Dynaudio Special 40 vs Dali Opticon 2 MK2 - half the price, half the performance? 

Very precise assessment.

Agreed.....Dali's are more enjoyable overall......!!!

Dali has a good blend of transparency and neutrality while still sounding musical and not too analytical. There are more exciting speakers, smoother speakers, etc., and you can prefer one over it for different music, movies, mood, etc., but overall, its a very satisfying and engaging listen without noticing anything really annoying and for extended listening. I guess some call that balance?

Prob why main is sometimes paired with dyn. Give em some zip

Not across the board but agree as my Focal 807W and Dali Opticon 1 good on dialogue, as are my ML 15i. Dali Oberon 1 was decent but lacked dynamic range and some resolution. Opticon better for me over Oberons with both movies and music. Guess it depends on crossover, parts as well. I thought the little Spektor held up really well against the Oberon too but needed more power. Dynaudio and Focal are very different presentations and neither are really neutral, IMO. Good to have alot of choices.

I believe you may be mistaken on the cost of the Dali, average cost for the Opticon 2 MK2s is more like $1,500 US for the pair. I suspect the $950-1000/pair(presumptively) you speak of may be for the Opticon 1 MK2 series.

Any thoughts/experience how the MK2 differs from the older models they replaced? I have the Opticon 1 and really like them. Have others as well but the Dali are the most neutral sounding I have but I can easily swap i and out depending on mood, needs.

Thanks a lot Larry! Yes it does, and how should I put it... it doesn't pay :) So these kind of comparisons will most probably stop for a time now, as I have turned towards other hobbies of mine. Enjoy the content!

but in price dali is much thinner also

I would agree, more low end weight on the Dyns but I like the transparency and speed, resolution of the Dali. I liked the Menuet SE, very 3D if you use nearfield but less transparent than Opticon 1 which was more versatile from further away without giving up too much of what the SE did best. That SE was a pig for power too.

Watch carefully, all equipment is at the start of the video.

This is not the reply you hope for, but I can't give you advice on that. In my opinion in hifi over the last years is tha the room will make up for at least 30% of your sound - I fact, my speakers sounded way different when I brought them to others for audition. So my experience, will not help you. As you can see I voted for the Dynaudio Special 40 as my main speaker (used you can have them for under 2000), but I have seen some people describe them as 'too bright', or 'flat', whereas for me they are the least bright sounding speakers I ever har and in my room they have a beautiful 3D soundstage. TL; DR: you need to go out and listen for yourself.

@@georgedomse i completely agree with you. Perhaps then the question shoyld be from what you have seen and heard, which ones have made a very good impression from the point of build quality, value for money or even somehow struck you as punching above their level. Ofc again within the 2000eur budget. Thanks

​@@apmihai82You have to make the final buying decision. Some highly recommended speakers may completely disappoint you. So auditioning speakers is paramount.

Excelente punto

What did you get

I bought the Wharfedale Evo 4.1, not convinced though@@roybrolsbeak

The Opticon 2 is a better speaker overall. The Oberons have more bass output but at the same time its less controlled and slower. Midrange will be about the same with the Oberons being a touch cleaner maybe. Highs are way better on the Opticon 2's - less sharp and pokey. With all that they reamin a fun speaker to listen to.

thank you very much for your information, it helps in my choice,thanks for the videos.

You're welcome. All the equipment is listed at the start of the video.

@@georgedomse I'm so sorry..thank you :)

What about the Emit20 ?

@@RanTausi Can't say as I never tried those.

Interesting. I have Opticon 1 mk1, and bought Emit 10 on sale. Prefer the Emit 10. Did you let the Emit 10 get run in, before coming to a conclusion? Used to own a pair of Evoke 20. I actually prefer the way the Emits play, compared to the Evoke. Do have Emit 20 as well. To me Emit sound more colored compared to Evoke, which seem more dry and neutral.

@@Bobbe1994 The evoce is in higher legh and much more expensive from the emit.

@Bobbe1994 I thought they were run in. Definitely sounded bigger than opticon 1. Something about the new emits that sounded off to me at times. Perhaps the older emit m10 was different. Prefer opticon especially near field and now using martin logan 15i as mains with a sub. Also, I felt stage depth lacking g a bit on new emit 10. But alot of people lIike them. Just my preferences, room and what I perceive.

No it isn't.

I really like the bass of the Dali's. It's quicker and more precise in my room than the Dynaudio, which is softer and simply more. I always use the Dyno's with the bass reflex port plugged, but I can get away with the ports open on the Dali. (in all other areas the SP40's win, but at bass, the Dalis are better)

@@georgedomse i Listen so much comparison between the opticon and rubicon series. Vocals and Bass are much better in the rubicon series. But for the money the opticons are a good choice.

@@DonPrimitivo263 at the same time the highs of the Rubicons are waaaaay overboard for me. To much, too intursive, too shrill. But I agree, many like that as many like BnW speakers, which are just horrible for me.

@@georgedomse b&w its to Brighton for me

With the Dali Opticon 2 it is essential that you use the speakers with the grilles on (do not take them off) and without any toe-in (speakers should be placed straight, i.e. with the back side of the speaker parallel to the wall behind them). If you take the grilles off and/or toe-in, you risk the listening fatigue. The listening fatigue is very often (or always?) caused by excessive sound pressure level around the frequency of 3 kHz, i.e. in the range of the transition from mids to treble. I have done some measurements of the Opticons 2 and found that the grille reduces the volume (sound pressure level) in that very region of around 3 kHz by a few dB. This effectively prevents the fatigue but without any excessive safety margin, which in the final effect lets the speakers play crisply and produce a very detailed sound while not being fatiguing. As to the toe-in, the volume of the woofer in the Opticons 2 rises slightly between 3-4 kHz (a natural behavior in almost any woofer, related to cone break-up or resonances at high frequencies (3-4kHz is high for a woofer)). This can be identified by measuring the woofer with a microphone very close to the woofer (e.g. 10 cm). At the same time at these higher frequencies the dispersion of a woofer decreases significantly, i.e. when listened from an angle, say 30 degrees, these elevated 3-4kHz produced by the woofer disappear. And around 30 degrees is the angle at which you listen to the speakers when they are not toed-in. If you toe them in, then you listen to the woofer more on-axis (the speaker firing straight at you and your ears catch some of that slight 3-4kHz elevation of the woofer and this may cause / intensify the listening fatigue). I experienced this fatigue myself with this speakers and after some investigations came to the above conclusions. In general I think these speakers are great. All you need to do is set them up according to the user manual, which says the same as the above hints (grille on and no-toe-in). This is my experience with these speakers. Hope this helps. Note that I am very sensitive to listening fatigue and I would disqualify any speaker for causing it. The Opticons 2 - I greatly like!

I connect the optical output of the TV the a DAC (either inside the amp, if it has one, or I use an external DAC), which then goes via quality RCA cables to the amp.

No AVR. All the equipment used is listed in the video.