Price Paid:  $2000.00 from 2nd hand

Summary:
These speakers are very well-made, they look small and very beautiful in their cherry-finish. They don't SOUND small however, bass is deep and full (30 Hz full) , soundstage is very good and the lack of grain is impressive.
I must confirm that they only sing when fed with good power, perhaps not hundreds of watts, but a very heavy and stable power supply in your amp.
When well charged by the amplifier, the sound is rather warm and very enjoyable without any stress, but there's absolutely no lack of detail, on the contrary. The 3.0's don not however over-expose details, just presenting them in a very natural sounding landscape.
Listening fatigue is non-existing with these superb Dynaudio's, which are prefered by many over the newer series, which show a tendency to sound a bit brighter.

Strengths:
Sound never less than musically very satisfying, with all kinds of music ranging from classical chamber music to heavy rock, and everything in between.

Weaknesses:
Honestly can't think of one ; and for the price you can buy them today, they're a steal!!

Similar Products Used:
about 12 different brands, Nautilus, Magnepan, Zingali....

Price Paid:  $3130.00 from Sound & Vision in Mi

Summary:
I''ve had a black ash pair of Contour 3.0s for 2.5 yrs. and I''ve been very happy with their sound. While not a speaker in the upper echelon, they do hold their own in the $5k range. I''ve run them with a Golden Tube SE40 SE tube amp, Belles 150a HOT ROD SS amp and for the last year and a half, a pair of Cary SLAM 100 tube amps running 95w in triode and set to 4 ohms. I''ve used a GT SEP 1 SE tube preamp and now run a Blue Circle 3.1 Galatea tube linestage. Since a Cary crapped out this week, I''m back to using the Belles. The treble is quite smooth and extended with really no grain/grit, when fed a clean signal. Dynaudio is known for their world class Esotar tweeter, but the Esotec is not too shabby either. The midrange is where I think these speakers shine. Female and male vocals are very real and lifelike. Very little distortion. As for the lower octaves, I''m amazed at the clarity and punch that I get from these tiny 8" woofers. It''s obviously a testament to the cabinet design. I listen to a lot of reggae and electronic vinyl, CD and SACD and I have no issues here. Sure, they don''t go much below 30Hz, but come on? They aren''t designed for the true bottom octaves and another speaker is probably needed, if HT duties/BASS Freak music is to played. I can''t stand those plastic binding post collars and I''ve had to file them down to accomodate the large spades on my Vampire Wire ST-III cables, but no bother. Fit and finish are stellar, but they aren''t lookers, if that''s your bag? The Dyns really love the juice and if you''re running tubes, 100w will be the minimum. The GT SE40, w/its 27-30w was just not up to the task and the bass was a slop fest. Many have described the Dyns as falling on the colder side of neutral and I''d probably agree. However, runing some nice PP tube amps can sweeten up the pie a bit and I''m content. Sure, they''re not perfect, but one won''t be throwing money out of the window if they can afford the admission fee. Other sources are Sony SCD-1 SACD player and a Kuzma Stabi/Stogi Ref. arm w/a Lyra Lydian B and SF Phono 1 SE stage. Sources plug into a PP300. Paint me a very happy camper. Chris Garrett, Miami

Strengths:
For their size, bass is very clean and well defined. Midrange stands out and treble is well integrated. Build quality.

Weaknesses:
Bass doesn''t go infrasonic or even hit the lowest octaves, but one shouldn''t expect it to. Kind of boring looking. Lousy European plastic collars around the binding posts.

Similar Products Used:
I''ve had Italian made ESB 7/08s and still own those. I also have a ''74 pair of Klipsch Cornwalls w/vertically mounted alnico horns in a second SET based system.

Price Paid:  $3200.00 from Audiogon

Summary:
All I have to say about the Review below is they used the wrong matching equipment and the speakers must have been under powered. They really need alot of power to sing. Being 86db.Tubes will not work. To say these have a weak bottom end is just not True.Unless they were under powered. They are also worth every penny. Especially if you get them on the used market. They sound to me even better then the 3.3's. I'd give them a 10 if I could.

Strengths:
Smooth highs ,Wonderfully Full bass

Weaknesses:
None

Summary:
I am in the process of replacing a 25 year old system that was purchased when I sold high end audio in the mid 70's. This has been fun but overwhelming.

I've auditioned the 3.0's at 3 different dealers, each with very different electronics and rooms. Electronics include Linn, MacIntosh and a 100 WPC Class A power amp of which brand I can not recall.

The neutral and accurate mid-band of the Dynaudio's is their real strength. The high's are extended and also very smooth. This is a speaker that plays all types of music well and is very easy to listen to.

My concern is with the limited dynamic expression, probably due to it's lower sensitivity. With the Linn and class A power amps the woofers distorted badly with deep, powerful bass passages at moderate to even somewhat low listening levels (Polka & Fugue on Reference Recordings CD).

With the Mac power amp (over 300 WPC), the meter were reading over 300 WPC at moderately loud levels (nowhere near uncomfortable).

Also, the 3.0's, like the Conour 1.8's, have a small sound to them in comparison with speakers from JM Labs and Revel. Regardless of the setup and placement, the 3.0's are identifiable as the point source of the music. To me, they just don't dissappear like other speakers in this price point or play loud enough with a reasonable sized amp.

They are beautiful to look at and have very high quality drivers. Unfortunately, they are made in Denmark where the cost of living is one of the highest in the World. This usually equates to a high cost of manufacture and I believe there are much better values, especially at $5400.

If you are interested in the 3.0's I highly recommend auditioning the Revel Performa F30. They are unusual to look at but provide a much greater sound stage, similar mid-band performance and much better bass in power, extension and defintion. At the same time you will save $2000. This, of course, is if you can stand they way they look.

If not, the new Performa F50 is shipping to dealers and although it has a $7500 list price, they are much more mainstream in styling and should offer performance very close to the Ultima line for much less dollars.

Strengths:
Wonderful mid-band. Very neutral speaker. Great driver and cabinet quality

Weaknesses:
Price, poor dynamic expression, low sensitivity, limited low-frequency extension.

Similar Products Used:
Dynaudio 1.8's,Audience 82, JM Lab 905,915.1,936, Revel M20, F30, Thiel 2.3, B&W 805,804,803, Quad 988, Paradigm S100, Hales Rev III,

Price Paid:  $2900.00

Summary:
One of the best, at its pricepoint. Have heard quite a few others,notably the Revels, Eggys,Sonus Fabers ; nothing approaches the Contours. I listen to a lot of jazz from the 50s and 60s, as well as some classical music. I thought at first that they sounded thin and bright (strange, considering I use an all tube setup) but after they'd been broken in- what a difference! They are, I think , very revealing of the upstream compnents. A badly recorded CD will not be helped by this speaker. In balance, though , a lot of power is needed to make them sing .

Strengths:
very transparent, lovely midrange, female voices are beautifully rendered

Weaknesses:
a touch too much midbass, could be my room

Similar Products Used:
Linn AV5140