classe CDP.3, Anthem L1 Preamp, VDH The Wind Speaker Cables & VDH The First Interconnects.

I did compare this with the Audience 50, I find the Audience 50 in an untreated room to be a bit on the boom side. Compared to the Sonus COncertino, I think the Sonus are a little bit warmer, less trebly and the soundstage a tad wider and deeper. But again the COncertinos are a bit more cash.

Overall, I highly recommend them. Except for the the little brightness, couldn't ask for anything more. I give it 4-4.5 stars.

Clear and bright sound
Good detail
Punchy bass
Good positioning
Good value

Sometimes they become too bright, but that's also because I wired them with QED Quodos Silver
Need good (expensive) stands
Need a amplifier with much power (e.g. NAD C320)

I bought this little fabolous speaker about 6 months ago. At first their sound was good, but less than I expected. After a couple of weeks they slowly started to get better, and now they're just perfect. Great imaging and a fantasic detail. Especially the tweeter of this speaker is fantastic. But the bass is perfect either. It's not as good as the Audience 50, but if you buy these, I'm sure you won't think they have a lack of bass. There bass is punchy and absolutely not booming. You want some almost 'high-end'speakers, but you don't have too much money. Buy these, elseway, if you do have money. You better listen to the contour-line from Dynaudio. By the way Dynaudio fits perfectly with a good NAD Cd-player (524) and they got a recommend from Audio (a German magazine) to use the NAD C320. Very nice amplifier though. Also make sure you buy good stands and good wire. If you think the speakers are a bit bright, buy copper. You like them to give every detail, buy e.g. Qed Quodos Silver. Also Dynaudio has wire for this speaker called Occos. Very good wire indeed. And then last but not least: don't forget a good interlink. Then you have just like me a fantasis set for about 1500 dollar to 2000 dollar.

Similar Products Used:

No, but I did listen quite a lot of speakers

wide dynamics, warmth, accuracy, this is how music should sound.

none so far.

I have listened to the audience 40 and 50 at various audio shops for 3-4 months before i finally bought a pair. The reason why i didn't buy it earlier is because I wanted to confirm the speakers are in fact wonderful and it wasn't the audition room setup or the amplifiers used. My conclusion is the audience 40 sounds just as fantastic when matched with Krell, Pass, McIntosh, as they do when wired with a Denon 35wpc receiver.

In my unprofessional opinion, b&w speakers are worth the consideration, but they are just not up to the dyn calibre.
more specifically..
b&w 602s2 can be bought at around $350 where I live, it is a fine speaker more suitable for a/v system, and its brightness prohibits one from listening at a prolonged period.

Tannoy book shelves are way too Englishman -- too refined, muffled, not lively.

I actually had the pleasure of listening to a $10k+ setup consisting of Audio Research tube amp, Krell amp, CAL cd player, MIT cables, and B&W 801 speakers. guess what? I was more impressed by the denon receiver with the audience 40 setup. the $10k setup had this mature sound, a little too warm, too controlled for my taste. As soon as I switched to the less expensive dyn +denon setup, the sound was more lively, dynamics opned and the color richer, it just had more spunk!

Maggies became too harsh after 3-4 hours of listening; my trusty ol'ML-1C sounds very much like Tannoy (very mature and muddled); hi-end KEF speakers are nice but way out of my budget; soliliquey(?) played music but it didn't have that special extraordinariness to chose it over the dyn, inaddition, it was $200 more than the audience 40.

at present my audience 40 rose wood is powered by McIntosh MC2205 with McIntosh MX113 tuner preamp, monster cable all around, and a philips DVD player. I would like to credit the delicious music to the amps, but deep down i know the dyn plays a major part in the overall quality of the music reproduction. Orchestra instruments can be individually heard, nothing gets cloudy; acoustic guitar sounds soo rich and full; solo vocal performances will make the hair on the back of ur neck stand up. All i can say is I cannot wait to come home each day to listen to real music.
In conclusion, you really must audition the audience 40 if you are in the market for speakers, regardless of ur price range, it is simply ...wonderful.

Similar Products Used:

KEF, b&w 801, 602s2, maggies, McIntosh ML-1C, tannoy, soliliquey, klipsche (yea i know..not sure what i was doing that day)