Naim and Dynaudio Thread

It was a few years between when I owned the focus 160’s,and the special 40’s,so I am just going off memory here.The 160’s were my first Dyn speaker,and I just loved them.I only traded them in because the upgrade bug hit me.About a year and a half ago I ended up getting the grey special 40’s,and from memory,they were more refined than the 160’s,possibly like going from a Nap 250,to a 250 DR…they just do everything a little better,sweeter mids and treble,bass is fuller,tighter.The thing I really preferred about the 40’s was I could crank them really loud without overdriving them,which I had trouble with the 160’s.Definitely an upgrade,but not really anything substantial in my view.

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I had uniti nova and ProAc tablette 10 sig. I want to upgrade to dyn c2 platinum.
Interested to know if anyone has experience with nova and c2. Does nova have enough to drive c2?

Dynaudio C2s like a lot of current and won’t sound their best without an adequate amp. I play my C2 Platinum at low to moderate volumes (65-85db) in a smallish room and use a 250DR. I wouldn’t want to use anything less.

C2 II with SN2. Sounds great, and it’s a little too loud at the 10 o’clock position on the volume knob. The SN2 took them to the next level - cleaner and much better handling of the lower frequencies. The only regret is not doing this sooner.

Hi I think I’m really at the shallower/cheaper end of this topic as I have had Audience 15s for a long time and I still love them. Which I suppose just shows how tastes differ. I chose them over SBL 2s that I was loaned for a home demo at the same time.
The rest of my system has changed- 250 olive to 250DR, 102 - 282, HiCap to HiCap DR, Nordost baseline flat speaker cable to Red Dawn speaker cable, and steel spike upgrades on the Mana supports, and the 15’s have just shown significant improvements with each change without making me think they had become the weak link.
The dealer at the time also allowed me to try out a number of speaker cables, which showed me how the detailed tighter sound of Nordost cable gave me more flexibility with speaker placement. It’s true they can’t cope with loads of power (70 watts) but they still go loud enough for parties. They’re relatively small, but still go deep which is another advantage for domestic bliss.
I could go on about the difference speaker supports have also made, but will leave that for another time.
Best wishes Amer

Hi all, first post on this forum.
I am the proud owner of a naim nova having purchased one approx 8months ago.
On Thursday I received delivery of a pair of ex demo dynaudio s40’s to replace my Spendor a6 speakers - I am not hearing much bass from the s40’s though - I have increased my maximum listening volume from 40-45 with the spendors to 50 with the s40s - but still can’t hear much bass - I could feel the bass with the spendors at 40-45 but no such joy on the dynaudio’s
Any ideas what could possibly be wrong?
Thanks for your time
Pete

I would have expected perhaps more bass from the S40’s then the A6R’s, check the obvious - I presume they’re not accidentally connected out of phase? Also try moving them back closer to the wall and see if that makes a difference

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Thanks for the fast reply, I’m pretty sure the speaker cables are connected correctly but I plan to double check once I get home.
I too was expecting more bass tbh.
Thanks again
Pete

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Why did you change from the Spendors out of interest?

I got the upgrade bug :grimacing::grimacing:, and heard only great things about the dynaudio.
I had the a6 model not the a6r
:wink::+1:

That is to be expected as the A6’s are much larger speakers compared to S40’s bookshelves.

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@Fizzgog - try experimenting with position, the S40 is quite choosy about placement. I have mine 55cm from the back wall and the bass is perfect!

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Thank you for the advice so far, I’ll have a move around later and see if things improve. Pete

Ordered a birch grey pair and a set of stand 6’s last week, should have them tomorrow or wednesday and will compare notes when I’m up and running!

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Sounds like a plan!!
Pete

Cool @Hollow - i look forward to hearing what you think.

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Hi Fizzgog, the smaller S40s are bound to have less bass than a larger floorstander, so you should perhaps think about whether or not this change was a wise move? You should certainly experiment with positioning, and especially distance from the rear wall.
If they are new, expect them to take some time to run in, as hopefully the sound should improve.
What amp are you using?

S40’s are known for their great bass despite their size, they even supply bungs to tame it if necessary. Spendors can be slightly on the lean side although great speakers, ask me again in a few days!

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That may be true to a point, but the A6 is more than double the volume of the S40. There are limits to how much bass you can get out of a small box, however well designed.

Thanks Chris & Hollow, I am using a naim nova to power the 40’s and was playing at 50 volume earlier but something just isn’t right. I am playing tracks which I know very well and have listened to many times on a few different systems. Vocals are the best I’ve heard - rich and engaging. Highs seem excellent too. Soundstage is fine currently but I can adjust that through placement I think. I’m hearing parts of songs which I’d never noticed before. All is fine and dandy, I’m loving intros etc, but once the bassline or drums kick in, it feels flat and I feel like something is missing.
I own a BK xl200 mk2 sub which could possibly help, but I want to get the 40s correct first.
When listening to leftfield/chemical brothers on previous systems I’ve owned, the bass was thunderous, even on my old pioneer and technics midi systems/pre sub days - not currently though.
I have double checked the speaker cables and they connected correctly. The 40s are 38cm away from the rear wall, ports are unblocked.
Please excuse my poor explanations/lack of knowledge.
Pete