Dynaudio: Exploring the exceptional hand-crafted loudspeaker manufacturer
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13.06.2024

Dynaudio: Exploring the exceptional hand-crafted loudspeaker manufacturer

Dynaudio
Words by Sam McNiece

A background on one of the most meticulous brands in audio.

Formed in 1977, Dynaudio was created after deciding that off the shelf loudspeakers weren’t exactly telling the whole story. Wilfried Ehrenholz started experimenting with different drivers and creating his own crossovers, but still wasn’t completely satisfied with the result, eventually deciding everything had to be made in house to ensure the highest levels of consistency and translatability required of the modern studio.

From humble beginnings the Danish company has gone on to produce some of the most revered loudspeakers out there, widening their net to include not only their highly coveted studio monitors, but everything from hi-fi setups, to sound systems for high end car manufacturers.

Read up on all the latest interviews, features and columns here.

“Whatever I do, I want to make a perfect thing. I talked to a lot of other engineers at the time, and I could see how limited their understanding of speaker technology was,” says Wilfried. “So we did it ourselves.”

Denmark

Part of what makes Dynaudio’s speakers so special is that they’re all hand assembled with a vast majority of their components created in-house. They currently employ over 300 people who oversee minute details including the wire winding of speaker coils. They even manufacture a specific magnesium silicate polymer (MSP) that is used in their drivers which allows them to have a unique sound in comparison to other loudspeakers.

In line with their in-house design philosophy, they’ve been known to hold listening sessions with their employees to determine which glue sounds better—something most other brands would describe as a non-factor in sound replication.

Dynaudio’s speaker drivers feature a noticeably flusher, modern aesthetic than the more recessed driver designs of many of their contemporaries, but this is not just for looks. This property increases the off-axis performance of their loudspeakers which in turn, widens the ‘sweet spot’ for listening—something that means you don’t have to give up your precious studio chair to a mate who wants to hear all the detail you’re hearing.

With this specialised approach to speaker production, their Consequence loudspeaker has been heralded as the upper threshold to beat in regards to audiophile hifi speakers, with the ability to reproduce the human hearing range with a linear frequency response! Good luck getting your hands on one of them today as they fetch hefty prices on the resale market.

In 1989 Dynaudio introduced their first studio monitor, Crafft. The 2-way bass reflex design allowed for a powerful sound out of a reasonably sized box, capable of reproducing frequencies from 38Hz-22kHz. As with the rest of their products, it featured a pure aluminium wound voice coil, soft dome tweeter and a 17cm (6.7”) woofer.

Since 2002 Dynaudio has been working closely with Volkswagon to produce high end car stereo systems including their famous Golf model. Car audio is often much looked over when purchasing a car, but with these audio experts at the helm, the use of up to 17 amplifiers and custom made drivers ensure top notch performance across the board. They don’t come standard though, you’ve got to upgrade to the Sound and Vision package to experience these exceptional speakers.

As a brand, Dynaudio has never shied away from innovation, releasing the world’s first high end wireless speaker with the XEO range. Utilising aptX Bluetooth technology, the range of loudspeakers can connect to any source that has the widely used wireless protocol. They didn’t stop there though, allowing all your speakers to be connected wirelessly too! Combine that with the constant firmware updates they push out to improve the DSP as technology advances, and the result is one of the best choices for wireless hi-fi listening.

Perhaps Dynaudio’s greatest triumph in the world of studio monitoring is the LYD range, which was first released in 2016. These speakers are definitely on the high end of the spectrum with active 24bit/96kHz DSP paired with top of the line Class-D amplifiers. The best application of this is the bass extension settings which allow you to roll off the low low end, in situations where you’d like to play really loud and not damage your system, or for precisely dialing in the sub bass frequencies.

dynaudio LYD range of professional studio monitors

Utilising their incredible soft dome tweeter, the LYD range has a detailed high end that is easy on the ears, allowing for long listening sessions without ear fatigue—something very sought after in top end studio monitors. Dynaudio themselves say that they experimented in depth to determine the right amount of coating on the tweeters and where that coating goes to ensure the best performance.

LYD48

The LYD48 in particular is a marvel, with its 1,4 and 8 inch drivers capable of producing some of the flattest, truthful audio you can find on the market. The active speakers have been praised by critics across the board for clean and precise audio, which could only be attributed to their painstaking work, hand assembling and researching very specific audio technologies.

Depending on how you like to work, there’s also a tilt feature which adds opposing high and low shelves depending on your preference. This feature is particularly special as it alters the frequency response without affecting the phase—a huge win for maintaining a clean audio path throughout.

With research and development at the forefront of Dynaudio’s design philosophy, their legacy is one rich with sound quality and the pursuit of the flattest, most truthful audio products. From the legendary Consequence loudspeaker up to their now modern classic LYD range, Dynaudio have cemented their place at the forefront of loudspeaker design.

Check out Dynaudio’s range of products here.