DynAudio X12 vs. MonitorAudio Silver RX2

Originally Posted by adityaag82

I am trying to decide between getting one of the following speakers:

Dynaudio Excite X12
MonitorAudio Silver RX2

(Sorry, trying to post links but this is my first post :/)

I am mostly planning on using these to listen to electronic music (house, techno), jazz and some HDTV (surround sound isn't a big deal).

Any tips/advice on which is a better choice?

Also, the receiver I am planning on getting is the Outlaw RR2150

Thanks!

Originally Posted by Stealthlude

I don't even give the Excite speakers that much credit... While there better than the Silver Series, they dont even hold a candle to the Gold.

The minimum I would buy from Dyn is the Focus line.
The minumum I would buy from MA is the Gold.
But thats just my opinion... and for the record I personally find the GS series MUCH better for electronic, house, trance, and hip-hop/rap.

The Dyns however do sound better with things that I dont listen to. My girlfriend could tell you why; because thats her brand of choice.

I can care less where the speaker is made, or who made it. If the chinese dude made something that sounds better to my ears, thats what im going to buy. The Dyns could have been made from unobtanium and assembled on the internation space station, that fact alone doesnt mean its a better speaker.

Originally Posted by tigerstripe

The GS speakers are fast, transparent, dynamic and detailed. Soundstage is large and open as well. My only complaint is that they are quite bright - the GS20s are too bright and harsh when presenting most of my instrumental CDs. For the GS series, I only considered the GS60s, but at the end I went for the Dynaudio C1s for my HT as they are neutral, more musical and have bigger soundstage and give me deeper and warmer bass with overall better control than the GS60s.

Regarding the quality issue, high end speakers are usually handcrafted and thus the quality depends heavily on the individual skills. I guess it is logical to assume speakers handcrafted in Europe have higher overall quality than those handcrafted in China ...

Originally Posted by Stealthlude

I don't even give the Excite speakers that much credit... While there better than the Silver Series, they dont even hold a candle to the Gold.

The minimum I would buy from Dyn is the Focus line.
The minumum I would buy from MA is the Gold.
But thats just my opinion... and for the record I personally find the GS series MUCH better for electronic, house, trance, and hip-hop/rap.

The Dyns however do sound better with things that I dont listen to. My girlfriend could tell you why; because thats her brand of choice.

I can care less where the speaker is made, or who made it. If the chinese dude made something that sounds better to my ears, thats what im going to buy. The Dyns could have been made from unobtanium and assembled on the internation space station, that fact alone doesnt mean its a better speaker.

Originally Posted by MUDCAT45

And cars made in Japan have more quality than those made in Europe. Simply made in Europe does not always mean best quality.

Originally Posted by tigerstripe

People certainly know items made in Japan have higher quality in general. I am talking about items *hand made* in China vs items *hand made* in Europe.

Locally in the Chinese community Dynaudio speakers are considered one of the most popular top tier speakers among audiophiles, yet there is no discussion concerning the quality of Dynaudio speakers in the local forums. Speakers from MA and Proac etc are considered 3rd to 4th tier speakers here and while there are very few discussions on these speakers, quality issues are topics quite common in the discussions ... Speaker factories are all very small scale no matter where they are located, but if you could compare a Chinese speaker factory with a European speaker factory owned by some famous brands, you will understand what I mean. There is no soap in the toilets and pantries of Chinese speaker factories, and the carpenters usually have no shoe and glove to wear and you can't even buy a single iPod with their monthly salary. Why would one expect their craftsmanship and skills on a par with an European carpenter working in a proper environment? Speakers made in China mostly have 1 year of warranty only, yet Dynaudio provides 5 years of warranty. As I mentioned before, the quality of Chinese made speakers is achieved by tight QC, yet the quality of Dynaudio speakers is achieved by outstanding craftsmanship. Just compare the build quality of the flagship MA platinum speakers with the budget Dynaudio Excite speakers - there is still some quality gap between the two if you are carefully enough.

The MA GS60s, PL200s and PL300s are great sounding speakers, but quality wise I don't think further debate is necessary. I am a 100% Chinese born in HK China, grew up in HK China, studied in HK China and I am now working in HK China, so you should know my above statements are not due to racism.

Originally Posted by Stealthlude

I don't even give the Excite speakers that much credit... While there better than the Silver Series, they dont even hold a candle to the Gold.

The minimum I would buy from Dyn is the Focus line.
The minumum I would buy from MA is the Gold.
But thats just my opinion... and for the record I personally find the GS series MUCH better for electronic, house, trance, and hip-hop/rap.

The Dyns however do sound better with things that I dont listen to. My girlfriend could tell you why; because thats her brand of choice.

I can care less where the speaker is made, or who made it. If the chinese dude made something that sounds better to my ears, thats what im going to buy. The Dyns could have been made from unobtanium and assembled on the internation space station, that fact alone doesnt mean its a better speaker.

Originally Posted by dhoff01

Everyone has their own opinion, but the one with the wallet is the only one that matters..

Originally Posted by dhoff01

Thanks Ricardo. That was pretty much my point.

Tiger: I have listened extensively to both the Dynaudio Focus 220s and the new Contour surrounds. I also spent considerable time with other speakers from Phase, Maggies, B&W, Paradigm, Thiel and Focus Audio (the latter of which I purchased). I initially was drawn to the Dynaudios for the very same reasons that you and others profess- I wanted a smoother, airy high that was neither forward nor bright. But after listening for countless hours, when compared to the above, I found them to be edgy. I may be in the minority, but I know enough to trust my own ears.

Regarding the Monitors, they simply were on the floor playing while I was waiting for the Dynaudios to be set up. The dealer was trying to sell me the Dynaudios and didn't even mention the Monitors. And for you to suggest otherwise, or worse to assume I am naive enough to be duped by a salesman, is, quite frankly, extremely offensive.

Finally, please do some research yourself before you speak on other brands. The fact that you've never heard of Balanced Audio Technology or VPI speaks more loudly to me than your rather bold claim that Dynaudio's tweeters are "the most famous and most respected ... in the world."

Originally Posted by dhoff01

Wow. That's a bold statement. And in my opinion, that's just hogwash. First, although I won't knock the build quality of Dynaudios, we're not comparing them to say Bose Audio. MAs are not that cheaply made. And second, there are many well built speakers out there that, for the money, sound poor to my ears. Take B&W for instance. Or better yet, Paradigm. I spent extensive hours listening to their top end speaker with the beryllium tweeter, and I have to say, I just didn't like it. And that's the experience I had with the Dynaudios. So does that mean I "simply cannot appreciate quality?" Please.

Originally Posted by Zetherin

No, it does not. But then again, I never said it did. My point, once again, is that it's important to distinguish between high quality and low quality (that which is objective), regardless and independent of personal preference. Though we may prefer a product of low quality, we ought not confuse ourselves by thinking our preference makes the product of a higher quality. That's all.

Originally Posted by Zetherin

I think their point, however, is that, while sound preference may be matter of opinion, build quality, design, and neutrality is not. These are matters of fact. And though a person may prefer a product of lesser quality, this does not make the lesser quality product comparable to a higher quality product. Some people simply cannot appreciate quality.

Lastly, it would be in error to think that everyone's opinion matters. Everyone's opinion does not matter; some people have not a clue what they're talking about, regardless of the subject matter, and in many cases it's completely fair to ignore them. I also think that, when talking about audio equipment, people overblow the subjective nature of auditory perception and willfully ignore that which is objective in order to appease themselves (generally because of financial limitations).

Originally Posted by tigerstripe

May I know how many pairs of Dynaudio speakers you have auditioned before? It is not me who think Dynaudio have smooth, neutral and delicate treble while the MA speakers lean toward the bright and edgy side - do a google search and you can see almost all user comments and professional reviews say the same. Their tweeters are one of the most famous and most respected tweeters in the world. So perhaps only your ears are tuned differently from the rest of people, and don't worry I do respect that.

Also as a matter of fact Dynaudio Focus 220s dig deeper than the RX6s both on specs and in my auditions. The entry budget model Dynaudio Excite X32 floorstanders already sound much better than the Silver RX6s and people will compare them only with the Monitor Audio Gold Signature speakers, and now you say the midrange model Focus 220s are not on a par with the RX6s. While different people do have difference in preferences, there are facts that won't change no matter what your personal preferences are.

I am sorry if I offend you but your statements and opinions just deviated too much from the truth. The only explanation is that perhaps it is the equipment that made the difference you experienced. I have no experience with the equipment you mentioned but please note that speakers in the same league as the Focus 220s will desire the equipment in the same league to sound their best. Using the equipment that sounds well with the RX6s will unlikely be able to properly unleash the potentials of the MA GS60s and the Focus 220s. The legendary Dynaudio Confidence C1s may sound poorer than the RX6s too if you use RX6s equipment to drive them.

Finally may I know if the dealer sells more MA speakers than Dynaudio speakers? It is a common trickery where dishonest dealers makes an A/B demo of a lesser speaker pair next to an obvious better speakers and uses simple tactics to make the better speakers sound worse than the lesser speakers in order to promote their lesser speakers of which they can make more profit out.

Originally Posted by tigerstripe

that's very true. Indeed I have been active in the internet since the very day internet was invented and this is nothing new to me.

If someone asks "a Lion vs a Chihuahua dog, which one do you prefer?" And some people say they prefer lions, some would answer they prefer Chihuahua. Both answers are absolutely fine as it clearly comes down to personal preferences when choosing either one.

However, if someone says "I have compared a Chihuahua puppy with a lion side by side, and I prefer the puppy because the puppy was stronger, meaner, balder and larger, while the lion was weaker, smaller and slower", this will certainly create some stir and lead to responses that this Chihuahua fanboy finds offensive. People can certainly have preferences, but opinions too far from the truth can hardly be tolerated, especially in this forum where most people are looking for good quality sound within their budget.

I have offered numerous possible explanations to explain why he would think the RX6s appeared better than the the Focus 220s, he rejected all these external reasons and insisted that RX6s are the real champion, and found my explanations (which are all external reasons) "offensive".

To dhoff01: saying the $3300 Focus 220s inferior in sound quality to the $1200 RX6s with absurd reasons is equally offensive to most Dynaudio owners, as you imply they are stupid to pay much more than you and get poorer sound quality than you. Also despite what you claimed, I would recommend you listen to more speakers in real life and speaks with more audiophiles or hifi enthusiasts (whatever you call them) than just googling around and listing information that you thought I did not know, pretending to be an expert of high-end speakers here.