B&W 601 S3 vs. Dynaudio Audience 42 (1 Viewer)

[Myki Cantero]

Can anyone give a helpful comparison between these 2 speakers? Is the Audience 42 a big difference? Is it worth it to spend the money to upgrade? Pros and cons?

I just want to get some opinions first before I even consider auditioning. Thank you very much.

 

[Jason_Me]

I don't like the audience series that much. I find the top end to be excessively laid back, and not properly matched with the mid range.

I like the B&W CDM series much more.

 

[Myki Cantero]

Jason, that's funny. My friend who owns an Audience 52 actually told me that the Audience was "more forward" and that B&W was laid back.

Maybe my friend had a different meaning. Does "laid back" mean that the soundstage is behind the speakers... as opposed to "forward" where the soundstage is toward the listener?

From what my friend tells me, the Audience is more detailed than B&Ws, the tweeter is it's asset, and that the bass is tighter and that it can go much lower. "Wow!", I said. Can this be true? I have actually invited him a few weeks from now to my place so he can bring his speakers and we can A/B them.

 

[Jason_Me]

Jason, that's funny. My friend who owns an Audience 52 actually told me that the Audience was "more forward" and that B&W was laid back.

I don't think you'll come across anyone on this board who describes B&W speakers as laid back, especially compared to Dyns. Forward/bright means the highs are in your face, laid back is on the other side of neutral. B&Ws are in your face, like Klipsch (except not as harsh). I guess its kinda hard to explain when people interpret words differently.

I auditioned the CDM7 against the Audience 72. The CDM7 had more slam, and clarity. I felt like it involved me more in the music. The 72 just didn't impress me (for reasons I've already explained).

 

[Myki Cantero]

Oh. My feelings exactly regarding B&Ws. I can never describe it as laid back. I better get those CDM's a try.

Does anyone else have experience between B&W 601 S3 and Dyns?

Myki

 

[Hyun K]

Jason....

Forward does not necessarily mean bright. Bright refers to a lot of enery content in the upper frequencies resulting in a edgy, crisp sound. Forward and laidback are terms that describe the placement of sound versus where they were recorded. A forward sound means the sound placement is closer to you than the original recording. Laidback meaning the opposite.... more of a distant presentation. These characteristics are usually caused by a prominent (forward) or recessed (laidback) midrange. Forward and laidback can have other slight variations in meaning depending on what context they're used but those are the primary definitions.

 

[Bob-N]

Way back when, I compared the 42's vs. 602 S2s. I thought the clarity of the mid range of the 602's was much better than the 42s. I tend to like the "forward" sound so maybe that's why I went with the 602's.

Didn't care much about slam (bass) since I knew that I'd be getting an SVS sub. Ended up with 602's before I moved onto the CDM line (1NT's and love them).

As always, YMMV. Go and listen to them on the same equipment and source material if posible and make your decision from there.

Bob

 

[BruceD]

I have experience with auditioning the Dynaudio Audience 40, 50, and 80 series, the Dynaudio Contour 1.3Mk II, 1.8 and 2.8 series, and the B&W 603, 604 and CDM1 and 7.

My experience was that the B&W had a somewhat sloppy bass and the treble was just too etched for my liking (probably due to the metal tweeters) across all the lines listed above.

I bought the Contour 2.8 towers because I liked the tightly controlled bass and smooth hi-frequencies (silk dome tweeter). They provided the best realistic rendition of female vocals and jazz for my tastes. The Audience series had the majority of the Contour attributes, but I did find the Contour series provided additional detail and clarity.

I also prefer Dynaudio's 1st order crossover to the higher order crossovers used by B&W. Probably because 1st order crossovers produce less phase offset between the drivers.

This is all just what I heard and what I like.

 

[Jason_Me]

Forward does not necessarily mean bright. Bright refers to a lot of enery content in the upper frequencies resulting in a edgy, crisp sound. Forward and laidback are terms that describe the placement of sound versus where they were recorded. A forward sound means the sound placement is closer to you than the original recording. Laidback meaning the opposite.... more of a distant presentation. These characteristics are usually caused by a prominent (forward) or recessed (laidback) midrange. Forward and laidback can have other slight variations in meaning depending on what context they're used but those are the primary definitions.

I have never heard a forward speaker that wasn't at least slightly bright, so forgive me for lumping the terms together.

I thought I was clear when I said forward is in your face, and laid back is on the other side of neutral. I guess not.

 

[Bob Ahlberg]

Actually, there may be some "brightness" in the mix, but that usually refers to treble frequencies while a "forward" sound has to do with both the sound plane of the sound compared to the front of the speaker and the upper midrange frequencies. The speakers in question have crossovers for the tweeters in the 2.8k and up range, so while that may have a effect on the upper harmonics of the music, it will effect high frequency sounds a great deal more.

Regarding tweeters, the dynaudio silk dome has long been regarded as a wonderful transducer. The metal domes "can" be a bit more etched and bright, but that is at least in part a function of speaker design and ancilliary equipment.
Bob

 

[Myki Cantero]

I can't wait in doing an A/B with these 2. Can't wait to educate myself also with these adjectives.

Maybe someone should create a website of these terms, and to give examples of speakers for a certain definition as well. I checked the FAQs and it didn't have a clear and solid definition of how these terms are used.

Bob, so you're a lot happier with the CDM-1NT than with your DM602 S3? Because again if there's a big difference, rather than saving up for a DM602, I could save up for a CDM-1NT. Just curious. It's nice to get advice from experience first before doing auditions.

 

[Michael Ipp]

I found the B&W too bright for my taste. Especially compared to the silky/warm sound of the Dynaudios. I bought the Audience 50's after the comparison.