cross

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
Listened to cdm 1nt, n805, cm1, SF concertino/home, SF concerto, Monitor Gold, JM Lab Chorus 800 series, Dyn special 25, focus 110 and own Dyn Audience 42, 52, bw 603s2.
Compared to some of the above, these speakers dont reach out and grab your attention right away....in an audio shop , 1 might tend to dismiss them. But give them a serious extended listen and they Grow on you.
As you listen and listen some more...you realize that they're just so natural sounding. So much so that I have grown addicted to their sound.
compared them extensively to the special 25's....don't think you're giving up much ground at a fraction of the price.
SF always sound sweet...very seductive at first listen...but after a while, they seem to lack detail...and can sound a bit colored.
JM lab can sound tiring because of extended highs.
Audience 52 ...good but I like Audience 42 better! ...very articulate little speaker, very fast! but not as natural as Focus 140 though.

These are just my opinions though. Everyone has different tastes, so just give them a good listen and draw your own conclusions.

Happy Hunting :)

Strengths:
very natural sound
clean and very smooth treble

Weaknesses:
long run in time...close to 200 hours for me.
positioning - have to be well away from walls - otherwise bass is boomy

Similar Products Used:
dyn audience 42, 52, special 25, focus 110, evidence tempation
jm lab chorus
b&w 603s2, 602s3, cdm 1 nt, n805, 802d
SF concertino/home, concerto
watt puppy 7

karireka

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
4.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $2000.00 from authorized dealer

Summary:
I have had the audience 42 for years as front speakers and I was more than pleased with them. I was reffered to dynaudio years ago from an other enthusiastic quality ear. I bought a maranz sorround amph ( 1500$) last year and I couldnt wait to get my ears on a focus 140 for the front to replace the 42 which would go and serve as back monitors. I came home yesterday finaly with the 140 and I didnt really go to sleep. They are outstanding I truly believe after years of putting my ears to hundreds of set ups that at this price range there is none better. None will perform at this level. My speakers are broken in at least 100 hours as I was keepingn touch with the dealer over the months. Tell everyone that 140 outperforms with ease any given speaker at this range. Needless to say Dynaudio as home theather ear monitors is a dangerous competitor to any other system. I will get the centers in a few months too. Hail Dynaudio!

Strengths:
simply wont find anything close to this at this range

Weaknesses:
would like it to be a little heavier

Similar Products Used:
dynaudio a 42

peterl69

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $1800.00 from Authorized Dealer

Summary:
Wonderful sound that easily bests the B&W 805s in my opinion. They have a dynamic rich and more natural sounding midrange, more bass, and are not inclined toward harsh sibilance like the B&W 805s. They play classical, jazz, and rock all quit well.

They like power and to be turned up to sound their best so plan on driving them solid state with at least 80 watts of high current per channel. They still sound great at low levels but really shine when turned up.

A minor but relevant quibble about the appearance and quality of the veneer:
Although they are well constructed, the veneer is just average as far as other equally priced high end speakers. Unfortunatley, although Danes may not lie, they obviously do embelish. The deep grained quality mirrored bookend veneer in their brochure and on their exhibit demos, is rarely put onto the everyday Focus 140 speakers sold. Although the grain is decent, it is just not in the same catagory quality wise as the Dalis or Onix Reference speakers. The veneer on the Focus series is closer to that on the B&W series which may be slightly better. It is sad Dynaudio couldn't spend another $100 per pair and do it right for the price you are paying. I sent back a pair of maple veneer Focus 140 speakers with veneer that approaced the quality seen on sheet of plywood. It irked me that a bookcase at Coppenhagen selling for $150 had far better maple on it.

One can only guess that this is by design, as the Focus line might outsell the Contour line with drivers which by my ear emulate them. However, the weird gray alien face inspired faceplates of the other Dynaudio lines make the Focus overall a better looking speaker to me. I found the Rosewood veneer to be the most attractive by my tastes - although with the pair I got there was a very slight blemish in minor missing stain right on the edge where the veneer angles around the corner on top. Can only be seen from very close up with a discerning eye.

However the drivers and the sound are gold. These are my favorite monitors overall. However, I think for instrumentals and vocals and classical perhaps the Merlins may be a tad better and more efficient at lower listening levels, but they don't offer the same dynamics playing " turn it up" rock and roll as the dynaudios do by my ear. However, I have heard the new Merlin MMes are even better than the pair of mms I had.

I have read the Focus take 200 hours to break in. I found them great out of the box. I can't imagine them getting better!

Strengths:
Full rich natural sounding midrange
Great bass for monitors, approaches floorstanders
Detailed, smooth, but non fatiging highs
Good construction
Perform better when turned up (still good at low levels)
Pricely, but still a great price for their performance level

Weaknesses:
Need good high current power (I recommend 80 or more high current watts up if using solid state Amps)
Perform better when turned up (also a strength if thats the way uh huh you like it)
Mediocre veneer compared to other high end similarly priced speakers - but not bad overall except for the pair I took back. I recommend that you inspect them at the dealer.

Similar Products Used:
Merlin mm
B&W 805
Dali Helicons

Price Paid:  $1800.00 from Authorized Dealer

Summary:
These speakers bested my Dali Helicons and B&W 805 monitors previously owned. They have a broader and more dynamic soundstate than both of these other monitors. The bass is deep and the trebles detailed without fatiging like the B&W 805s.

They play both Jazz, Rock, Vocals, and Instrumentals very well. Very Dynamic. They can play Fleetwood Mac plays like it was meant to be heard with a full bass (but not muddy) and the midrange and highs sound deep and rich. Or they can paly Mozart with distinction also.

By my ears the Focus 140s are one of the best monitor speakers out there and for the price, there are non better. The construction is good, although the veneer is good, it is also somewhat plain in that it seems they don't actually provide you with the bookend highest woodgrain veneer like you will see in the Dalis. However, they make up for that with extraordinary sound. I heard they stink until they are broken in, but mine have impressed right out of the box. I can't imagine how they can get much better. However, If you look a little more detail and slightly less bass, the Merlins may sound better to you. But now we are talking about personal preference in musical presentation. Many people have told me they like the Merlins better than the Dyns for their taste, but I think the Dynaudios win out slightly for me with their Dynamic sound as I occasional like to crank it up with that "gold old Rock and Roll" and the Dynaudios shine in that regard.

Which brings me to another point. They perform good at low levels but shine at higher volumes and need high current power to perform well. For solid state amps, I recommend at least 80 watts of high current power or to get another amp for these babies. By the way, my under rated Harman Kardon $250 2 channel amp at 120 watts sounded great with these speakers so you don't need the most expensive amp out there.

If you want a rich midrange and deep bass from a monitor with articulate yet non fatiging highs this is your speaker. For the price, they are without pier.

Strengths:
Spacial, rich natural sounding midrange
Wonderful full bass without being muddy unless you put them against the wall
The bass comes close to floorstanders
Sooth and detailed but non fatiging treble
Attractive Veneer without the peculair gray faceplate style of their other series
Great Imaging
Sound and drivers that emulate their Contour line
By my taste, the Rosewood veneer is the most attractive.

Weaknesses:
Good, but not great veneer as far as quality of grain - althougth well applied:

I don't know of any weaknesses except for the miner quibble that although their sales brochures and demos at exhibits show the highest quality heartwood bookend veneer, the veneer on the typical speaker sold, although good, is rarely the highest grade of veneer that you will see on the Dalis or the Onix Reference Speakers (or the Focus 140s shown in the Dynaudio Brochure again for that matter). My guess is Dynaudio felt since the drivers (bay my ear) are on the same level as their Contour line, that they couldn't make the veneer exactly the same without outselling the contour line (which don't look attractive at all with the gray face plates in my opinion).

Considering how beautiful the sound is, I feel ever so slightly shorted after seeing the other better veneered speakers mentioned. But don't misunderstand, the veneer is still very nice and high quality - just not on a par with the luscious book end veneer of some other high end audiophile speakers mentioned. I would have liked to see Dynaudio charge another $100 per pair and do it right and be truthful to the images shown in their brocures.

Danes may not lie, but they sure can embelish in that their brocure models show bookend the highest grade heartwood veneer, but I haven't seen it sold in several pair of their Focus speakers. In fact, I saw one pair of Maple Focus 140 speakers (I took them back), with veneer cheaper than that on a $150 maple veneer bookcase I saw at Coppenhagen furniture.

Similar Products Used:
B&W 805
Dali Helicon
Merlin mm

Belgarchi

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
4.75 of 5, 4.00 votes

Price Paid:  $1200.00 from Audiogon

Summary:
These speakers are stunning. The enclosure is very good, and has non-parallel sides. The crossover is a high quality 6 db/octave. But what makes them special is the quality of the midbass (thin, gorgeous cast frame and 75mm moving coil!) and the quality of the tweeter (its ancestor, the D28AF, was already the best on the planet 20 years ago).
And THE SOUND! These speakers are incredibly good. These bookshelves are able to fill my huge living room (~7000 cubic feet) with a symphonic orchestra!
Deep bass, not fatiguing, detailed, excellent soundstage, neutral, dynamic.....
Better than any bookshelf I listened to, including my own B&W Nautilus 805.
To be fair, I must say that they are driven by a Conrad-Johnson MF2250A, more expensive than the speakers themselves.....

Strengths:
Build quality, sound, sound, sound.

Weaknesses:
None that I know of, but I don't know how they would sound with cheap electronic.

Similar Products Used:
B&W, Seas, JM Lab, NHT, Tannoy, Polk Audio, Meadowlark, etc.